15: The Medieval City in Computer Games

15: The Medieval City in Computer Games

Stefan Ancuta, @emanuelancuta, University of Vienna Cities are powerful symbols for the middle ages and have been a central focus of medieval studies since the 19th century. Cities are spaces with a high density of buildings, socially stratified populations, and spaces of trade, production, culture, religion, and power. The broad applicability of this definition allows us to look at a multiplicity of settlement forms as cities, which is necessary since many places of interest in games can play the same roles. Depending on the genre, different functions of cities are emphasized. RPGs and other narratively driven games often use cities as scenery, but they are also gameplay hubs that structure the narrative through resources and quests. As part of a geography that is to be explored, cities serve as landmarks, contrasted with the wilderness. In the Gothic series, the city becomes a network of political and social communities, something the player joins. The social stratification is reflected in the structure of the city, with special quarters controlled by various factions the player can interact with. Cities are best delineated in strategy games, where they represent the fundamental centres of power, wealth, and production. They are the conduits of growth that progresses human development, regardless of historical age. In the Crusader Kings series, cities are but one of the multiple power centres that make up a realm. They differ not only in the buildings available (ex: universities), but also in their political structure: republics ruled by patrician families. In games like Rise of Nations or Civilization, that span multiple ages, cities develop and progress with technology. Once the middle ages have been reached, the visuals change to reflect a medieval aesthetic and new medieval buildings can be constructed.

In city-builders players become the embodiment of cities. They are in control of the development of the city and of the wellbeing of their citizenry. This is based on their consumption needs, be it food, religion, or luxuries. A city that provides is a city that grows. Foundation, having a newer spin on the genre, creates a feeling of organic growth by taking away control from the player. The population has some autonomous influence over the appearance of the city. The medieval city is a phenomenon in progress. In Banished the city is a refuge against nature. Needs can only be taken care of through collective effort and a specialization of production. This happens in other strategy games too, where cities need to be developed according to their comparative advantage. Cities are portrayed as reflections of the human condition and represent mostly vehicles for or achievements of human progress: dense population centers with complex socio-economic relations reflected in the architecture and cityscape. The medieval-ness of cities in video games erodes beyond the aesthetic of the architecture and the material culture of the population (clothing, armor, weapons) conforming in function to the general genre requirements.

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