Do decisions made in games have any ethical implications? After all, its just a game! But are some things too terrible, too taboo, to represent in computer games?

1. Ethical & Professional Issues
Week 6 – Ethical Choices in Games
CC-BY-NC Daniel Livingstone,
The Glasgow School of Art, 2021
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/legalcode

2. Business Ethics and Games
• Business Ethics is another separate field of study, and naturally intersects with Game
Development!
• ‘Free to Play’ games are highly significant part of modern games market, funded
through mixtures of:
• Advertising revenue (see week 5 on big data and privacy!)
• In-game sales
• Items to boost gameplay
• Loot boxes: Randomised items and boosts
• Very big spending players are termed ‘whales’
Fortnite © Epic Games
Candy Crush Saga © King

3. In-Game Purchases & Loot Boxes
• For MMO style games, it may be easier to get strong player base with free-to-play
than with subscription based model, resulting in move to in-game purchases of game
items that improve the character, speed up gameplay, or unlock additional content
• Some players may not pay anything, but invested players may end up spending much more
than they would with a subscription model
• Another common model is Loot Boxes – virtual crates with random selections of
items and rewards
• This is in effect a gambling model. Gambling is a highly regulated industry, and regulators
across the world have growing concerns about loot boxes
• c.f. Zendle & Cairns 2019 “Video game loot boxes are linked to problem gambling”

4. Ethical choices in games
• Putting aside the business ethics around the games industry, are there any
ethical concerns when playing computer games?
• Consider single-player games only just now – will look at multi-player next
week!
• Playing a game by yourself - how can this have any ethical implications?
• No other witnesses
• Time spent on a pleasurable (presumably) activity
• Increases happiness with no downside?
• Does the morality of actions in a computer game affect your choices?
• Review: Responses to question from week 1!

5. It’s just a game!
• Hedonism as an ethical framework proposes maximising pleasure – if playing a game
is fun, then perhaps there is no reason not to indulge in activities that are taboo in
the real world?
• “Just a game”
• But is everything OK if it is “Just a game”?
• Are there real effects or consequences of simulated killing?
• Can simulated killing lead to real harm?
• c.f. Video game violence debate & research

6. Simulated Killing & Normative Ethics
• Consequentialism/Utilitarianism: Balance harms and benefits of violent video games
• Morality depends on the actual outcome/result
• A lot of people enjoy playing violent computer games
• Disputed evidence of harm
• Simulated killing is a normal part of child development (playing war, etc)
• Deontological (rule based) view of the actions taken in a game
• Rule based ethical view of actions – do the same ethical rules apply inside the game as
outside?
• Moral duty, some actions are intrinsically good
• Virtue ethics focus on the moral character
• Focus on character, honesty & mind
• Should we take pleasure from simulated killing? Does it require mitigation?

7. Where do you draw the line?
• Simulated killing of zombies/monsters (1)
• Simulated killing in war based games
• Simulated killing as a criminal/gangster (2)
• Simulated killing of civilians (3)
• … with graphic detail
• Simulated recreation of famous assassination/murder (4)
• Simulated killing of children
• … with graphic detail/based on real events (5)
• Simulated killing in a place of worship
• Simulated torture (where you as player are the torturer) (6),(7)

8. Moral Disengagement
Convincing yourself that normal ethical standards or moral rules do not apply in a
particular context is referred to as moral disengagement
• e.g. Games are not the external reality, and the actions inside do not affect real
people, so the normal moral rules do not apply when playing a computer game
(Outside of games moral disengagement is studied as it affects criminal and violent
behaviour, and helps understand situations where normal people may act with
inhumanity towards others in specific contexts or situations)

9. “They’re fake people, but their pain is real”
• People form real & authentic emotional attachments to virtual characters
• “virtual characters evoke strong feelings”
Coulson, M., Barnett, J., Ferguson, C.J., Gould, R.L., 2012. Real feelings for virtual people:
Emotional attachments and interpersonal attraction in video games. Psychology of Popular
Media Culture 1, 176–184. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0028192
• This may give an intrinsic motivation to take actions that are protective of, or
pleasing to, other characters in a game
• There may be limited agency, as the game itself may have story elements to defeat player
attempts to protect others
• Additionally, some games set up extrinsic systems to reward or punish certain player
behaviours
• Alignment systems, trophies or awards for certain behaviours
Michael, The Good Place

