Wagner James Au reviews "State of Emergency," a new PS2 game where you play an antiglobalist rioter and avoid the truncheon-weilding polezei.
"Not only does this particular game trivialize the whole global struggle against these undemocratic structures such as the WTO," an activist who goes by the name M-Dog posted to Indymedia, the progressive-left media Web site, "but it trivializes the repression that goes along with it." Another anarchist with the pseudonym "Luther Blissett" responded more positively: "Maybe normal video game kids will end up playing the game and maybe even joining us," he posted, although, he says, "pirate copies should be made widely available to limit the shithead companies profits as much as possible." Yet another anonymous poster suggested a more provocative response: "for those of us who took the sting and burn at Quebec or the stick and spray at Seattle … this has got to be pretty appalling … someone might want to hack the bloody fuck out of Rockstar Games' page?"
Their concerns are justified. Never mind how the terrorist attacks of September have disoriented anti-globalization protesters — the real threat to the anti-globalization movement may now be found in a video game. While it probably won't garner the massive following of Grand Theft Auto III, State of Emergency is one more milestone in gaming's evolution. Socially minded films and television programs can only dramatize their politics, but we now have a medium where you can interact with them, as an engaged participant. Indeed, the revolution will not be televised — instead, it'll come with a game pad.
