On Saturday, I took another free course from work. This one was on goal synchronisation within a company.
The basis is, the heads of a company decide a mission, vision and ideal is for a company – this is called a strategic plan. These ideas then go down the “waterfall” to the heads of departments and the team leads who create tactical plan – what goals that department can pursue to help create that plan. Then the team leaders will work with the people working under them to create individual goals, and these are called operational goals.
The idea is to have transparent company goals that motivate people, with high job satisfaction. The more you share what you’re doing and why, the more your employees will respond, and the more productive and happy they will be. Imagine that, people like to feel part of something.
That’s the tl;dr of it. I don’t want to go through 9 pages of notes.
So, when Sweet Baby Inc, or Anita Sarkeesian, or any diversity, equity and inclusion proponent meets with the leads of Naughty Dog, Microsoft Gaming, Bethesda, or the multitude of AAA game developers, the leaders will start thinking about how to create those cascading of goals. We’re here to create the very best diversity, equity and inclusion game ever.
That’s when Neil Druckmann says all games are political. And he’s going to create a game that is super serious and political, because that’s the key to making the world better. He has a vision!
And that vision is transferred to his department heads, who take it to team leaders, and then the employees of Naughty Dog. All neat and tidy.
But, as you can see, there are dangers to this. The course I took stated the number 1 threat that comes from this kind of development course is homogeneous thinking. Everyone is so on board, they can’t course correct. Hence Neil’s statement!
His game is political, and if you don’t like it, make or play something different!
All because goal synchronisation!
According to the course, the solution is simple. Give people with different points of view a chance to talk. But does that happen?
According to Mark Kern, Grummz, the answer is no. The fanaticism from the upper echelons of the game development companies, activist journalists, and randos on the Internet make it uncomfortable to speak out. After all, nobody wants to be called a bigot!
So the solution to AAA games becoming less political is not a possibility.
As I stated before, AAA games aren’t agile enough to course correct. As more people are getting tired of games where politics are more important than story and game play, the more they just double down. That’s the easy way. Our games are not for you. Okay, I won’t buy. Holy crap, you’re ruining the game industry bigot – you have to buy the games. But you said the games aren’t for us?!
Like I said, AAA games, and Hollywood and major book and comic publishers are going extinct. There are enough solutions for indie creatives to create their slice of the pie. Let the dinosaurs die!
If their leadership wants to keep pushing Sweet Baby Inc ideology into their games, then we can vote with our wallets. There’s plenty of awesome indie games, books and comics. You’ll never run out of stuff to enjoy.
At Amazing Gaming Productions, my company’s vision, mission and goal is to be an oasis for gamers. I want to give you the best stories and games without politics. I want you to feel welcomed!
So, what can you do.
1. Vote with your wallet – reject AAA games and anything that pushes Sweet Baby Inc ideology. Let the Rich Men north of Richmond starve.
2. Support indies – we’re probably on the same economic level as you, struggling with inflation, working a second job to pay the bills, and know we just want to escape reality for a few moments.
3. If you’re a developer, focus on listening to all voices in your company. There’s many detractors who don’t liked forced politics and you should listen to them.
So, don’t be like AAA companies that push political agendas at the expense of story and game play. Learn to listen to as many points of view as you can. And vote with your wallet – If a AAA game isn’t for you, choose an indie game, book, or comic instead!
Thank you for rolling with Amazing Gaming Productions!
Amazing Gaming Productions 
2 thoughts on “Why AAA Games are Getting Political”