Muslim Massacre

By: Derek Yu

On: August 19th, 2008

Muslim Massacre

To continue our theme of controversial topics this week… Sigvatr, who you might recognize as Michal Marcinkowski’s collaborator on Link-Dead and Berserker (both still WIP), has released Muslim Massacre, a NES-style arena shoot ‘em up set in the Middle East. Delicious satire, tasteless shock game, or both? I’ll leave you with a quote from Benzido, which I think does a great job of summing up my own feelings about the game:

The idea of this game certainly makes me uncomfortable. You are skating a very fine line between satire and bad taste. But the game makes a very worthwhile and timely political point, in my view, even if you claim to be apolitical.
I think it’s brave, because it’s the kind of satire that many people will misunderstand, especially in America and in Islamic countries. So you’ll probably offend some muslims and some ‘liberal pussies’, and even worse, you’ll get a bunch of right-wing racists playing it with a boner. If you’re especially lucky, it will appear on the ‘huffington post’ as evidence of how video games send the wrong message to children.
Still, you can’t be misunderstood any worse than the ‘super columbine massacre’ guy.

I am also reminded of Zi-Xiao Liang’s Scientology PWNED (TIGdb), although this is decidedly a more dangerous and ambitious venture.

TIGdb: Entry for Muslim Massacre

  • Adam Butcher

    Hey Sigvatr I like it! I thought it was going to make me feel a lot more uncomfortable but it didn’t.

    Gameplay-wise:
    Nice shooter, solid animation and explosion effects. Levels are exactly the right length, good feeling of progression etc. etc.

    You’re right about using the themes to make good gameplay. There is a good mob feeling, and the suicide bombers play really well. They make me panic and laugh at the same time.

    I was pleased to find that the “joke” of it was almost understated. Nice intro. In many ways the game is taking the piss out of videogames as much as xenophobia, particularly those from the 90s.

    Worth playing.

  • Now I Understand…

    “Territorial wars and honor are hardly controversial motivators.”

    Mass slaughter is okay, as long as it’s for the “right” reasons!

  • ZombiePixel

    Most of us already played “muslim massacre” back when it was called “Call of Duty 4” and there was no controversy then.

  • pnutz

    There was no controversy for Call of Duty 3 either, probably because it wasn’t called “Kraut Killer”.

  • Hahaha

    See what truth in advertising will get you, Sigvatr?

    Lots of attention, which is probably what you were trying for.

    But also, lots of critics who would have been silent if you called your game “Special Forces: Anti-Terrorism Campaign 4” or something like that.

  • mots

    solid game, easy objectives ( shoot the brown guys )

    I remember playing games like that back when I had my NES, I guess japan wasn’t as politically correct, a lot of games were changed when they made their way to the USA.

    this game needs a holy gun or something to convert muslims to christianity.

  • Prio

    “Meaning can exist independent of the creator’s intent.”

    So can a lack of “meaning”.

    “Meaning” can also be perceived where there is none; considering what a giant boner humanity has for ascribing “meaning” to everything in sight, such is usually the case.

  • Kongming

    Christ, what a bunch of whiny babies you are. “Oh, the satire is not deep enough! The theme is too controversial!” It’s almost like you’ve never heard of the Internet.

    Also, please to be pointing out another game that has “deep” satire, because I’m drawing blanks.

  • PHeMoX

    The funny thing is I’ve actually seen far worse in terms of controversy on the internet… Like Saddam’s henchmen killing people with hand grenades for fun, recording it, laughing about it and so on. Really sick stuff. This game is nothing compared to that and I think as a satire it’s quite good actually.

    I really don’t even see why I or a Muslim or an American (or an American Muslim :p ) should get offended about this game. Everybody who gets offended by this game, clearly doesn’t understand satire and is far too easily offended by ideas, pixels and fake blood.

    *“Meaning can exist independent of the creator’s intent.”

    So can a lack of “meaning”.*

    That sir, is your opinion, but not the truth. If something has meaning for at least one person, it’s enough for that something to actually have meaning. Everything else is subjective.

    *“Meaning” can also be perceived where there is none; considering what a giant boner humanity has for ascribing “meaning” to everything in sight, such is usually the case.*

    You may not agree with the meaning, but that doesn’t mean it has none. :p

  • Sigvatr

    I can drop some clues about what I was intending for the game but I think if I really dropped the bomb, all the debate and discussion would die down.

