Cuteness Goes to War: Pro-War Strategies of Communication in Japanese Video Games

Abstract

The same as literature or films, video games can also express a positive view of the war. For example, they are part of the propaganda of armies, such as the US army, or terrorist groups, such as Hezbollah. Related to Japanese video games, they are interesting due to their unusual strategic communications within a country which promotes pacifist culture. This paper analyses which are these rhetorical strategies in two video games: Squishy Tank (2010), by Success, and Valkyria Chronicles (2008), by Sega. In order to achieve it, it will employ the Japanese aesthetic concepts of kawaii, cuteness, and moe, the identification and fetishism with a fictional character.

Keywords

• videojugeos, kawaii, retórica probélica, Squishy Tank, Valkirya Chronicles.