Gamer Culture in Playing Simulated Violence Against Non-Playable Characters (NPC) in Video Games

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-418-1_13How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Gamer Culture; Non-Playable Characters; Simulated Violence; Video Games

Abstract

The latest developments in video games are getting closer to reality in the real world. A realistic approach is embedded in video games through visual graphics and also the ability of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to play characters in the game. Non Playable Character (NPC) is a complement developed with AI in video games, to make the social life-world in the game more lively. NPCs are in the game not as protagonists who must be protected or antagonists who must be defeated, in order to complete or finish the game. However, NPCs can be interacted with and given treatment like communities around us in real life. This research aims to explain the behavior of gamers in simulating violence against NPCs, such as the desire to commit violence that cannot be done in the real world. This research uses phenomenological methods to explore Gamer Culture who are faced with game visual displays that are close to realistic, bringing the experience of simulating violent video games they play closer to violence in the real world. The theories used in this research are Simulacra and Simulation anf Ecstasy of Violence from Jean Baudrillard which explains the banality of violence in media simulations which produces the human desire to continuously reproduce the simulation of violence. Gamers use AI through NPCs in the game to simulate violence. The result of this research is the emergence of several forms of simulation of reproductive violence. The production of simulated violence against NPCs does not only arise from the players but also from the viewers of the replay of the violence, as well as from the role of the gaming industry which produces simulated violence. The novelty of this research is the emergence of a discourse that technological sophistication in reconstructing AI has a progressive effect from the development of a futuristic game or that this sophistication deconstructs and degrades human morals through simulating violence.

Copyright

© 2025 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Panggio Restu Wilujeng
AU  - Rahma Sugihartati
AU  - Muhammad Saud
AU  - Nurvita Wijayanti
PY  - 2025
DA  - 2025/06/06
TI  - Gamer Culture in Playing Simulated Violence Against Non-Playable Characters (NPC) in Video Games
BT  - Proceedings of the International Conference on Cultural Studies (ICCUS 2024)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 165
EP  - 175
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-418-1_13
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-418-1_13
ID  - Wilujeng2025
ER  -