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Nov 1st, 2010 at 14:30:22 - Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS3) |
Ah, the final chapter on what has been a long and unethical journey into the realm of GTA: SA. I started this game with the intention of not doing bad things. But, driving on the right side of the road is way too hard, and, honestly, I enjoy earning respect. Instead, I traded in my morals for gangster paradise. Along the way, I learned that I’m fucking invincible. How many times did my car flip and catch on fire? Too many.
In this portion of the game, I met Emmet, the town’s arms dealer. He, as he says, has been, “proudly serving the community for 30 years.” Emmet is just another worker, like any, providing a service. He sees a need, and helps out; though, he probably would never take responsibility. His comment, however, does seem to hold him accountable gang violence for 30 years running. We also meet Jeffery, aka OG Loc. Thinking he’s hard, he’ll do anything to get any street credit. There was one point where CJ laughs at him when Big Smoke says OG Loc thought about going to college. Education is not a value that this game incites. The value of working for money, aside from gang life, also does not appeal to any of the characters. OG Loc talks about how his parole officer got him a job, but jobs, “keep an OG down.” This is interesting considering Smoke’s previous comment about earning money. By juxtaposing their thoughts, it’s easy to infer that the only respectable way to earn money is to do whatever you can for your gang. The rest of my interaction with OG Loc played with the idea of homosexuality in prison and the gay Latino, which is a well-known stereotype.
The next mission is to save Sweet and his girlfriend. The only women in this game portray either the prostitute or the damsel in distress. When CJ eventually saves them, Sweet slaps his girlfriend on the ass and remarks “see you inside, baby.” As if I wasn’t already frustrated by the debauched stereotypes of women already!
Big Smoke then asks CJ to drive him to pick up his cousin Mary, but he really means he wants to get weed from Mexican gangsters. Big Smoke makes fun of the men by speaking English with a Spanish accent. CJ is then pretty much forced to find the other gangster and kill him to protect Smoke who just killed the other with a baseball bat. CJ’s bond with Smoke is so strong that he will kill for him in order to protect his “family.” BUT! This is the second time, I think, that we’ve seen cops at Big Smoke’s house. Of course, Smoke uses the cover that CJ and him go way back so CJ doesn’t question what he’s doing. CJ could have pushed Smoke further and found out more, but family overpowers truth and justice. The only good value anyone could take away from this game is to trust and have faith in your family. But, this value is a little too strict, making CJ is blind to this blatant foreshadowing.
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Oct 31st, 2010 at 19:01:22 - Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS3) |
Round two: what have I learned? 1. The moon is crazy disproportionate. 2. Tagging earns you respect, but Balla tags are well hidden. 3. Ballas dress in purple, and the Grove Street Family dresses in green. 4. The racism in this game actually can be subtle. Steal a black person’s car and Snoop Dogg or funk music is on the radio. Steal a white person’s car and some classical or pop station starts playing. In addition, not only are racial slurs prominent in everyday conversation, they also can be heard in the background if you listen close enough. It’s sad to think that the game developers are like, “Oh, have some random say, ‘That ese put dust in my weed,’ as CJ hops into his car. Not many people will catch it, but let’s throw it in there anyway.”
A lot of scenes between CJ and Big Smoke transpired this time around. After a drive-by Smoke remarks that this life is, “like riding a bike.” CJ readily agrees. What’s interesting about this statement is that the game is saying that you can never really leave a life of crime behind. CJ solidifies this point when after I stole a car he says, “I’m just a street criminal. What can I say?” Well, just a couple of weeks ago (I’m assuming), he wasn’t “just a street criminal.” CJ’s gangster values have be reinstated without much force. In order to fulfill these missions, CJ must allow himself to be sucked right back into the life he left. There is no choice. Big Smoke takes us on a joyride to kill Ballas for practice. You take a gun with the intent to use it, not to just defend yourself.
Now, it was relieving to hear the bit about the drug problem in their scene. CJ wants to get the group back together. To do this, they want to get Big Bear on their side. But, Big Bear has become a disgusting crack addict. So, CJ goes to beat up and kill some dealers to get Grove Street back on its feet. However, there is a distinction. Their intent isn’t to make the world a better place, no declaration of war on drugs. It’s to put their gang back at number one. I knew their morals seemed to good to be true.
So, then we go to the Cluckin’ Bell because, you know, they’re black. Somewhere along the way (I forget if it’s before or after the drive-by) Big Smoke says, “Respect have to be earned, just like money.” Smoke has seemingly equated respect with money. Hmm…it’s nice to know where his priorities lay. The next mission, aka the hilarious drive-by, made me forget that I was killing people and left me laughing at Smoke’s insatiable hunger. I am not sure what the point of that was, but maybe it was to provide comic relief whilst practicing my driving skills. Maybe it was to show how easy it is to get wrapped up in the thug life. Is “drive-by” just as easy to say as “Chicken, no questions?”
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Oct 30th, 2010 at 14:27:39 - Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS3) |
I started the game without any idea as to what it was about. Friends gathered around and laughed as I rode in circles on CJ’s bike, trying to get to his house. I will preface this log with the fact that I get fed up with video games very easily. That said, I played thirty minutes and quit. But, just within a mere thirty minutes, I unearthed some interesting ethical dilemmas. Obviously, this game deals with the theory of cultural relativism. CJ could run people over and shoot them without any repercussions. I personally did not do any of these things, but realized I could have. Instead, I obeyed the laws of the road as best I could. The only joy I got out of the game was messing with his haircuts and running everywhere to make the thirty minutes go by and piss off my friends who were watching. I couldn’t stand participating in a game that enacts gang violence and perpetuated stereotypes. I realize that because it is “just a game,” I could have thrown out my values and beliefs and reveled in the theory of ethical egoism. However, I was uncomfortable doing that. CJ can follow whatever path he wants to pursue his own happiness, but the game makes it so you have to be extremely violent to do so. You’re not held accountable for your actions so being an ethical egoist could come almost naturally. Honestly, I don’t understand the point of this game. I asked my friends and they were like, “Oh, well, we just play to shoot people and drive around. We don’t really know the point.” That didn’t help. So far, I think CJ is just trying to connect with his brother Sweet and try not to get killed by rival gangs. Basically the game’s motto is: No morality? No problem!
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