POLITICAL LUDOLOGY – THE APORIAS OF ONTOLOGICAL DISCREPANCY BETWEEN GAME AND POLITICS

Abstract

The paper explores the concept of political ludology by analyzing the aporias of the ontological discrepancy between games and politics in the context of video games. Although video games belong to the corpus of fiction and simulation, they simultaneously generate significant political implications, shaping perceptions of power, identity, and responsibility. The paper problematizes the way video games function as spaces for political narratives, moral dilemmas, and existential questions, questioning the boundaries between games as free, autonomous spaces and politics as an organized order of power and obligations. The opening chapter analyzes what is political in political video games and how political elements in video games seemingly converge with the eternally given and unchanging ludological concepts of games. By exploring moral dilemmas and responsibilities, the author questions how political video games place players in moral choices and how these choices impact subjective responsibility. The focus is on the ethics of decision-making, the boundaries of free will, and the ways in which the player, through interactive experience, becomes a political subject. The author also examines the paradox of freedom in video games, contrasting "freedom from" the video game with "freedom for" the player, arguing that the latter is merely a permission, an illusion offered by the creators. It analyzes how the concept of political freedom is translated into the ludological system of rules and mechanics, and to what extent the player can transcend these boundaries. The concluding chapter raises the question of the ontological status of the video game in relation to reality. It discusses whether the political dimension of a game remains confined to the realm of fiction or has the ability to transform the player's perception of the real political order. The paper addresses the boundary between simulation and reality, as well as the potential of video games to redefine political discourse beyond their virtual sphere.