All games are political. Some are political to a major degree, where their sole purpose is to say something. Others to a lesser degree, where the product has no message to convey. Like all art, however, just because you didn’t intend for your game to be political doesn’t mean it isn’t. What you choose to create is a reflection of yourself, even if it’s something as simple as a landscape painting. Palestine Skating Game is an example of a game created with the intention of saying something, and its intention is what drives the whole experience.
The Pitch
While playing Palestine Skating Game, players roller-skate around an occupied Palestine, spray painting walls, tanks, all while avoiding gunfire from Israeli soldiers. The prototype available on Itch.io includes a 3D modeled West Bank with about two kilometers of the separation wall. The wall is littered with graffiti taken from real photographs.
The lead developer, Justin, (who hasn’t shared his last name because of online threats), hopes to change minds and bridge an empathy gap with his game. In an interview with WBUR, he spoke his intentions clear: “I really do hope that we reach American youth and people who play video games — it would be wonderful to target young white men who voted for [President-elect Donald] Trump with leftist video games generally,” says Justin. “To introduce them to a side of the Arab world that they never knew about — it’s a vibrant, diverse and artistically brilliant place.”
Despite the game not having been released yet, there has already been a positive impact. Fans of the game have donated thousands of dollars to help one game developer get out of Palestine safe, and help another dev feed his family.
The Method
Within the context of the game, the player rebels against an oppressive and violent force using nonviolent, artistic means. Paint and skate come together as they have previously in games like Jet Set Radio and Bomb Rush Cyberfunk. While these games pit you up against a fictional oppressive force, Palestine Skating Game seems to take that same idea and apply it to our real world, using the tried and true image of artist vs overwhelming force — a striking image that always has people rooting for the artist.
By using paint as your primary means to interact with the world, developer Justin makes it impossible for the player to perform any kind of significant violence against the Israeli soldiers. In an interview with Aiplus on Tik-tok, Justin stated that they are “not going to shy away from the fact that people are dying”, but that he was personally “not interested” in depicting Israeli soldiers dying.
As a student in game development, It excites me to see video games used in this manner. Music, movies, and books have long had a presence in current politics, but because of the stigma around video games they haven’t been able to have as much of a voice. As time goes on and more games challenge that stigma, it slowly withers away. Regardless, Palestine Skating Game seems to have a stronger, more direct voice than most.
You can follow the dev team on their instagram here!
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