Machine Man 1992 said:
It claims to be a deconstruction of Moder War games when it itself is a modern war game.
It needs to be in order to introduce twists on tired tropes.
Machine Man 1992 said:
It claims to lambast the player for engaging in war crimes (and I could do a whole separate rant on why I think the very idea of war crimes is stupid) and then FORCES the player to do horrible things.
As Konrad says in the heavily fourth-wall-breaking ending scene, "none of this would have happened if you just stopped. But on you marched. And for what?" - this game is HEAVY on the fourth wall. Both Walker and the player thought "This is really wrong, but it's kind of what I'm supposed to do, right? I don't have a choice, I have to continue" when they could have just stopped.
The loading screens are also full of stuff like "To kill for yourself is murder. To kill for your country is heroic. To kill for entertainment is harmless" or "The US military doesn't condone violence against unarmed combatants. But this isn't real, so why should you care?"
Machine Man 1992 said:
It targets the consumer when it should be aiming itself at developers or the publishers that mandate what they create.
It targets players on purpose. Those that want this puerile power fantasy, this romanticization of war, they want to feel like heroes for mindlessly killing whatever the game throws in front of them.
The game explicitly condemns these players for shutting their brain off. It wants to switch on their brains again and make them think about what they're doing, be critical of what they're doing.
"Do you feel like a hero yet?"
"You're here because you wanted to feel like someone you're not: A hero"
Again, these are themes that go with the players as well as with Walker, who from the beginning wanted to reach the heroism of the idol described in the opening narration: Konrad. Even as his psyche turns the guy into a scapegoat, Walker continues until the end because the believes he is (or can be) the hero, the guy that solves everything by killing the bad dude, the one that can save Dubai.
And players want pats on the shoulder as well, be it because they gain points or because of a flashing VICTORY screen or because they win against impossible odds as the good guys in a good VS evil war as frequently depicted by shooters.
Machine Man 1992 said:
It has the same problem as Warhammer 40000, in that its so bleak that it's impossible to take seriously. Things get so dark and so gritty, it almost becomes a black comedy, or hell, it does become a black comedy whenever The Radioman opens his fat gob.
It starts off with Lugo making piss-poor jokes and Adams laughing at them. Radioman, as you've already stated, later serves as the middleground with stuff like "Where does all this violence come from! Is it the videogames? I bet it's the videogames!". After his death, you're well into hell by now, so jokes just seem completely misplaced when Lugo attempts a heroic sacrifice, goes missing some time later and ends up hanged. Inserting a joke there just would have been terrible taste. There's also not a whole lot of room for anyone to breathe after the water is lost.
Can't comment on 40k because I find its over-the-top-ness cheesy and hilarious, and believe it's done on purpose to some degree.
Machine Man 1992 said:
Finally, the whole concept, the whole being of the game is utterly paradoxical: the story is meant to make players question why they play games, players want the game to be fun, the game can't be fun or the players won't question, but if the game isn't fun, then the players fuck off and play something that is, so to try and make them stay, the game tries to be both fun and not fun, and features lots of exploding heads and slo-mo giblets. You see? It's hypocritical to have your game be wall-to-wall violence and have an ultimately anti-violence message.
If Spec Ops makes you switch off the game because you've decided you can no longer justify all the amoral stuff you're doing in it with "for entertainment!", then it's achieved one of its prime goals. It means Spec Ops made the player criticize his own behavior and change it - maybe that's even the devs' best case scenario for what players could take from this game.
I think the slow-mo gibbing heads can be interpreted differently. Yahtzee came to one conclusion, I think it's supposed to break the action on purpose so you have a moment to think about what you've just done. Spec Ops does like lingering on the bad stuff you do, most prominently the WP scene, so it doesn't seem out of line for its design.
Machine Man 1992 said:
Having an awesome and subversive story means absolutely dick when your gameplay is crap. There are certain rules you have to abide in this medium, certain inviolable rules, and Spec Ops broke them.
There's plenty of popular (as "objective" as we're ever going to get to "good") games with weak gameplay and great other aspects like narrative. People usually agree that Morrowind is a pretty good game with great atmosphere and world-crafting for example, even if the main mechanic, combat, is pretty terrible.
There's also more gameplay to Spec Ops than cover-based TPS. Frequently a single shot, or lack therof, makes for the most impactful decisions you get to make. Try to think of Spec Ops as a bit less of a game and a bit more of a message and critique told as it could only be told in an interactive medium with a post-modern audience filled to the brink with cod clones.
Machine Man 1992 said:
Finally, trying to use killing to shock a seasoned videogame player is like trying to put out a chemical fire with a garden hose. It tales a lot more than just "These people died, AND IT'S YOUR FAULT!!!!11one!" to get a reaction other than a maniacal grin from me.
If stuff like the WP scene didn't shock you, it's not the game that's broken. But it's part of what Spec Ops criticizes actually, that we've become so dulled by violent entertainment we don't think about it anymore and don't feel bad about it anymore. And I'm glad I've had that little eye-opener, because it made me feel utterly, utterly disgusted at playing the flamethrower level in FarCry 3. It's almost a comical counter-part to Spec Ops, what with two chars having a massive gun boner for the flamethrower, reggae WUB WUB ad nauseum, drugs, red barrels and waves of masked mooks as far as the eye could see.