Pocket Universe

This article about Good vs. Evil in The Escapist nicely summarizes the problem with “moral choices” in video games today: namely, that they take a simplistic view of good vs. evil. The dilemmas are more along the lines of “Do you want to be the hero who helps the innocent, or the bastard who exploits them?” Not really a moral question, that is more of a gameplay choice. A more interesting question would have more of a grey area: For example, do you kill a few innocents to save the greater population, or spare them in hopes of finding another solution? It would be nice to some more depth to these decisions, and appropriate endings that reflect the results of your choices; currently, the endings are either, “You were a good guy, and ended up a hero,” or “You were a jerk, and now you rule with an iron fist.” Not much subtlety there. How about the guy who doomed a civilization because he was unable to sacrifice others? Or the guy who saved them, but as great personal cost? Anyway, the article presents a great example of one potential storyline.