Why Themes Matter

With all the discussions about historical accuracy, representation, and diverse perspectives in games, we really need to have a discussion on why any of that matters. Why does it matter what theme a designer uses? Why does it matter how that theme is handled? 

There are a lot of reasons why theme matters in games. Better themes make for better games. Themes make games easier to learn and more immersive. Different themes draw different people in. Theme can be the thing that takes a game from a sequence of mechanisms and makes it art. (I'm pretty sure people wouldn't have talked nearly as much about Holding On or The Grizzled if not for their themes.) Themes make games pretty, comprehensible, and meaningful. 

But there is a larger discussion to be had about theme and why it matters. Theme matters because our primary way of making sense of the world is through art. Yes, really. Let me explain. Art, in the form of books, movies, games, and other media, is where we write our myths. A myth is just a story that attempts to explain why the world is the way it is. And here's the kicker: we believe our myths over our histories. 

History is large and somewhat incomprehensible. Sometimes in history things just happen randomly. In myths, everything has a reason. Our myths are simpler and easier to remember. Our concept of the American West is largely a product of books and movies; it is mythical. (Side note for illustrators: Utah has buttes, Texas does not. Be advised.)

Our reliance on myth is very human and I am not advocating we throw out stories in favor of empirical research. Myths are simply better at communicating truth than facts are. For instance, people are more likely to change their mind if they know someone affected by an issue than if you just show them studies saying they are wrong. Stories have an emotional power that facts and statistics don't have. 

No, what I am advocating for is that we become more conscious myth-makers. We need to understand both the actual history behind our themes and the implications of our stories. For example, we have inherited the desire to discover a terra nullius, a concept that historically has been used to justify taking land from indigenous peoples. What does our desire for stories and themes centered on terra nullius say about us? What other ideas might we be perpetuating? Certainly games set in the real world have had an overwhelming tendency to ignore the voice and often the existence of native peoples, which is terra nullius, explicitly. 

But what about games not set on Earth? In some ways fantasy (used here to mean "not reality") is a stronger conveyer of our values, because we are not tied to following 'what really happened.' We are able to explore what could have been and what could be. To then use fantasy to double down on the exploitation and extermination of 'the other' is troubling. Fantastical themes need to know how they are connected to the real world. A fantasy setting can be a powerful tool to make a sharp critique of our culture or our history because we are not bound by historical accuracy. Fantasy can also be used to celebrate ideas that we have yet to see truly flourish in reality. The benefit of conscious myth-crafting is that you're unlikely to be accused of being 'generic' fantasy. 

Art has meaning. Themes have meaning. Systems have meaning. The stories we tell are how we make sense of the world. Given that that is the case, we should treat our themes as more than window dressing. Our themes do not just convey our personal worldview; they shape the reality of our players in a small way. Of course, how you choose to shape your myths will depend on your values. 

One way we can be better myth-makers is by having a better understanding of actual history. Did you know that historians believe that one in four cowboys was black? You wouldn't know that from our myths.  Accuracy to historical record is probably the 'safest' route when myth-making, because if you make someone upset you can appeal to history. Fortunately for us, history is so vast that it contains plenty of interesting details to mine. All it takes is research. Remember that what you think is history may only be myth. Another route we can take is to present ahistorical themes— details not true to the historical record. However, we still need to know the real history and the implications of our story. I don't mean to say that we need to justify that our fantasy could happen, but rather that we need to know what message our story has about our world. 

Theme and mechanics both matter for solid game design but only theme has the power to affect our understanding of reality. This isn't something you can opt out of. Your themes will affect your players perspective whether you like it or not. If you don't want to be a myth-maker, stick to designing abstract games. 

ShippBoard Games is a board game design blog that updates most Mondays.