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Without morals in a moral world : The expanding moral circle of The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt

Johansson, Magnus LU and Rübsamen, Michael LU orcid (2024) In Frontiers in Communication 9.
Abstract
As video and computer games get increasingly more advanced, the immersive experience for the player of these games also follows this trajectory. In these games, one aspect that has been explored to the greatest extent is that of choice and player agency. Often, these choices and acts are of a moral character, whether it be choosing what to do on an ambiguously formulated questline with multiple branches or how to approach different creatures within the game world. The game The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt provides a case of a game that uses many mechanisms to explore issues related to moral and morality. Through a qualitative textual analysis of the game, this article explores how players are faced with the game’s moral order. Utilizing... (More)
As video and computer games get increasingly more advanced, the immersive experience for the player of these games also follows this trajectory. In these games, one aspect that has been explored to the greatest extent is that of choice and player agency. Often, these choices and acts are of a moral character, whether it be choosing what to do on an ambiguously formulated questline with multiple branches or how to approach different creatures within the game world. The game The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt provides a case of a game that uses many mechanisms to explore issues related to moral and morality. Through a qualitative textual analysis of the game, this article explores how players are faced with the game’s moral order. Utilizing Singer’s idea of the expanding moral circle, this article explores the game world’s establishing of moral issues, including who and what are included in the expanding circle and in what way this is conveyed within the game. Relying on the dual nature of the gameplay, where players are role-playing as the Witcher Geralt of Rivia as well as experiencing what unfolds in the game in front of a screen, this article discusses how these moral orders–the one in the game world and the one in “real” life—intertwine the moral underpinnings of a digital game. This article also discusses how encounters with non-human animals often leave the player with very few choices regarding which to act, which is not presented as moral issues at all. Furthermore, this article discusses further development of the theoretical framework as a possible vantage point from where to understand morality and how it emanates in different game worlds. (Less)
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author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
moral, datorspel, agens
in
Frontiers in Communication
volume
9
article number
1401644
pages
10 pages
publisher
Frontiers Media S. A.
external identifiers
  • scopus:85211157244
ISSN
2297-900X
DOI
10.3389/fcomm.2024.1401644
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
fe598974-c207-44bf-ab83-9c7a91532e55
date added to LUP
2024-11-18 19:46:12
date last changed
2025-04-04 14:37:50
@article{fe598974-c207-44bf-ab83-9c7a91532e55,
  abstract     = {{As video and computer games get increasingly more advanced, the immersive experience for the player of these games also follows this trajectory. In these games, one aspect that has been explored to the greatest extent is that of choice and player agency. Often, these choices and acts are of a moral character, whether it be choosing what to do on an ambiguously formulated questline with multiple branches or how to approach different creatures within the game world. The game The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt provides a case of a game that uses many mechanisms to explore issues related to moral and morality. Through a qualitative textual analysis of the game, this article explores how players are faced with the game’s moral order. Utilizing Singer’s idea of the expanding moral circle, this article explores the game world’s establishing of moral issues, including who and what are included in the expanding circle and in what way this is conveyed within the game. Relying on the dual nature of the gameplay, where players are role-playing as the Witcher Geralt of Rivia as well as experiencing what unfolds in the game in front of a screen, this article discusses how these moral orders–the one in the game world and the one in “real” life—intertwine the moral underpinnings of a digital game. This article also discusses how encounters with non-human animals often leave the player with very few choices regarding which to act, which is not presented as moral issues at all. Furthermore, this article discusses further development of the theoretical framework as a possible vantage point from where to understand morality and how it emanates in different game worlds.}},
  author       = {{Johansson, Magnus and Rübsamen, Michael}},
  issn         = {{2297-900X}},
  keywords     = {{moral; datorspel; agens}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{11}},
  publisher    = {{Frontiers Media S. A.}},
  series       = {{Frontiers in Communication}},
  title        = {{Without morals in a moral world : The expanding moral circle of The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt}},
  url          = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/200088030/fcomm-09-1401644.pdf}},
  doi          = {{10.3389/fcomm.2024.1401644}},
  volume       = {{9}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}