[...] So then why do we choose “entertaining” depictions of the destruction of our cities, the fragmenting of our society, and the viral death of pretty much everyone in the country except a handful of survivors? Shouldn’t that be a horrific scenario best reserved for nightmares? I doubt many people fantasize about being beaten and gang-raped, for example.Jonathan Barrickman intenta encontrar una explicación a la fascinación que siente el hombre moderno por el supuesto de un apocalipsis zomby (una situación en realidad nada deseable para cualquier ser vivo) y el boom actual de esta temática en el arte, los medios y videojuegos. Hace algunas reflexiones interesantes y se pueden encontrar en el artículo unos cuantos enlaces y referencias muy instructivas, como la del número de Dunbar, aunque en mi opinión al final trata un poco superficial y brevemente el tema central del artículo: ¿qué significa que, en nuestro interior, deseemos que la sociedad desaparezca, todo el mundo muera y tengamos que luchar cada día por sobrevivir, espalda contra espalda con un grupo de otros seres humanos?
[...] But wait, that’s destructive! That’s not the kind of thing a normal, civilized, well-adjusted person would say! Wishing death upon everyone and creating a scenario where your survival is threatened at every turn, and measured in days instead of years, wouldn’t seem to make any sense!
[...] Why not talk to a stranger on the bus? You live in the same goddamn city, and might have something in common. Maybe it’s because you don’t “feel like it” or “have other things on your mind” or “are sure they’re all just douchebags anyway,” but the real reason – the subconscious reason – is that you’ve reached your limit of people you can keep track of. You are getting the social support you need, and can’t be arsed with remembering another person’s stupid name, and their ugly face, and the ages of their retarded kids.
[...] And that’s why the Zombie Apocalypse must seem so appealing; the great, rotting “reset button.” Everybody else fucks off and dies while you and your Bros (and that hottie from the California Pizza Kitchen down the road) kick back, take whatever you want, answer to no one, and shoot any other bastard in the face (because that’s the only way to be sure). Your bonds with the people you actually care about strengthen, and anyone who might conceivably get in the way is no longer even a factor. Sounds kinda nice, doesn’t it? Oh, and you don’t ever have to go to work again too, so that’s extra cool.
The zombie apocalypse: why you secretly want to live in a commune
Aprovecho para recomendaros que estéis pendientes de la sección periódica The Sunday Papers del blog Rock, Paper, Shotgun (Piedra, papel, escopeta), pues consiste en una recopilación de montones de lecturas interesantes y serias sobre el mundo de los videojuegos.