Zombie shooters
Left 4 Dead 2 is a 2009 game where you shoot zombies. It’s very popular, owned by maybe 60 million people.1 It’s also well made, and has staying power: game journalists are still raving about it after a decade and a half.2 Players love its dynamic difficulty and its Hollywood-style action.
It is sometimes possible to use guns to be the hero of the story. A police officer could stop a domestic abuser with a threat of violence. A soldier could join a just war against a terrible dictator. Occasionally, even, a random “good guy with a gun” can stop a mass shooting in its tracks.3
Actually being a hero with guns is hard, though. It usually requires other skills than shooting guns, like staying alert under pressure. It often requires other people, like generals or 911 operators. And even though opportunities do arise, it’s rare that one arises for you, specifically.
Left 4 Dead 2 and other zombie shooters let you play out the fantasy of being a hero with a gun, even if you never will be in real life. You and your fellow survivors face a horde of infected zombies and you need to shoot them to keep yourself and your teammates alive until the next safe house. Dying to a zombie that senses your movements or to friendly fire means you respawn in a sealed closet and your teammates have to free you. There are moral complications involved, but only to enrich and deepen the main gameplay loop where you shoot zombies.
This is not a bad thing. It is reasonable to want to play a game that’s a power fantasy for guns, and it’s good to make a game for people who want to play it. It’s a well made game, and I’m glad it exists even if I don’t play it.
Factorio
Factorio is a 2016 game4 where you industrialize. It’s not as popular as Left 4 Dead 2, but it’s still pretty popular, owned by maybe 8 million people.5 It’s attracted the attention of the likes of the Financial Times for being popular with tech workers.6 Players love its organic mental challenges and its “unapologetic rigor”. We call it “Cracktorio”.
It is sometimes possible to use science and engineering to be the hero of the story. A DNA test technician could free an innocent man, or catch a real killer. A civil engineer could design a levee that holds back a flood. Occasionally, even, a single medical researcher can pioneer a treatment that saves millions of lives.
Actually being a hero with science and engineering is hard, though. It usually requires other skills than doing science, like advocating for your ideas or filling out paperwork. It often requires other people, like other engineers or public health officials. And even though opportunities do arise, it’s rare that one arises for you, specifically.
Factorio and other factory games let you play out the fantasy of being a hero with science and engineering, even if you never will be in real life. You (and maybe your fellow engineers) face a world of untapped resources and you need to do engineering to them until you reach the next science pack. Dying to an alien insect that hates your pollution or getting hit by a train you built means you respawn and have to go get your stuff from your corpse. There are moral complications involved, but only to enrich and deepen the main gameplay loop where the factory must grow.
This is also not a bad thing. It is reasonable to want a game that’s a power fantasy for engineering, and it’s good to make a game for people that want to play it. It’s a well made game, and I’m glad it exists in part because I’ve played it for 1,200 hours.
Pretty much every big video game involves a fantasy of some sort. Minecraft is a fantasy of exploration. Mario is a fantasy of beating a monster and saving a princess. Tetris is a fantasy of getting objects lined up juuust right. We love fantasies, and being in control of them makes them even better. That’s one main appeal of gaming.
Power fantasies are just one category of fantasy. But the idea that you can be the hero of the story, overcoming a challenge you relish by doing something that you’d enjoy anyway, is a very appealing fantasy indeed. It even reaches beyond gaming – there’s no shortage of blazing-guns action films, but even the science crowd gets to have Dr. Stone and The Martian. Being able to enjoy power fantasies is a great part of being a human in an age with so much media. At least, so long as we recognize that they’re fantasies and enjoy them responsibly. (No more overnight Factorio marathons, I swear!)
Coming soon: The metal that remade time
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