    This is fun.

  • Heh. I think what Sigvatr tried to do is to hit the beehive with a baseball bat and see what happens. From the looks of it, that’s excatly Sigvatr’s style: provocative and offensive. I do not actually like this style, but I admit that it does somehow have artistic merit. However, I think that he does sometimes go too far and stops being artistic to become an asshole.

    I went out to play the game and I find it surprising that I actually enjoyed myself a bit. I went about to Round 7.

    Personally, I see allot of disturbing irony here and a bit of commentary.

    The bit with George Bush’ speech especially. Ironic, because he calls a war upon another holy war and disturbing because, some of the Islamic world is indeed fucked up.

    Not purely because of Islam, but because of the medieval mentality that is dominant there. Whether theists like this or not, Islam does take place in this and upholds this mentality, like any medieval religion (not that I think Islam is any worse then other religions). To be fair, almost all religions have such periods in history and Islam is a bit younger then other “mainstream” religions.

    But going back to the game, I would wager that it falls into the “its so bad that its good” category. There is nothing overly special in the game: there isn’t much of a story and the gameplay is only fairly repetitive. The only thing that makes it stand out that it takes the worst of conservative smear and propaganda, then tries visualise it. It’s not a bad idea, to be fair but I think it needs more. As it stands, its more of a mockery and an experiment then truly an attempt at satire.

    What I also find ironic is that you are sent to kill evil people that supposedly kill innocent men, women and children. By dropping you in the middle of a random third world place and… kill anything that moves. In the very fist level, you go out and kill unarmed men and women.

    The thing I recommend everyone is to stop, take their initial impressions and try to look at the game with an emotional step back.

  • Jin Dogan

    Wow, this is weird(in a good way). A gaming site with an intelligent crowd of people who aren’t anti-Muslim.

  • ChrisL

    Sigvatr: “what I was intending for the game ”

    Pseudo retro graphics + easily controversial subject matter + adequately appealing gameplay = indie game blog coverage?

  • Derek

    We’re not as selective as Kotaku.

  • undertech

    I can’t believe nobody commented on the main guy’s hair yet.

  • undertech

    Rambo on one side, ahhnold/dolph on the other. It’s spectacular!

  • Sigvatr

    “indie game blog coverage?”

    If I wanted to do that why wouldn’t I just make a shooter with 8000 projectiles and flashing lights? That’s a guaranteed indie game success.

  • ChrisL

    Yea, that sounded more critical of TIGS than I originally intended.

    But really, were it not for the silly name and subject matter, how would this be anymore notable than, say, Debrysis?

  • Novichock

    Are the suicide bombers a reference to Serious Sam?

  • jimmythechang

    I think the soundclip for them’s straight from Sam, actually.

    Okay, so I played it, got up to Level 12. For what it is, it’s a very well made arena shooter (the difficulty ramps up nicely), and the retro look’s perfect. But for all this talk about this game being satire, it isn’t. If I had to guess, Sigvatr needed a theme for the game, decided to shoehorn Islam into it, and knew he’d be able to sit back and laugh and laugh as he watched the Internet roil.

    With controversial games, you’ve got people like the creator of Super Columbine Massacre who believe (whether truthfully or not) they sit atop a tower of meaning with their works…and then you’ve got people like Sigvatr who do it for the lulz. (God, I hate that meme, but it’s so appropriate here.)

    I guess the realization is this. Is the game offensive? Absolutely. But it’s even worse that suicide bombings happen in the first place, and isn’t it somewhat ridiculous when you think how many people are so ready to go up in arms over pixels or pictures when they won’t so much as raise a finger for the *people* caught in these conflicts? That isn’t to say creators should be as flippant as Sigvatr is with such subject matter – generally there’s a thing called “empathy” that helps people reconsider.

    But he doesn’t care, he doesn’t care.

  • Cas

    The internet scandal isn’t really anything to write home about – we can all take a bit of a laugh here in our tiny crap little indie game player community. However Sigvatr might want to be worried if the game reaches the coverage of the mainstream media, because then he’ll find a fatwa on his ass and that’s a bit less amusing, given that the extreme kinds of people he’s ridiculing actually DO kill people if they are insulted by them. And then a little joke at the expense of a few nutters isn’t so funny any more.

