Christopher Laurence Examines Morality & Gaming – An Interlude: Some Moral Clarity

Christopher Laurence Examines Morality & Gaming – An Interlude: Some Moral Clarity 

When it comes to the topic of morality and video games (or morality and anything, really) speculation, debate, and discussion among well-formed laymen can be profitable and meritorious. However, it’s always a good idea to also get some clarity from those with a higher authority and greater learning. Therefore, I thought it a good idea to go to someone who’s intellect, amassed knowledge, and fidelity to the Traditions and Teachings of the Church I very greatly admire; Brother Andre Marie. I put several questions to Brother on the nature of morality in regards to video gaming, and he was kind enough to take some time from his very busy schedule to indulge me by providing answers. I present my questions, and the wisdom of Brother’s answers, below:

Christopher Laurence: Brother, Would you say that choosing to participate in immoral, sinful activity such as theft, murder, etc. within a virtual environment has any real-life ramifications, spiritually or mentally?

Brother Andre Marie: Yes, I do believe that there are dangers here — bad ramifications. These would be principally a desensitization to evil. The danger grows or diminishes in proportion to one’s maturity, and given the widespread lack of maturity in Western men nowadays, that danger should not be underestimated.

[This makes perfect sense. As with so much of our culture and media (particularly our 24-hour news cycle) the effect, and I’d argue the motive, is a desensitization to true evil and atrocities. This is most evident and most troubling in the cultural acceptance of abortion and the LGBT “lifestyle”. One is the widespread murder of innocents, such as Herod committed while attempting to kill Our Blessed Lord, and the other is a severely disordered inclination, in direct defiance of the way God has formed each of us. Further, the near-universal way in which members of our society seem to experience perpetual adolescence and an arrested development means they are likely much more susceptible to the influence of media, and the interactivity of video games may make them an especially troubling influence.]

Christopher Laurence: Certain games give you the option of picking a “deity” which your created character then follows and “worships”. Could this in any way be seen as a violation of the 1st Commandment on the part of the person playing as this character?

Brother Andre Marie: Because I am not acquainted with the games in question and am therefore unaware of the particular “deities” being invoked, my concern is that they could well be actual demons being named. If that is the case, then — as with the Harry Potter books — such invocations could be dangerous portals to the demonic. I say “invocations” because even naming demons can be such, and we are advised by wise exorcists not to name demons without some good reason. Certainly doing so in connection with something as frivolous as a video game is not sufficient reason.

[In this instance Brother touches on something which, sadly, even many Catholics are unaware of, or – worse – dismissive of; the reality of the spiritual dimension. As Brother says, even the naming of a demon, especially if done flippantly, can invoke said demon, something we would be well advised to avoid. A developer’s placing of these names within a video game (whether unwittingly or maliciously) can have serious, negative spiritual ramifications for the player, possible up to and including possession. This is why it is so important for Catholics to be well formed, to know what they’re engaging with, and to use proper discernment in regards to their entertainment.]

Christopher Laurence: Does merely containing the option for evil or disordered choices within a video game violate the Principle of the Integral Good in regards to that game?

Brother Andre Marie: The principle of the integral good states that the goodness of a moral act is determined by three elements: object, intention, and circumstances. At least one of these must be good; others may be indifferent; and none may be evil. A defect in any of these renders the act morally evil. In the context of a role-playing game of some sort, there could, in theory, be a kind of “pretense” on the part of players to do evil as a part of the game — as in, e.g., a morality play, where good and evil are put on display as in real life but to show the value of the former over the latter.

Certainly we have no objection when good fiction or drama shows us the contrasts of good and evil in the context of its plot. When the lines between good and evil become burred, or when evil is rewarded, then serious problems arise. This is true in fiction or drama, and it would be more so — perhaps much more so, given the level of participation — in a role playing game, of which such video games are a species. So it is not the question of being able to choose evil per se that is the problem (real life presents us with that on a daily basis); the problem is what sort of fictional “cosmos” the video game’s author has created: is it one where good is good and evil is evil, or something else?

As I am very skeptical of the world view of video game producers, I simply assume that much of the time their gaming “cosmos” is quite something else.

[And here Brother leaves us with another excellent aspect to explore moving forward: what are the worldviews, ideologies and motivations of video game producers? Are they largely malevolent and fairly uniform industry-wide (as we see being the case with Hollywood, network & cable television and the mainstream news media)? Or is there still room for diversity of opinion, thought, and morality in the gaming industry. It seems to me that the gaming industry largely mirrors the comic book industry in the West: not completely without its Conservative creators and standout pieces of media, but quickly being swallowed up by the same abyss which seems to have encroached on the majority of the arts in our modern world.]

In the near future I hope to speak to more game creators to get a better feel for the how things are shaded within the industry. And ideally to encourage those who are inclined toward a worldview which acknowledges natural law and the reality of the transcendent to persist in their endeavors, making use of the independent creator space which, for now, still exists in the realm of game development. But for the present, let us ponder seriously the words of Brother Andre, and carry them with us before we turn on our gaming consoles or pre-order those upcoming games.

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