Levers and Watchtowers

Chapter 3 introduces a basic dynamic that informs much of the book that follows: the contrast between individual game objects that have a simple but direct effect on the world, and those objects that connect to broader systems that operate in the background of the world. It describes a contrast between an individual lever in a game like Uncharted that might open a door, and the watchtowers that the player needs to avoid in a game like Wolfenstein: New Order, where detection can set off an alarm and change the whole state of a camp’s awareness of the player. This chapter introduces the topic of systematicity, the existence of broad systems in the game world that exist independent of player actions, and that need to be monitored or maintained during play. This chapter draws on Heidegger’s distinction between the tool and technology to analyze the distinction between lever and watchtower.