Search, Kill and Destroy! —What Does the Marketing of Polish War Shooters Set in the Present Day Reveal About the Ideology Embedded in Their Advertising?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55578/jlcas.2603.003Keywords:
digital games, ideology, american political and cultural hegemony, USA, Polish war-themed shooter gamesAbstract
This article is the outcome of a research grant conducted by the author entitled American Political and Cultural Hegemony “Made in Poland”: Do—and How—Polish War Games Reproduce the U.S. Military Agenda? It offers a critical ideological analysis of the marketing of Polish war-themed shooters set in contemporary contexts, examining whether and how their promotional materials reproduce American political and cultural hegemony. The study analyzes the marketing frameworks of 32 games produced in Poland between 2002 and 2021, focusing on game titles, front and back box covers, and launch trailers. Grounded in the critical paradigm, the analysis draws on Antonio Gramsci’s theory of hegemony and Louis Althusser’s concept of ideological state apparatuses. Six research questions guide the deconstruction of ideological meanings in advertising messages, addressing the construction of the subject of violence, representations of the enemy, the aestheticization of weaponry, the geopolitical localization of conflict, dominant narrative motifs, and the unifying rhetoric linking these elements. The findings reveal a consistent reinforcement of Western- and Americancentric narratives, in which the white Western soldier is framed as a morally legitimate agent of violence, while the enemy is dehumanized and orientalized. The marketing of the analyzed games naturalizes American military interventionism, fetishizes Western technological superiority, applies chauvinistic geopolitical selectivity, and aligns with imperial discourse. The article contributes a new perspective to research on Polish video games by identifying their marketing dimension as a significant, yet previously marginalized, site of ideological reproduction
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Ludography
Alcatraz: In the Harm's Way, Silden, Poland, 2010.
Armed Forces Corp., City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2009.
Battlefield (series), Sweden, USA, various development studios, 2003-2023.
Call of Duty (series), USA, various development studios, 2003-2023.
Code of Honor: French Foreign Legion, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2007.
Code of Honor 2: Conspiracy Island, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2008.
Code of Honor 3: Desperate Measures, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2009.
Czarnobyl: Terrorist Attack, Silden, Poland, 2011.
Czarnobyl 2: Back to Zona, Silden, Poland, 2012.
Czarnobyl 3: Underground, Silden, Poland, 2013.
Global Ops: Commando Libya, Spectral Games, Poland, 2011.
Heavy Fire: Special Operations, Teyon, Poland, 2010.
Heavy Fire: Afghanistan, Teyon, Poland, 2011.
Heavy Fire: Black Arms, Teyon, Poland, 2011.
Heavy Fire: Shattered Spear, Teyon, Poland, 2013.
Heavy Fire: Red Shadow, Teyon, Poland, 2018.
Hidden Target, Gingerbread Studios, Poland, 2009.
IS Defense, Destructive Creations, Poland, 2016.
Manhunter, Silden, Poland, 2012.
Medal of Honor (series), USA, various development studios, 1999-2020.
Nina: Agent Chronicles, Detalion Games, Poland, 2002.
Nina Trilogy, Detalion Games, Poland, 2002.
SAS: Secure Tomorrow, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2008.
SimCity, USA, Maxis, 2013.
Sniper: Ghost Warrior, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2010.
Sniper: Ghost Warrior 2, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2013.
Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2017.
Sniper: Ghost Warrior Contracts, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2019.
Sniper: Ghost Warrior Contracts 2, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2021.
Terrorist Takedown, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2004.
Terrorist Takedown: Payback, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2005.
Terrorist Takedown: War in Colombia, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2006.
Terrorist Takedown: Covert Operations, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2006.
Terrorist Takedown 2, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2007.
Terrorist Takedown 3, City Interactive/CI Games, Poland, 2010.
The Mark, T7 Games, Poland, 2006.
Filmography
Karbala, directed by: Krzysztof Łukaszewicz, Poland, Bulgaria, 2015.
Misja Afganistan, directed by Maciej Dejczer, Poland, 2012.
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Data Availability Statement
The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the authors, without undue reservation.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Tomasz Kielar (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.