10. Alignment Systems
• Alignment systems in role playing games are mechanics borrowed from table-top
role playing games, such as Dungeons and Dragons
• Alignment systems attempt to categorise range of ethical and moral behaviours, and
provide rules for role play
• In original table-top D&D – rules govern how characters will/should act
• If you set your character’s alignment to ‘Lawful Good’ then in principle they should be played as
someone who acts in the public good and follows external/cultural laws
‘Chaotic Good’ character would still be good, but less inclined to consider the lawfulness of
actions, or feel constrained by laws
• In computer RPG the alignment systems are often more responsive/dynamic instead – it is
the players actions that determine the character alignment rather than vice versa

11. Mass Effect
• We’ll consider a few examples from the Mass Effect series of games
• Action RPG games where player can choose gender of their character
• Player Character forms bonds with NPC team mates and crew (including
romantic/sexual relationships)
• Player has to make wide range of choices for their character – some of which relate
to points on the Renegade/Paragon alignment system, and some of which do not
impact this
• The fates of other characters and worlds are in the players’ hands. Over the course of the
game the player may have to choose other characters to sacrifice in order to achieve the
greater aims of saving the galaxy

12. Our Virtual Selves, Our Virtual Morals
Do our personalities affect the choices we make in games?
A study of over 1000 Mass Effect players found that players who played Renegade
scored lower on ‘Agreeableness’ than those that played Paragon
(Study made use of the ‘Big 5’ character traits, openness, extraversion, agreeableness,
conscientiousness and neuroticism)
Murzyn, E., Valgaeren, E., 2016. Our Virtual Selves, Our Virtual Morals: Mass Effect Players’
Personality and In-Game Choices, https://doi.org/10.1109/iTAG.2016.20
Whether Renegade or Paragon, the goal of the game is the same
• Renegade choices generally more in line with “get the results whatever it takes… even if it
means hurting people” approach; Paragon more concerned with minimising harm,
obeying laws and avoiding innocent casualties

13. Meaning without Consequence
• A virtue ethics consideration would hold that all in-game choices and decisions made
by the player define the ethical/moral character of their play
• But many choices are constrained by the goals of the game and the need to meet a
range of objectives; The more meaningful a choice is, the more constrained it might
be
• Nay & Zagal (2017) argue that inconsequential choices in games create space for
player to impose their own personality and morality onto the characters they play,
and these are important for that reason
• Though they have no significant plot impact, such choices can be significant, impactful and
meaningful from the player perspective
Nay, J.L. and Zagal, J.P. 2017. Meaning without consequence: virtue ethics and inconsequential
choices in games https://doi.org/10.1145/3102071.3102073

14. Problems with Alignment Systems
• Understanding actions
• A player often has to choose an action based on a response of a few words – this might be
misleading in some cases, with the PC acting in a way that was not expected by the player
• Players may have intentions that rely on misleading other characters – is this interpreted
correctly by the game?
• Misalignment
• Some actions may not seem to match well with their impact on the alignment systems,
and be coded incorrectly in the game alignment system
• Gaps
• Many actions taken by players in RPG might be ones that would be considered bad in real
lift but which are simply ignored by the alignment system
• e.g. scavenging items that would appear to be the property of others without
consequence

15. Moral Gaps in Mass Effect 2
Dog Fights In Space
• Visiting a Krogan camp, the player can gain a ‘pet’ – Urz, a viscious dog-like varren
• The player can then gamble on Urz winning or losing fights against other varren
• There is no impact on a player’s Paragon/Renegade stats for participation
• Dog-fighting and related animal fighting competitions are illegal in most developed
countries and is considered cruel and sadistic
Mass
Effect
©
Electronic
Arts

16. Moral Gaps in Mass Effect 2
Chain of Command
• The Bioware games are well known for the inclusion of romance options
• Mass Effect places the player as a commander of a ship – able to form relationships
with some of the other characters on board, including relatively junior subordinates
such as Yeoman Kelly Chambers
• Romance within a military-style operation is
presented as a natural or normal occurrence
• Most military organisations in real world have strict
rules forbidding such relationships
• Ethical/moral issues result from one partner
having senior rank over the other
• Impact on decision making, morale, others in unit, …
Mass Effect © Electronic Arts