Looking Outwards – 09

I decided to look into Angela Washko and her work in feminist and alternative video games.
“The Game: The Game” is a fresh take on dating sims, as the player goes through the experience of seduction as a femme-presenting individual.
Along with the traditional dating sim mechanics, this game also provides commentary on politics, tactics and practices of the male pick-up strategies.
It creates empathy or a sense of understanding among people in these specific and hyper-gendered social situations.
I’ve always thought of video games as a platform of expression, but I hadn’t considered political or social commentary to be a particularly prominent aspect.
However, Washko and her work has brought this element into the forefront of my attention, and I will continue to look for more meaningful avenues that video games may promote in the future.
More generally, Washko’s work takes on a specific angle in interdisciplinary art, combining aspects of performance, mainstream media, digital art, cinematography and video games.
She’s a Associate Professor of Art at CMU and primarily works with the MFA program.
https://angelawashko.com/section/437138-The-Game-The-Game.html