URCAD Sneak Peek: Maria Kutishcheva

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 06:46:11 -0400

Video Games as Cultural Artifacts: How Pathologic Communicates to Players the Trauma-Induced Nostalgia of Russians

Maria Kutishcheva
Mentor: Mary Laurents, History

Recent global events stress the importance of preservation and analysis of Russian political culture. Historically, Russian and Soviet citizens have had their political culture and civic life repressed throughout modern history, most typically through violence and oppression. However, during a brief time after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russian citizens could, for a moment, freely their opinions. Pathologic was a video game released by developer Ice-Pick Lodge in 2006, during this very time of partial political freedom. As such, Pathologic could serve as a cultural and political relic of Russia. This paper explores video games as a storytelling medium that provides a player with a unique and interactive perspective that cannot be simulated with other forms of media. Content-based analysis of other video games reveals their ability to serve as cultural artifacts, such as through the video game Never Alone, as well as political commentary for current events, alluded to in the video game Papers, Please. In Pathologic, the player needs to save a town from a plague through the perspective of two main characters, “The Bachelor” and “The Haruspex”. Analysis of Pathologic would provide insight into the collective identity of the Russian people.

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