for his regular game design column at the escapist, jason rohrer has released a game called police brutality, ostensibly a game about organizing students to prevent police from beating and arresting their classmates while john kerry looks on.

it’s a surprisingly balanced game considering the theme, but what it emphatically is not is anything like the experience of actually confronting the police. it does not convey the terror of watching police close the doors of a room you know your friends are still inside or the horror of seeing an enormous cop, badge covered, wrestle a tiny student to the ground to cuff his wrists and ankles. in fact, i’d suggest that the neat balance and clear, bright-colored iconography of the game are at odds with the theme, which is the oppression of the weak by the strong.