A Force More Powerful

Ever thought of learning the ropes and strategy of nonviolent conflict? If the answer is “yes”, then A Force More Powerful may be something you’d wish to keep your eyes upon. Wired News has an interesting article about this upcoming game, the child of Ivan marovic who, along with the Otpor resistance group, helped remove former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic from power.

Created by BreakAway Games, the game leads players through simulations of real-life events, such as Gandhi’s struggle for Indian independence, the civil rights movement in the American South, and Otpor’s protests in Serbia.

“Young people grew up with video games,” said Marovic, “and they take the medium seriously.”

The game doesn’t require an itchy trigger finger or keen hand-to-eye coordination; rather, it relies entirely on strategy. As well as historical recreations, players can set up their own scenarios, based on their own situation on the ground, and experiment with different nonviolent strategies. The game’s artificial intelligence calculates the results.

Again, this is all about nonviolent strategy (this time, there’s no way the old smelly “video games turn our children into violent beasts” argument can hold water), and it seems to me, from the way the article summarizes the game, that it can be not only interesting and captivating, but also a good lesson in strategy at all, as well as a voice whenever and wherever such tactics could be needed for the good of all.

The game is planned to be sold in the United States, and distributed for free to international groups.