Of course, the game doesn't call it torture. I think the term they use is "extreme interrogation tactics." But when is something "interrogation" over "torture?" Is it just how badly you beat somebody up, or does it matter what you're trying to get out of the person/NPC?

In Brink, this is what happens: you're playing as a military operative in a futuristic setting. During a firefight, you sneak behind enemy lines and happen upon an injured rebel writhing on the ground. An option pops up, prompting you to press X to interrogate the guy and it looks like if you select it, your character pulls out an iPhone-iish device. Your character then shocks the heck out of the guy until he screams, "Okay! I'll talk!" Then your objective screen updates and a new icon appears on the map.

In the grand scheme of violence in video games, it's not graphic. It's actually similar to what happens to Snake in the first Metal Gear Solid when Revolver Ocelot has him strapped spread-eagle style and shocks him (as the player, you press buttons to Resist or Submit — Submitting kills Meryl and I couldn't hit that button fast enough). The difference in Brink is that my character is doing it to someone else. So on a gut level, I don't want to call it torture because I'm the "good guy," right?

But then there's the Punisher game with interactive torture. That's torture because I think the game goes so far as to call it so, but as a player I'm comfortable with it because I'm playing as the Punisher. Yeah, he fights for justice, but he's not what people would call a "good" guy. So it's okay for me as a player to play as him torturing somebody because that's what the Punisher would do — never mind what I would do. Besides, they were probably bad people who deserved it anyway.

Now think about Red Faction: Guerrilla where you're playing on the side of a rebel faction. Like Brink, it's a wartime situation and gaining information is crucial to the success of missions. In one scene, explored by Stephen Totilo, an NPC sidekick "interrogates" somebody for said information. With knives. Is that torture? If you're not sure, apply the same line of questioning to Killzone 2 when Rico gets a little "extreme" when interrogating an enemy.

To confuse you even more on the subject of torture, think about situations where it's not about information — it's about control. For example, there's the Grand Theft Auto: Vice City mission, Death Row and the Ransom mission in Grand Theft Auto IV. In both cases, somebody is deliberately hurting someone else for revenge or just because they're violent by nature. That's really easy to spot as torture — but at the same time, in GTAIV, you're playing as Niko, the guy that hits a woman tied to a chair and then takes a picture of her. You don't really want to call that torture, do you? It's easier just to play it down as no big deal or write it off because it's not an interactive part of the game — so "you" didn't torture anybody.

Lastly, let's talk about torture being inflicted on you, the player. In these cases, you probably wouldn't think of what you're going through as "torture," (unless it's a Saw game), but by definition, a game is deliberately inflicting suffering on you. Example: Missile Command. The game is about mutually assured destruction in the Cold War era, but at the same time, it's a psychological exercise that tortures the player: by design, you cannot "win" Missile Command. Sure, a lot of early arcade games were un-winnable — but by forcing the player to realize that no matter how good you are at the game, no matter how many quarters you sink into it, you cannot save six cities from a nuclear holocaust, the game is deliberately messing with you. A more obvious example of mental anguish inflicted on the player would be Fable II — because it's not just that your character is being electrocuted, it's that you're losing all of that XP you gathered and racking up evilness (which is torture to a goody-two-shoes gamer like me).

So what's really going on in Brink? When I zap the guy with my iPhone-looking device, am I committing torture or just "extreme" interrogation? I didn't see an option to just question the guy before shocking him. I'm not sure if there were other ways to get the information that the subject had. I do know that if the game actually called it "torture," I'd be way less inclined to play as that class of character. For me, that would be the worst kind of torture: role-playing as a character that I want to play as benevolent, and then being forced to do something I'm not okay with because the game has other ideas about where the line between torture and interrogation lies.

P.S. You want the line clearly drawn? Check this game out.

Image Cred — GTAIV
Image Cred — The Punisher
Image Cred — Fable II
Image Cred — MGS

Atari calls the games "true evolutions of the original hits", and promises more to come in the near future. Both games retail for $4.99 and are available now via the App Store. Nice, but not quite for me. I've bought Missile Command too many times already, and I've always been more of an Arkanoid man.

Atari fires onto App Store [Casualgaming.biz]

As they say in the King of Kong, this society is based on war and games. The real war is to get the higher score Missile Command score recognized and the war in Iraq is to get democracy recognized over the assholes. It’s the same mindset with a different goal.

You'll also miss the raving-mad Schildt ponder beating Billy Mitchell to death if locked in a room with him for five minutes, so please, go read it.

Don’t Get Chumpatized: Missile Commander Roy Schildt Speaks Up [The -Minus World]

The latest is the "Missile Command Docudrama" although its message is, surprisingly, kind of serious. Tof from Retro Sabotage explained to me in an e-mail: "We wanted an "anti-sabotage" to celebrate the 20th release, and it's kind of a mirror to Mockumentary (though we got mails of people who somehow believed in that one)."

In the past I know we've linked to some of their other clever redos of classic arcade games. The Xevious Autopsy in particular is worth a look, and I think it's new since RetroSabotage last got a mention here.

Missile Command Docudrama [Retro Sabotage]

Of course the purist can still play the original version of the game, but in my opinion you need an arcade cabinet with cigarette burns all over it, a Slurpee-sticky floor and a trackball or it's just not worth playing.

Classic Atari Game - Missile Command® - Available on Xbox LIVE® Arcade

NEW YORK, July 2, 2007 - Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR), one of the world's most recognized brands and a third-party video game publisher, today announced the launch of Missile Command, one of Atari's most loved classics, onto Xbox LIVE® Arcade. With Missile Command on Xbox LIVE Arcade, Atari delivers the same gaming sights, sounds and action as the original, as well as a new evolved version of the game which features enhanced graphics, sounds and special effects.

"Atari and Stainless Games have done an incredible job creating the evolved Missile Command for Xbox LIVE Arcade as this version showcases a stunning take on an endearing Atari classic," said Matt Rush, Producer, Atari, Inc. "The new experience features amazing graphics and impressive sound design, with a great way to earn Achievements on this arcade favorite!"

Both the classic and evolved versions of Missile Command challenge gamers to protect cities from alien missile attack. The evolved version of the game has been updated with enhanced graphics and 3D rendered vistas giving a graphical makeover to these futuristic cities and missile silos. Missile Command supports all Xbox 360 high definition resolutions up to 1080p as well as full-screen anti-aliasing and digital surround sound. Players can make the most of the Xbox LIVE service with leader boards and 12 achievements.