FILE PHOTO: Assassin’s Creed Discovery Tour is an educational game that allows players to explore the history and daily life of the Viking Age, Ancient Greece, and Ancient Egypt.

---

The global proliferation of digital and intelligent technologies has presented humanity with philosophical dilemmas never before encountered in history, while also ushering in profound transformations in the practice of philosophy itself. As an emerging interactive medium, video games have long transcended the bounds of mere entertainment, revealing their distinctive intellectual value. What new avenues for philosophical inquiry might video games open up? 

When players in Cyberpunk 2077 question their sense of self after outfitting their bodies with cybernetic augmentations, when they agonize over whether to rebel against or coexist with humans in Detroit: Become Human, or when they confront moral dilemmas of mercy or killing in The Witcher 3, traditional philosophical questions reappear in novel and engaging ways. 

In fact, the relationship between games and philosophy can be traced back to the very roots of Western philosophy. Plato viewed games not as simple diversions, but as educational and philosophical activities that could impart rational values in a relaxed, enjoyable setting. More importantly, Plato regarded philosophical dialogue itself as a sophisticated form of intellectual game. This tradition of gamifying philosophical discourse finds new expression in contemporary video games. Modern game designers, through meticulously crafted narratives and mechanics, create interactive experiences that stimulate deep reflection, continuing the Platonic dialogue in the digital age. 

Plato also emphasized the simulation value of games, believing they offer a safe space in which people can practice and experience a range of real-life scenarios. This aligns closely with the function of modern virtual reality games. Today, video games allow players to immerse themselves in both real and virtual environments, including ethically charged situations, rendering many philosophical thought experiments less abstract and more accessible. 

Take Detroit: Become Human as an example. The game transforms the classic philosophical question of whether artificial intelligence possesses consciousness into a narrative-driven exploration. By inhabiting the roles of androids, players experience firsthand the awakening of machine consciousness and grapple with how free will and determinism intertwine in the fate of embodied AI. Every decision a player makes triggers far-reaching consequences through the butterfly effect. This immersive philosophical engagement and interactive moral decision-making are far more persuasive, emotionally powerful, and thought-provoking than traditional text-based discourse. The conflicts between robots and humans, along with their struggles over coexistence and rights, reflect core issues in contemporary AI ethics and safety. 

The behavioral patterns and organizational structures found in virtual worlds often mirror fundamental aspects of human society. As such, massively multiplayer online games and simulation strategy games provide unique vantage points for the study of collective behavior. The intricate economic systems, political alliances, and social norms in EVE Online, for example, offer empirical data for understanding societal mechanisms. Games like Civilization, Frostpunk, and Hearts of Iron simulate diverse social systems and historical processes, encouraging players to reflect on political philosophy from a macro perspective. When players assume the roles of rulers and decision-makers in virtual societies, freely altering political and economic choices, questions arise as to whether the criteria for moral judgment shift accordingly—raising key concerns within political philosophy. 

David Chalmers, in his book Reality+, argues that virtual worlds possess ontological reality. His position provides a philosophical foundation for game studies and exemplifies a technophilosophical approach. “Technophilosophy” advocates for philosophical inquiry to move beyond pure speculation, encouraging engagement with emerging technologies to test philosophical hypotheses and conduct thought experiments in virtual settings. Under this new paradigm, many traditional philosophical conundrums are being reinterpreted in fresh and insightful ways. 

The ever-changing environments and unreliable narrators in games challenge players’ fundamental understanding of reality, echoing Descartes’ “evil demon” hypothesis: If our perceptions can be entirely deceived, what constitutes certain knowledge? This question becomes all the more pertinent as extended reality technologies advance rapidly. Video games, as mature applications of virtual environments, provide rich material for such investigations. 

Sandbox games like Minecraft, in which players construct virtual worlds governed by unique physical laws and social norms, offer ideal case studies for examining the ontological status of virtual reality. With the advent of generative AI in gaming, new philosophical questions emerge regarding human-AI interaction in both virtual and real spaces: What moral status do AI-controlled NPCs possess? What is the fundamental nature of the relationship between players and virtual characters? How should we understand the authenticity and multiplicity of digital identities? 

Educational games such as Assassin’s Creed Discovery Tour demonstrate how serious historical and cultural knowledge can be transformed into engaging interactive experiences. This educational approach not only enhances learning efficiency but also invites reflection on the nature of knowledge and pedagogy. As digital and intelligent technologies continue to advance, increasingly realistic environments for conducting philosophical experiments may well be created. Through video games, scholars can not only explore age-old philosophical questions in novel ways but also uncover and investigate entirely new ones. 

Xue Shaohua is an associate professor from the School of Education at Beijing Institute of Technology. 

Edited by WANG YOURAN