(no subject)

[thedeadparrot]

For those of you who were into Papers, Please, Rock Paper Shotgun did a pretty good writeup of it. And they've actually played the game!

Choice quote:

But the scariest – and therefore, most illuminating – moments were the ones in which my mindset naturally, gradually fell into perfect sync with that of the system I so vehemently despised. Seeds of mistrust were quickly sown. A few botched attempts at being The Good Guy – of believing that empathy and understanding can overcome all, make friends of enemies – resulted in penalties, murder, and terrorism. I became paranoid, sick with stress. If anyone even seemed suspicious, they were getting detained – their basic rights to privacy and freedom torn off their backs just like that. I couldn’t take any chances. People’s lives were in my hands, and back home, my family was counting on me. People pleaded to be let through, but how could I trust them? It was their well-being versus that of me and mine. I picked mine. Every time.

I think in some ways, the beauty of this game might be how skilled the design is, that it can sucker you into its way of thinking. It's interesting to compare it to something like Female Experience Simulator, which wears its agenda on its sleeve, and I think, brings up a defensiveness that makes it easier to dismiss.