Since their inception in the late 1970s, video games have traditionally been a form of entertainment, an exciting and relaxing escape after a long, hard day. While many games are set within fictional worlds with fantastical stories and characters, some video games aim to retell stories of our past and are historically accurate on par with the likes of textbooks.
Games such as A Plague Tale: Innocence, Rome: Total War, and even many parts of Call of Duty: World at War are extremely historically authentic and manage to recapture historical events well. But why do so many video game developers attempt to do this? Below, we’ll explore why developers may choose to tell stories of history and why so many players might find them appealing.
More Deeply Immerses Users Into History
For history buffs, historical video games are a way to immerse themselves into history further. Big fans of World War I are understandably going to enjoy games like Battlefield 1, as the game throws players into famous battles from the war and allows them to essentially roleplay as somebody from that period.
Even more recently, virtual reality has allowed gamers to literally step into the shoes of people from the past, with games like the now-famous Titanic VR allowing gamers to experience the sinking of the Titanic first-hand. Watching the 1997 film by James Cameron may also provide an overview of the infamous sinking, but the VR experience is likely to immerse and teach the user on a deeper level than a film would thanks to the immersive and interactive nature of the medium.
Can Help Us Further Understand It
While history books arguably do an adequate job at teaching players about history, stepping into the world and role-playing as historical figures and characters can do an even better job of understanding history. Civilization and Crusader Kings are two video game franchises that allow players to directly step into the roles of famous historical figures and take control of history itself. Games like these can enable players to understand history on a deeper level and better appreciate it.
The Possibilities Are Endless
At the end of the day, the most important part of playing games is to have fun, right? Many historical video games achieve this by blending addicting gameplay with an immersive world, and millions of players worldwide manage to be engrossed by them. Video games have the benefit of taking players into an endless number of exciting worlds. Want to fight as a bad-ass medieval knight in a massive castle siege? Then Chivalry II is perfect for you. Interested in pillaging ships and hunting treasure with a crew of pirates in the Caribbean? Give Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag a shot. Want to experience Pearl Harbor first-hand? Play Call of Duty: World at War.
To answer the question of why developers set video games within history, the answer is quite simple: it’s fun, exciting, and poses endless possibilities to players. With video games, your options are nearly endless, and it’s only getting bigger and more exciting every year.
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At Epoch XP, we specialize in creating compelling narratives and provide research to give your game the kind of details that engage your players and create a resonant world they want to spend time in. If you are interested in learning more about our gaming research services, you can browse Epoch XP’s service on our parent site, SJR Research.
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(This article is credited to Ben Price. For as long as he can remember, Ben has always loved playing, discussing, and writing about video games. Since receiving his B.A. in English, he now writes about them for a living.)