Sicart’s groundbreaking work has clarified the ethics of gaming. In this presentation, he notes that he is a scholar of play who, interestingly enough, no longer plays video games.

Based on his previous research, and stated here, he is a virtue ethics Aristotelian; accordingly, he opposes Kantian and consequentialist ethics. Virtue ethics refers to normative ethical theories that emphasize virtues of mind and character. For Sicart, it is a reference to how Aristotelian ethics are applied in the real-life context of gaming. Kantian ethics is deontological or fits a predetermined mold for ethical behavior, whereas consequentialist ethics focuses on the outcome of action as opposed to prearranged or beneficial actions.

The video quality is clear and the presenter is relaxed and animated during his presentation at Stanford University. Since his remarks are to a live audience, the presentation is dynamic and Sicart conveys his passion for the topic well. The YouTube clip is freely available to the public.

Sicart maintains that the ethics of playing video games demonstrates that they are a waste of time. He asks: How does playing video games affect our moral judgment? Those who played video games by and large did not turn out to be violent even after playing violent video games. Sicart does not deny that playing video games has an effect on us; however, for almost everyone we have a control or governing factor that limits our violent tendencies.

Who is this moral agent that interacts with video games? According to Aristotelian virtue theory, even isolated video gamers are communitarian. Games are not neutral and have embedded values during play. For Sicart, playing a computer game is an act of moral interpretation: of a game system, of a community, of (being) a player, and of a human being.

Sicart offers a marvelous accumulation of insightful comments from intelligent and articulate game makers. Their ideas are stimulating, idealistic, and thought provoking. For the individual who is not familiar with his written oeuvre, the clip makes a handy and stimulating introduction. Sicart is to be praised for his application of Aristotelian virtue ethics to game play. His contribution advances the state of ethical reflection on gaming. Most gamers would benefit from screening the video. Also, this could easily be viewed in introductory computer science classes and ethics courses as a prompt for student reflection, especially among younger pupils who may have played but not considered the ethics of gaming.

Complementary titles include: Designing games for ethics: models, techniques and frameworks [1] and The ethics of computer games [2].