Is The ‘Hatred’ Trailer Capitalizing On Controversy? Probably

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The game ‘Hatred’ couldn’t have picked a better time to release its trailer. Civil unrest amongst the public in different parts of the word, terrorism, wars, online threats of abuse, the recent #GamerGate controversy and other incidents have set people on edge. The game popped up in a time where no one would be even remotely comfortable with its existence and this is perhaps why the developer Destructive Creations decided to release the trailer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qV3PhvCf_Jg

I’ll start off by saying that I was personally taken aback by seeing this trailer. Not cause of the level of violence, but the fact that a game like this is coming out now. Seemed very convenient, in an era where political correctness and sensitivity to social issues is at an all time high. I’m reminded of games like Postal 1 and 2, which sparked a heavy amount of controversy in their own time. It seemed very deliberate; the trailer gives very little context to anything and instead shows a man gunning down innocent people and police officers; both men and women. These aren’t some random generic thug NPCs which spill out points when killed and say witty one-liners, these are scared, horrified civilians being shot by a madman. If there was a point to get across with this game, it’s certainly been made.

The developer shared this bit of information on the game’s official website:

Hatred is an isometric shooter with disturbing atmosphere of mass killing, where player takes the role of a cold blood antagonist, who is full of hatred for humanity. It’s a horror, but here YOU are the villain.

Perhaps that’s just it right there. There’s no long, overblown story to justify why you’re gunning down people. There’s no upright morality for you to fall back on. This game is literally about a bad person doing bad things. Even games like Hotline Miami, with its incredibly shocking pixelated violence, can be easily explained by how you’re killing thugs and criminals. In Hatred, it seems there’s no such consolation, and that’s why it makes people uncomfortable.

The last game to put me on edge regarding violence was Spec Ops: The Line. A game that wasn’t any more violent than Gears of War, but made me commit actions that I was truly horrified by. That game, like Hatred, spells out a disconcerting truth: you’re not the hero here, you’re just killing people cause the game lets you. Often in our video games we’re given a purpose and a reason, usually in the form of story, characters or game design structure to propel us to gun down, chop up and obliterate the onscreen enemies. In some cases it’s a gimmick such as the enemies being demons, monsters, zombies, terrorists, corrupt officials and so on. With the game Hatred, it brings the reality of violence too close to home; shocking and often without reason.

It might also be the developer’s rather callous and sobering explanation for the design of the game that contributes to what divides people on this game. They provide no pretense and they take no moral high ground; they seem to know exactly what kind of game they’re making:

These days, when a lot of games are heading to be polite, colorful, politically correct and trying to be some kind of higher art, rather than just an entertainment – we wanted to create something against trends. Something different, something that could give the player a pure, gaming pleasure. Here comes our game, which takes no prisoners and makes no excuses. We say ‘yes, it is a game about killing people’ and the only reason of the antagonist doing that sick stuff is his deep-rooted hatred.

It’s important to remember that this is still just a game. Just like any other violent game. The reasons for killing are different and the characters you’re killing are different, but it’s virtual death all the same. Games give us a choice, one which we can choose both within the game and before even touching it. In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the infamous mission ‘No Russian’ gives you the choice not to shoot any of the innocent civilians in the airport. In Grand Theft Auto games, you’re given the choice to stick to the story and play fair, or run down people on the sidewalk with a car. But also, as consumers, we’re given the choice to pick what games to play and what not to play. Hatred may be a disturbing, sick-minded game, but you’re not being forced to play it.

You have to ask yourself; is your moral outrage at a game like Hatred justified just because you’re killing random virtual characters without context or because you genuinely oppose any form of violence in video games? It’s a perfectly logical and fair stance to avoid games like this, even if you enjoy other violent video games and I would never hope to criticize anyone for doing so. In fact, I personally treat this game with a layer of skepticism and I think that, for all we know, this game could be bad and not fun at all, maybe even buggy. Capitalizing on controversy and delivering a competent game are two different things, so we can’t even assume that the game Hatred will get anywhere in the first place. However, as the game exists right now, we’ll have to decide one thing: is this something I will enjoy, regardless of what seems to be senseless violence? Like the developer of this game says on their website- “don’t take it too seriously, it’s just a game. :)”

Controversy is something which happens all too often these days, amplified by social media and the ability to find and share information easily. Of course, no sane human being would actually condone or encourage violence in real life, and the conflicts occurring today in the world are harrowing. It’s important to remember that fantasy, be it games, movies, anime or TV shows, exists in a world of its own, free from the consequences and collateral damage of the real world. It’s fine to be outraged and it’s fine to be worried how a game like this can affect someone, but as we all know there’s no scientific evidence to link violence in video games to real world violence. Gamers know the fine line between reality and fantasy, and no manner of violent, crude or sexual content within a game will influence their outlook or actions within real life. There are genuine battles to be fought in this world concerning violence, sexism, racism and discrimination, and fretting over the content of a virtual environment is, at least in my opinion, counter-productive.

What do you think? Is a game like Hatred unacceptable despite how it is unapologetic in its presentation? Let us know in the comments. Discussion is welcome and all opinions are appreciated. Just make sure to be civil and listen to what others have to say.

‘Hatred’ is coming out for PC sometime in early 2015.

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