Consequences of Reality Distortion

Last year, in my September 12^th blog post titled “Transmedia Convergence: What, When, and How” I talked about the current state of media technology convergence that we are witnessing, and how transmedia narratives are using the various technology platform’s strongest attributes to tell highly engaging asynchronous stories across devices. Alternate Reality Gaming (ARG) takes this a step further; rather than being a passive viewer of the entertainment, the “viewser” (viewer + user = viewser) instead is able to actively seek out clues online and in their physical environment. These types of experiences have led to a multitude of ethical liability issues being raised about what is appropriate and what could possibly be considered inappropriate material, especially if someone unintentionally consumes the content unaware that it is an entertainment production.

Case in point, Toyota’s “Your Other You” campaign promoting the Toyota Matrix; this transmedia marketing bomb ended up costing the car manufacturer $10 million, and was disastrous PR for a company that would soon have even bigger problems with accelerator issues in its Prius line of vehicles. The lawsuit, filed by Plaintiff and Respondent Amber Duick against Defendants and Appellants Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., ET AL., shows just how important “knowing consent” can be in online terms and conditions contract clause. The case revolves around the deceptive delivery of the experience, voiding the contract on account of fraud in the inception. This negligence in properly informing Amber of what was really happening caused her to believe that a criminal named “Sebastian Bowler” was targeting her via email and had intentions of hiding out at her residence with his Pitbull “Trigger” in California. The court agreed with Ms. Duick’s claim of “eight causes of action including intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, and false advertising” and awarded Ms. Duick the $10 million in damages from emotional distress.

There is a fine ethical line to walk when immersive ARG and transmedia techniques are used in marketing and entertainment. By being an experience outside of the norm for most people there can be legitimate fears when someone is unknowingly immersed in a created world that bleeds into the real, but there have also been times where the person is completely aware of the ARG game they are playing and still meet with tragedy. Such was case in the Chew v. Lord Lord April 7, 2008 lawsuit; an ethical line of disclosure regarding potential dangers was not met by the creators of “The Game” and Bob Lord fell headfirst 30 feet in a pitch-black mineshaft in Nevada, leaving him nearly blind and quadriplegic.

This particular case, while not close to the level of intricacy, is similar to the 1997 Michael Douglas movie, The Game. This movie foreshadows ARG experiences and is a prime example of something taken too far down the rabbit hole and ending in a tragedy.

Violence in video games is another industry hot-button topic that could become even more contested in the very near future as technology continues to evolve. With the next generation of video game consoles from Sony and Microsoft due to be announced in the next few weeks, one can only imagine what is to come from a hardware capability standpoint. Now, we can only imagine, but we also have some telling clues that have very recently surfaced via confirmed leaked documents from Microsoft and confirmations also coming in from the Sony camp (February 20, 2013). The leaked Microsoft documents show the potential new Xbox console utilizing a peripheral similar to the Google’s Project Glass AR project. With assuredly more realistic graphics and gunfights coming out of the screen and into a player’s living room, violence in games will continue to be an issue contested between the various factions. 

The 2010 Supreme Court case Brown, Governor of California, ET AL. v. Entertainment Merchants Association ET AL. lawsuit repealed a California Act that was passed and granted video games First Amendment protections similar to other forms of media. This victory for the freedom of speech may be short lived, but there always needs to be checks and balances to ensure industry is moving parallel to public opinion and is congruent with current culture.

I have what could be considered mixed feelings and a bit of a hypocritical attitude when it comes to violence in games, as I am one who has never missed a Call of Duty Modern Warfare or Halo installment, have had a blast playing Far Cry 3, and have shot at my fair share of aliens in Mass Effect; simultaneously I want to see more games that uplift people beyond the violence that is seemingly everywhere we look, from music, to movies, TV (simulated and actual), and a vast number of video game releases. It is the marketing feedback loop that moves like a snake eating its own tail that makes me stop and truly consider what things could be like if the concept of violence didn’t exist. Wishful thinking maybe, but the only way to move forward is to at least accept responsibility for what we put into our own heads and become aware of all the things that we have become so desensitized to.   

As technology evolves and becomes even more pervasive, the lines between what is real and what is not will likely be blurred even further.