How Gandhi went nuclear: potentiality of the archiverse in »Civilization VI«

Abstract

»Nuclear Gandhi« is a surprising and controversial image of the Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi. Often portrayed against the backdrop of nuclear explosions, his poses and styles clearly suggest awe and admiration for the ongoing mass destruction. This image is related to Sid Meier's <i>Civilization VI</i> – one of the most influential video games in the history of gaming. The aim of the article is to analyze this particular case study and consider processes from many different angles that led to the emergence of this controversial phenomenon. To do so, the notion of archiverse is introduced – an assemblage (after Jane Bennett) of all cultural, political, economic and technological archives performed by the user. By following the connections between different and often seemingly distant data and contexts, it is possible to propose an archive-centric perspective for video game studies.