  • Prio

    “That sir, meaning meaning meaning meaning.”

    In other words, sir, “meaning” is something that somebody somewhere makes up in their head about something?

    Well, okay, sir.

  • Xander

    I would’ve preferred a game with 8000 projectiles. For one it’d at least feel like the enemy were really giving as good as they’re getting. Also, replay value would be nice.

    Of course I have Diadra Empty for that so screw it.

  • Del Duio

    Sigvatr might want to be worried if the game reaches the coverage of the mainstream media, because then he’ll find a fatwa on his ass and that’s a bit less amusing, given that the extreme kinds of people he’s ridiculing actually DO kill people if they are insulted by them.

    Yeah, that’s what I was thinking too. You don’t want to mess around with these guys.

  • Pnx

    I can only stand back and laugh…

    PS: How many of you have actually managed to kill Muhammed? Don’t bother criticizing the game until you get at least that far.

  • Cas

    I really hope that isn’t in the game or he seriously will have a problem. That’s pretty much one of the highest insults you can level at Islam.

  • Trotim

    “”Sigvatr might want to be worried if the game reaches the coverage of the mainstream media, because then he’ll find a fatwa on his ass and that’s a bit less amusing, given that the extreme kinds of people he’s ridiculing actually DO kill people if they are insulted by them.”

    Yeah, that’s what I was thinking too. You don’t want to mess around with these guys.”

    What are you talking about. This is a game. It’s art. It’s supposed to be provocative. I don’t think every Muslim is going to check the coordinates of Sigvatr’s on the (Muslim equivalent of!) Google Earth to kill him.

    Muslims are people too, you know.

    I like that Sigvatr actually didn’t provide any other clues about what you’re doing in the game – you’re just killing enemies. Maybe they’re zombies or robot ninjas that are disguised as Muslims, who knows? Maybe he does. But nobody cares.

  • Pnx

    >Muslims are people too, you know.

    This game begs to differ.

  • Del Duio

    Yeah, but if enough of them have a problem with a cartoon that is nowhere near as edgy this stuff..

  • Kongming

    Del Duio, as far as I know nobody was killed over the Danish cartoons.

    And Prio…

    *In other words, sir, “meaning” is something that somebody somewhere makes up in their head about something?*

    Uhh, yes. “Meaning” is an abstract concept. It doesn’t exist in the physical universe. So any meaning we ascribe to things is necessarily subjective.

  • bullet

    Oh my god, just stop trying to see some socio-critical aspect in ANYTHING Sigvatr makes.
    He is a dumb fuck trying to get attention by doing exactely what any reasonable human wouldn’t just for the sake of shocking people. This is no offense by the way, Sigvatr probably is jerking off to what I am writing because he wants to read stuff like that I guess. See electric retard, his ‘games’ (insult to any game ever made), his ‘funny’ web page listing the most successful killing sprees in a sport event like presentation and so on.
    He is a stupid kid captured in a grown up’s body with Internet. As worse as it can get. Oh and don’t tell me electric retard is satire because BOY you’d have to be brain-damaged to be able to deal with such disturbing crap the long time the page exists. Oh and watch the forums. Oh and notice the site was banned in Germany because of its content. Oh and don’t watch the forums if you don’t want Hitler and a bunch of sickos all over your face. End of message.

  • Zi-Xiao

    This game is actually pretty good. It has a simple but varied array of weapons and enemies and feature a classic difficulty curve by introducing new enemies one at a time and slowly ramping up the number of enemies on screen.

    From a social perspective, I’m very glad Muslims are offended. In fact I’d like a Muslim to get so offended that they actually move forward with the “Athiest Massacre” game suggested above. I can see only good things resulting from the resulting dialog of games.

  • Cas

    Religious fanatics tend not to make games, they tend to act out their fantasies.

  • Anonymous

    I thought the game itself was very well put together. The Bush voice clips were a nice touch.

    I think it’s hilarious that Sigvatr is able to stir shit like this.. It’s a part of the entertainment value of this game.

    >I just can’t wait for Sig to make Electric Retard: THE GAME.”

    YES.

  • Trotim

    “Oh and notice the site was banned in Germany because of its content.”

