The third and final instalment of the Games Britannia dealt, of course, with the leap to video games and the influence they have had on gaming.
Looking at the arrival of "Dungeons & Dragons" and how it changed the way people looked at games as well as video games such a "Populous" and "Black and White", games which held you responsible for saving lives instead of ending them. Of course, you have the freedom to decide whether to be a cruel or kind God in these games, however the game will tell you which way you are going: people will fear you, the landscape will change and the little you can see of yourself (your hand) will become uglier the further you travel down the path of cruelty and wilful neglect of the people looking to you for salvation.This was the first time there had really been such a thing as repercussions in video games, you got to decide whether you were the 'good guy' or the 'bad guy' and the game treated you appropriately.
In stark contrast to this was the controversy caused by games in which you could do terrible things with seemingly no repercussions except, that is, a chance to cause more wanton destruction when they police came for you. I refer, of course, to the incredibly popular "Grand Theft Auto" series. This game allowed you the freedom to do pretty much anything you wanted in the seedy underbelly of a city and people loved the chaos.
The episode also focused on the arrival of Lara Croft on the gaming scene, a character who had a story and who could be understood. As well as the introduction of games that allowed and encouraged you to create your own content such as "Little Big Planet".
The episode focussed on the untapped potential of gaming and how much we can still discover, it made me excited to make headway and discover something else that no-one has ever seen in gaming before.
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