Watch Dogs 2: 6 Important Social Observations 

4. If There Are No Consequences, Should You Care?

WATCH DOGS 2
Ubisoft

Apart from collecting data - so stealing peoples' "digital shadows" - the group of young hackers also collects money from those that it intends to save. Granted, you're able to see the profile of a person whose bank account you're about to hack and evaluate whether he or she deserves it, but who really reads that stuff?

There are no real-life consequences, so why should anyone care?

Also, Marcus gets to kill people. A lot of people.

In Das Lachen der Täter (The Laugh of the Murderers), Klaus Theweleit criticizes the Western media for its constant attempts at presenting serial killers and mass murderers as abnormal, different from regular people. He argues that they are just like any of us, but act the way they do because they are pushed to a certain limit or put in a situation where they choose the worst option.

The gamer responds to that notion by deciding to kill the guards after his drone-like Jumper is once again spotted and destroyed, because dammit, why do these stealth missions have to be so frustrating?! Once you're caught, you have to once again go through the whole thing, as there are no checkpoints and come on, I haven't got time for this!

Contributor

I write sitting with my dogs on the sofa, which often leads to whole paragraphs being deleted by a single touch of a paw or a nose.