    Yeah. They also ban every second M-rated game like Gears of War (well okay I don’t like it anyway).

    But they also banned Duke Nukem 3D and Doom. And both games will be on XBLA. Would you ban DN3D? I think not! *sniff*

  • Prio

    Ah, dinosaur comics. How timely thou art.

    BONERS AHOY.

  • cuntface

    @Hooker with a BeViS
    Glad someone remembers. I can’t find ANY reference to Saddam Hussein’s Kinder on the net and was beginning to wonder if I only hallucinated it.

  • bullet

    Yeah well, I wonder if you know that Germany actually has a history regarding National Socialism. And you wonder why Germany is in your eyes over-sensitive?

    Apart from that I won’t talk any further. Go view Electric Retard including the guest comics, read the forums for 15 minutes (if they are still up) and then come back and defend the site.
    You seriously try to defend ER by saying it’s satire or some other random “OMG ART! FREE SPEECH! REBELLION!” whatever bullshit? The mass of sick material available there is beyond good and evil if you want to do satire. Satire is a tough balance act and if ER every tried to be one, it failed miserably.

  • dsvoid

    MEANING MEANING MEANING MEANING BLAH BLAH MEANING MEANING.

    The game is fun. I don’t care if I’m killing Muslims, zombies, or robots; I’m being entertained by little pixel people running around and getting raped through superior firepower.

  • Pnx

    Yay, social backlash!

    Again I can only stand back and laugh. But still let’s keep stirring this thing up.

    You in america? Go call a black guy black, don’t use a name or anything just say black guy. It will be fun I promise.

    You in europe? Talk to one of the frogs about WW2 and their brilliant defense plan.

    You in africa? Think apartheid doesn’t exist any longer? It’s just gone the other way now, go talk to the rich blacks about the poor whites, you can actually get arrested for that.

    That’s all I got…

  • Paul Eres

    “You in america? Go call a black guy black, don’t use a name or anything just say black guy. It will be fun I promise.”

    Usually blacks prefer being called black to African American or any other word. Of course you’d probably get a bad reaction if you just randomly call a stranger “black guy!” on the street, but you’d probably get that exact same reaction if someone (non-white) called a white person “white guy!” on the street.

  • Paul Eres

    (As an aside, I think avoiding saying things because of a bad social reaction is just as bad as intentionally saying things for a bad social reaction. They’re both basically the same thing, just two sides of it. Sigvatr and people who are always carefully politically correct are essentially similar in their motivation.)

  • Cas

    You clearly never heard of Wisdom Tree.

  • Skofo

    This game is brilliant.

  • Cas

    The Joys of Christianity :)

  • Chris

    Every single time I died it was because of suicide bombers or trucks. You walk around in circles practically untouchable most of the time, and then spend a few brief moments being squashed or exploded.
    Long periods of invincible boredom followed by short spats of arbitrary death makes a very dull game.

  • ortucis

    I like the game and all but if this is his idea of ‘satire’, then he just sucks at it big time.

    Or it’s just that after so many people bashed him for his original comment on how he wasn’t really aiming for satire (on SA forums) he decided to play the “it’s the type of satire you won’t understand” card to not look like a muslim hater.

    Anyways, I don’t care if he hates them or not, game is still fun but the author is kind of a pussy if he tries to hide his feelings behind the big ‘satire’ tree (like all indie developers looking for a offensive game as a golden ticket to instant stardom).

  • anduz

    I had a hundred game like this for my c64 and noone cared. The world sure has gone down a drain when we’re getting into political correctness drama over something like this.

  • Jesus

    Nice game, while I don’t mind a game will have a political message.
    I find the message of the game to be quite populist.
    Among many circles it is very popular to portray muslims as victims. And this game is no different.
    I have a suggestion for the next game, though.
    You can do a game about a real massacare, like the one in darfur.
    I think the darfur genocide is commited BY muslims, so I am not sure if you will like to do such a game.
    I think this kind of game will try to bring into the spotlight a conflict(one sided slaugther) that many, including the media, the UN, and most of the world, don’t care about or like to ignore.
    Eventhough I heard in this “conflict” 400,000 people have already been murdered.
    But to tell you the truth, I don’t know much about this conflict, because I barely catch any news about it in the media.
    Just my one rusty penny to contribute.