Chavez angered at Mercenaries 2

[CptStern]

A U.S. company's video game simulating an invasion of Venezuela is supposed to hit the shelves next year, but it's already raising the ire of lawmakers loyal to President Hugo Chavez.

Chavez supporters in Venezuela's National Assembly suspect the makers of Mercenaries 2: World in Flames are doing Washington's bidding by drumming up support among Americans for an eventual move to overthrow Chavez.

"I think the U.S. government knows how to prepare campaigns of psychological terror so they can make things happen later," Congressman Ismael Garcia said, citing the video game developed by Los Angeles-based Pandemic Studios.

I think it's a bit of a stretch to link the game to the US government ..however there's do disputing that Pandemic is making a political statement with this game ..it's just unavoidable.

U.S. officials have repeatedly denied planning an attack on Venezuela, though President Bush said he is concerned about "an erosion of democracy" here — an accusation Chavez has called blatantly false.

lies, they tried in 2002, I wouldnt put it past them to try again ...hopefully other media will counter this sort of propaganda


http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2006-05-24-venezuela-game_x.htm

 

[Raziaar]

It's just a game.

Bush: Mercenaries 2 made me do it!

 

[Gray Fox]

It's just a game.

Bush: Mercenaries 2 made me do it!

Ohh, that put a guilty smile on my face.

 

[Sulkdodds]

Sigh. What a prat.

Just shut up and play the game Hugo! You can't sing!

 

[CptStern]

it's really not all that far fetched:

And, one thing young recruits in today's military have in common is that they've all played video games.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/02/08/eveningnews/main672455.shtml


a little bit of pre-brainwashing goes a long way

 

[Sulkdodds]

D:

Does that mean we could soon be preparing for an invasion by the Strogg/and or the Universal Union?

 

[CptStern]

probably ..but they call them something else: Iranians

 

[Sulkdodds]

You're thinking of Halo's Covenant.

The Combine would be the Soviets or Nazis, while the Strogg would be...uh, multiculturalism? Amputists?

 

[99.vikram]

Russia, Iraq, Iran, Cuba, etc. are standard bad guy templates in American games.

 

[CptStern]

the "evil-doers" ..meh it's a just a matter of time before the "evil-doers" switch sides

 

[99.vikram]

With each passing decade America gets new enemies. Soon the whole world will be the 'bad guys'.

 

[Sainku]

I had a page long satrical post about pandemic being a puppet of the bush administration and making parallels between star wars battlefront and the current situation with venezula. But I wasn't logged in

 

[Raziaar]

With each passing decade America gets new enemies. Soon the whole world will be the 'bad guys'.

I don't THINK so.

 

[CptStern]

'You are either with us or against us' - GW Bush November 6, 2001


the scales are bound to tip to either side sooner or later

 

[rAdIOhEaD]

As a Venezuelan, I don't have any problem with this game, on the contrary, now I am looking forward to it, and congressman Ismael Garcia can shut his big mouth and start doing something for my country instead of kissing Chave'z butt.

 

[CptStern]

you'd really want the US top overthrow chavez? I can tell you from experience that if they do it wont be because it benefits Venezuelans

 

[Flyingdebris]

Hugo chavez is a commie asswipe. He deserves a lot more than a fictional attack.

Besides, chavez makes a whole lot more propaganda than a game studio. Pot, Kettle, Black.

 

[Sulkdodds]

I'd love to see a game in which England was invaded.

Like my idea of doing Operation Flashpoint but set in an alternate 1940 where Germany wins the Battle of Britain and invades the UK. Like OPFlash, it'd be in three parts: Part 1, where you must defend the southeast of the country as the Nazis swarm from the coast, culminating in the defence and the capture of London by the Nazis; Part 2, where you go underground with the British Resistance, harrying the German forces as they move up England towards Manchester, alternately playing your first character, a Commando officer and a tank pilot of the Scots Guard. In Part 3, you (as assorted characters) are striking from the saftey of the Scottish highlands, clearing the way for the eventual recapturing of Manchester. The game would end with the assassination of Herman Goering as the Nazis are driven back down towards London and American paratroopers begin to rain down over the fields and houses.

