Why can’t we do this IRL? (2019)

Why can’t we do this IRL? (2019), Megan Broadmeadow, Installation environment (dimensions variable); HD video with sound.

Video games transport us to new worlds. We can fly, travel to new planets, and become a completely different character. But as video games develop to become more open and realistic, the potential to shock by posting videos of in game violence grows too. But it’s fine as long as it’s not in real life…right?

Why can’t we do this IRL? brings the actions and consequences of the virtual world into the real world. A non-playable character, The Suffragette, has allegedly been attacked by a playable character, The Cowboy. The clip has been widely shared on YouTube, and people are questioning whether this should be celebrated, treated as a real crime, or viewed as just a game. What would happen if we took this case to trial in real life, and is it our responsibility to do so?

Artist Megan Broadmeadow has worked with an intergenerational group of participants - including FACT’s Digital Ambassadors over 60’s group, and young people from Liverpool youth projects Tiber Youth, Team Oasis, and Toxteth Fire Fit Hub - to create a VR artwork that answers the question: why can’t we do this in real life?

Commissioned by FACT as part of Young At Art, a partnership between FACT, Open Eye Gallery and National Museums Liverpool and funded by Arts Council England and The Baring Foundation and with support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Courtesy of the artist.