Reality Play: Documentary Computer Games Beyond Fact and Fiction

Abstract

Computer games such asJFKReloaded and 9-11 Survivor not only aim at an accurate documentation of particular eventssuchas the assassination of JohnF.Kennedy and theTwinTowersattackbut also at the playfulre-enactmentof thesetraumaticevents. In this article, I discusswhetherthe useful in defining these games. These docu-games try to combine the facts of documentaries and the fiction of computer gameselements that seem hard to reconcile at first sight. Do these games create a harmonious space of communication in which feelings of mutual understanding occur between designers and players?