An Atlas Shrugged video game?

Posted by $ jbrenner 11 years ago to Entertainment
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In this month's issue of Reason Magazine, the cover story deals with America's addiction to video games, including more adults than ever. The most intriguing item in the story was about how an economics professor had been hired by a video game company, and the former economics professor illustrated how these multiplayer gaming environments are outstanding models of microsocieties. As several of us are talking about putting together a physical Atlantis, perhaps we could simulate the Gulch as a video game as a "dry run" before actually building Atlantis. Moreover, could you imagine the number of teenagers who would line up to watch Who is John Galt? if the video game were released just before the movie?


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  • Posted by JRMR 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    Not exactly. The game is all about what can go wrong in an objectivist society. It does champion individual rights, but it shows that there needs to be some limits. In my opinion the game is one of the smartest and most intellectual pieces of entertainment ever produced. And in all honesty it scares the player/viewer on the dangers of complete freedom. While I am an Objectivist, this game showed me that there still needs to be some restrictions, even in a free society.
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  • Posted by Solver 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    It almost as if the creators of this game are trying to convince everyone that Ayn Rand's Philosophy is all about a massive violation of individual rights--An anything goes dam the consequences full speed ahead, it does matter who gets run over, way of thinking. What could be their agenda?
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  • Posted by Solver 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    Or, worse, as some famously social reasoning would say,
    You use road and bridges. If you own a video game business, your didn't build that. Someone else did.
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  • Posted by Maphesdus 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    Patents tend to be abused in the realm of video game development, anyway. For example, the creators of "Crazy Taxi" tried to sue the creators of "The Simpsons Road Rage" for having gameplay that was too similar to theirs, which is just dumb.
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  • Posted by Solver 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    I added an up vote, not because of a great post, but to negate a down vote that seems undeserved. It costs me nothing.
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  • Posted by Maphesdus 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    I'm open to suggestions. What kind of bosses would you want to see in a game like that?
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  • Posted by Maphesdus 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    I don't know, either. Someone's been down voting every single post I make, regardless of content. It's getting really annoying. Do you know if the mods will do anything about this?
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  • Posted by Solver 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    Getting project like this done in timely manner requires a select few of the right kind of people who have the right kind of knowledge, think logically, respect the rights of others and are willing to take risks with their capital and resources for potential gain later on.
    With out these traits, just having a lot of people is unlikely to work out very well. A fact collectivists haven't figured out yet.
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  • Posted by $ 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    I realized what you were saying about being selfish before. I was just having a little fun.

    Finishing by 9/12 probably isn't possible, unless we get a lot of people working on it.
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  • Posted by Solver 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    Actually with one sentence I was trying to make two points related to rational thinking.
    1. That being selfish in itself is NOT a bad thing.
    2. If you do the work you SHOULD get a benefit based on actual value produced.

    A final product can't be completed by 9/12/14.
    Oh well, it's hard to make any long term plans these-days against the increasing whims of political uncertainty.
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  • Posted by $ 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    And selfish is bad in what way?! In order to make this as profitable as possible, it would be necessary to get it done by 9/12/14.
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  • Posted by Robbie53024 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    Sims is EA and RCT is Atari, so might not have a similar capability to insert your own rules. The advantage of RCT is that it has capitalistic activities (making a profit and building up your park to make even more money). The more I think about this, the more interested I get.
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  • Posted by Solver 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    This might sound just a little selfish but if a group of us were to spend like six months inventing and finalizing a computer game, we would expect some benefit for ourselves based on how successful it was.
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  • Posted by $ 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    I like role playing games. I would prefer some other choices for boss fights, but it's a start.
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  • Posted by Maphesdus 11 years ago
    I've been toying around with the idea of a video game based on Objectivist principles, though my idea was more like a Zelda game or an RPG, rather than a Sim game. Basically the concept is that you play as a mysterious cloaked person known only as "The Individual," and your goal is to fight against an evil religious cult known as "The Collective." The game would have at least four major boss fights: Atilla the Hun, the Witch Doctor, Marx, and the final boss, Immanuel, who represents both organized religion as well as Immanuel Kant, who Ayn Rand considered to be her greatest philosophical enemy.
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  • Posted by $ 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    Solver, you had better talk to dbhalling and khalling about the intellectual property you just generated.
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  • Posted by $ 11 years ago in reply to this comment.
    That is pretty much how I saw it, Solver. That is a nice start on the game.

    The smart people in the game would build gated fences (force fields?) around themselves to prevent the attack of thieves.
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