 

[rAdIOhEaD]

you'd really want the US top overthrow chavez? I can tell you from experience that if they do it wont be because it benefits Venezuelans

I never said that, however, that possibility is always there since we have a lot of oil (A LOT).
Is still funny how anti-American (or anti Bush administration?) always use Chavez as an example of a though guy who doesn't take crap from anyone, when in reality all that he has is a big mouth and nothing more, when he was a prisoner in the last coup d'etat, all that he did was crying and ask for mercy, don't get me wrong, I really don't like Bushes administration and and I think Americans deserve something better than that, but is not different in Venezuela, what we have here is a pseudo-communist wannabe with cero ideas of how to rule a country, he is now a celebrity because of his lack of diplomacy and his big mouth, but thats all, he is just the new "Che" Guevara, the new Allende, the new Noriega (who had a mouth as big as Chave'z).
To sum up, guys who don’t agree with USA's ways, don't look here for your hero, nothing to see here except the South American douchbag of the moment...

 

[CptStern]

Hugo chavez is a commie asswipe. He deserves a lot more than a fictional attack.

Besides, chavez makes a whole lot more propaganda than a game studio. Pot, Kettle, Black.

:upstare: knee-jerk idiocy makes my head hurt


I wonder how many of you would be protesting if a game company made a game around Niceragua circa the 1980's where the US were the bad guys? Or Chili 1973, Guatemala 1954, Dominican Republic 1961, 1965, Laos 1959, Haiti 1959, 1971, 1986, 1990, 1993, Congo 1961, 1965, Ecuador 1963, Indonesia 1965, Uruguay 1969, Bolivia 1968, 1971, Angola 1975, Iran 1953, El Salvador 1979, Honduras 1983, Panama 1989 etc etc etc

I never said that, however, that possibility is always there since we have a lot of oil (A LOT).

yes and it hasnt escaped the americans notice


btw you do know who backed the coup against chavez right?

 

[rAdIOhEaD]

btw you do know who backed the coup against chavez right?

Actually this was Chavez’s version of the story, he went to the UN two times trying to convince the UN of this, however his story without proves was as unconvincing as Powell's WOMD in Iraq.
I can't say if the States really helped, no one has proves of anything, however even if the States helped, Chavez’s was overthrew by Venezuelans, a huge mass of them marching in the streets, no weapons were involved except for the ones of the Government, Chavez blamed the state of convincing us Venezuelan of trying to overthrow him. Compare that to Cuba’s “Bahia de Cochinos” invasion, now THAT is an invasion clearly sponsored by the states, with weapons and USA army jets crappy painted to hide USA’s flags and Army logos.
The thing is nobody really now what really happened that day, it was really sudden and Chavez’s people and his opponents are still throwing accusations at each other without factual proofs…

 

[kirovman]

Well, let's just see what Dr. Thrax has to say about this.

 

[DeusExMachina]

How isn't it too far-fetched. Pandemic is a goddamn videogame company. They wanna make a fun game. People have to take it as a political statement. Keep your politics out of my videogames.

 

[pvtbones]

I'd love to see a game in which England was invaded.

Like my idea of doing Operation Flashpoint but set in an alternate 1940 where Germany wins the Battle of Britain and invades the UK. Like OPFlash, it'd be in three parts: Part 1, where you must defend the southeast of the country as the Nazis swarm from the coast, culminating in the defence and the capture of London by the Nazis; Part 2, where you go underground with the British Resistance, harrying the German forces as they move up England towards Manchester, alternately playing your first character, a Commando officer and a tank pilot of the Scots Guard. In Part 3, you (as assorted characters) are striking from the saftey of the Scottish highlands, clearing the way for the eventual recapturing of Manchester. The game would end with the assassination of Herman Goering as the Nazis are driven back down towards London and American paratroopers begin to rain down over the fields and houses.

what about us canucks? ;(

but now being on topic,:

it's funny in an odd sad sort of way.

 

[SAJ]

How isn't it too far-fetched. Pandemic is a goddamn videogame company. They wanna make a fun game. People have to take it as a political statement. Keep your politics out of my videogames.

Its about who is an acceptable face of "the enemy" , you wouldnt have the US make a realistic game where the English were the bad guys (unless its historic) so the choice of whom you have as the enemy is revealing ( and that goes for all cultural forms, not just games).

And Pandemic dont just make games, they make training tools for the US army;

Pandemic lists a game called "Full Spectrum Warrior / Army Training", which it describes as a "squad-level, dismounted, light infantry training simulator created for use by the US Army".

( source -BBC)

Pandemic's publicist Chris Norris said its designers "always want to have a rip from the headlines".
He added: "Although a conflict doesn't necessarily have to be happening, it's realistic enough to believe that it could eventually happen."

- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5016514.stm

 

[DeusExMachina]

It's not like US game developers haven't made Americans bad guys before. And it certainly isn't like they use one group of people as bad guys. Not the good games anyway. I'm sure you could find a game with an English antagonist.

 

[DreadLord]

It's not like US game developers haven't made Americans bad guys before. And it certainly isn't like they use one group of people as bad guys. Not the good games anyway. I'm sure you could find a game with an English antagonist.

Battlegrounds? Lol..

But yeah.. The new BF2 expansion features battles on American soil.. I was amazed that they made Russia an enemy of the UK and EU in BF2.

 

[CptStern]

It's not like US game developers haven't made Americans bad guys before.

I cant think of a single instance

 

[DreadLord]

It may be bad marketing to sell a game within the United States where the objective is to kill your fellow Americans in battle.

 

[SAJ]

It may be bad marketing to sell a game within the United States where the objective is to kill your fellow Americans in battle.

So it forms a part of the cultural background, a form of self indoctrination if you like.

 

[CptStern]

the US isnt the only market ..however you do have a point because the bulk of the revunue doesnt come from the countries that are the enemy in these types of games ...like I'm sure Koreans didnt rush out to buy Ghost Recon 2 because it featured koreans ..or mexicans buying GRAW. Like how in AMerica's army you never play as the terrorists

 

[DeusExMachina]

I cant think of a single instance

You obviously haven't played many games.

Hell, Half-Life
Splinter Cell 3
Metal Gear Solid series
Syphon Filter series
Deus Ex

I'm not gonna name the countless games that don't even involve people of foreign descent :|.

 

[CptStern]

You obviously haven't played many games.

Hell, Half-Life
Splinter Cell 3
Metal Gear Solid series
Syphon Filter series
Deus Ex

I'm not gonna name the countless games that don't even involve people of foreign descent :|.

I've played them all except Hell and MGS ..I dont recall any of those games being anti us government ..they were all fictionalised shadow governments or whathaveyou

 

[DeusExMachina]

Hell isn't a game, I was using that in conjunction with Half-Life.

And what does it matter if its fictional? 1984 is fictional, doesn't mean it could never happen.

 

[TheAmazingRando]

It may be bad marketing to sell a game within the United States where the objective is to kill your fellow Americans in battle.

Grand Theft Auto?

 

[Mechagodzilla]

Lots of games have american badguys.
These are just the ones i can remember from what I've played:

-Half-Life 1
-Half-Life 2 (Breen).
-The Getaway (Okay, so they're British. Same difference in today's politics.)
-Deus Ex
-GTA 3
-GTA VC
-Splinter Cells 2 & 3 (and 4, apparently)
-Starcraft (in general, the human team sports the confederate flag.)
-The Thing (not including the aliens)

 

[pvtbones]

Half-life 2? the badguys of that are the combine and Communism(/authoritarian goverment)

 

[DeusExMachina]

...Where are you getting communism from?

 

[SAJ]

Lots of games have american badguys.
These are just the ones i can remember from what I've played:

-Half-Life 1
-Half-Life 2 (Breen).
-The Getaway (Okay, so they're British. Same difference in today's politics.)
-Deus Ex
-GTA 3
-GTA VC
-Splinter Cells 2 & 3 (and 4, apparently)
-Starcraft (in general, the human team sports the confederate flag.)
-The Thing (not including the aliens)

Technically speaking, yes those games do have antogonists that are - in one way or another - indentifiably American, their nationality is largely irrelevant in the context of the games setting.
For example; in GTA3 pretty much all the characters are American, but none are explicitly identified as such, its taken as being in line with the setting. As its taking place in(a fictionalised) America, so any other nationality would be very suprising.
This, I would argue holds true for many of the examples above, the "American" signifier, is merely reflecting the nationality of the supposed audience. In fact the shock of Half-Life 1 is partly that "your own" troops are turning on civilians, something that is contextualised as being outside the norms of behaviour.

What I would say is the issue, is how the "other" is represented in (American) popular culture, and how well the fictionalised antagonists line up with the real-life "bogeymen" of the day.





edit; I would have to say that gta3 is a poor example, when you think about. Its made by scots and rips the shit out of all American culture, on so many levels.

 

[CptStern]

Hell isn't a game, I was using that in conjunction with Half-Life.

And what does it matter if its fictional? 1984 is fictional, doesn't mean it could never happen.

as saj pointed out it doesnt represent a reality based depiction of the US ..the game by pandemic specifically names real world leaders running real world countries ..had those games you listed used real situations you might have a point