Toward a virtual reenactment of history: Video games and the recreation of the past

Several modern video games claim a high degree of historical authenticity, and indeed the experience of modern gaming is often described as being more 'realistic' than ever before. This article explores the relationship between history and video games by discussing Brothers in Arms (2005(...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inRethinking history Vol. 11; no. 3; pp. 411 - 425
Main Author Rejack, Brian
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Routledge 01.09.2007
Subjects
Brothers in Arms
History
Reenactment
Sympathy
Video Games
World War II
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Summary:Several modern video games claim a high degree of historical authenticity, and indeed the experience of modern gaming is often described as being more 'realistic' than ever before. This article explores the relationship between history and video games by discussing Brothers in Arms (2005( as a form of reenactment. What emerges from the game is a complex negotiation of two goals that often appear to be contradictory-fidelity to the conventions of gaming and attention to historical detail. By deferring to historical authenticity, the game attempts to build historical knowledge through sympathetic identification, which is precisely what the game fails to induce through its own narrative and characters. After treating Brothers in Arms, I conclude with a discussion of a very different game (Façade, 2005 ) as a way of speculating on future possibilities regarding the intersections of history and gaming.
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ISSN:1364-2529
1470-1154
DOI:10.1080/13642520701353652