Ruminating on his personal blog Xbox Live Arcade's Portfolio Planner David Edery ponders the economic limitations of "serious" games. Would a civil rights game be profitable? Could a Holocaust game be marketed as "fun" (in terms of gameplay mechanics) without distorting the social message?It's not just profit margin concerns that hold back publishers from green-lighting games that take on difficult subjects. More likely, it's the anticipation of backlash upon announcing development of a Schindler's List game adaptation. Mainstream fears still insist that games' active participation endangers players; whereas, passive viewing allows participants to keep a "safe" distance from subject matter.
Perhaps there are certain historical events that are better left un-gamed, but developers should not overlook the power of allegory. We should not let our games shy away from teaching our most important lessons.
