"We're Meant to Choose": Thematic Change in Video Game Adaptations of Non-Participatory Media

Abstract

Video game adaptations are often viewed only as extension of franchises, tie-ins or other products made for the purpose of creating profit. At the same time, how this adaptation process is affected by the participatory medium is not widely researched. This study discusses video game adaptations of non-participatory texts through the themes of violence, and gender and sexuality by comparing the source texts to their adaptations. These themes were chosen because of their significance in the public discourse surrounding video games. The texts included in this study were Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, Yager Development’s Spec Ops: The Line, Harlan Ellison’s “I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream”, its adaptation by the same name by The Dreamers Guild, H. P. Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth, Headfirst Productions’ Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth, George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four and Osmotic Studios’ Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You. The study found that the included video games could discuss violence in an introspective and complex manner. However, themes of gender and sexuality were largely omitted even if they had a strong presence in the source text, except for cases in which female characters were victimised. It was discerned that although the included video games could offer insightful commentary on violence, they were more hesitant at discussing sexual and gender issues, leading to those themes being omitted during the adaptation process.