[ISEA2008] Artists Statement: Kristian Lukic & Vladan Joler (Eastwood) – Civilisation V

Artists Statement

Collaborating with: G 3 Lab

In Eastwood’s earlier ‘modification’ of Sid Meier’s seminal computer strategy game Civilization, Civilization IV players took the role of corporate IT workers. This work continues their project of mapping the aggressive military-capitalist tendencies of ‘real-time’ strategy and online worlds. Civilization V is a game that self-reflexively addresses the competition for dominance between new media companies working with so-called Web 2.0 technologies, such as Facebook, YouTube, and persistently online games such as Second Life and World of Warcraft. In order to advance through the game, companies will have to use tactics like ‘Emotional blackmail’, ‘Tribal marketing’ and ‘Love bombing’. The project is using recent researches and developments in the field of digital economy, online marketing and social networking. In order to advance through the game, companies will have to use tactics like ‘Emotional blackmail’, ‘Tribal marketing’ and ‘Love bombing’. Breaking free from the industrial constraints of the multi-million dollar videogame industry, the project ironically comments on the ways games are developed and marketed, while revealing how digital art can intersect with the wider world.

  • Eastwood – Real Time Strategy Group (Serbia) was founded by Kristian Lukic, Vladan Joler & Zvonko Gorecan in 2002. In their collaborative projects they create and use computer games as a tool for new visions of art and cultural practice. eastwood-group.org