2012′s ebook Killing is Harmless, by prolific critic Brendan Keogh, is a unique beast. It is perhaps the first effort in videogames criticism to execute a book-length close reading of a single videogame title.
Despite the immense boost in the volume and public recognition of videogames criticism over the past few years – thanks in part to the appearance of games writing roundup site Critical Distance, a range of high-profile criticism-dedicated games blogs and efforts by larger entities such as Rock, Paper, Shotgun and Kotaku to either publish or publicise videogames criticism – a concerted effort such as Killing is Harmless has not, until now, been attempted.
That it chooses as its subject the game Spec Ops: The Line – perhaps the most unexpected critical darling of 2012 – is appropriate. Spec Ops took many by surprise. Its blending of the staid military third-person shooter genre with a cutting and vitriolic critique of modern warfare and the psychology of soldiers impressed me greatly despite my initial prejudices. For the benefit of those unfamiliar with the game, Spec Ops focused narratively on both the perception of ‘humanitarian intervention’ as a positive force in the modern world and the experience of engaging with a fictional narrative situated in the context of modern warfare.