I Don’t Want to Be a Good Woman – Disturbing, Powerful, True

“In its March 2024 report, the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Iran (FFMI) concluded that the Iranian authorities committed the crime against humanity of persecution on the grounds of gender. The FFMI found that the authorities have “committed a series of extensive, sustained and continuing acts that individually constitute human rights violations, directed against women [and] girls…and, cumulatively, constitute what the mission assesses to be persecution.”” – Amnesty International

Overview

I Don’t Want To Be A Good Woman is an interactive, museum-like experience that immerses the player in the real lives of women living in Iran under Islamic law. Players can connect with stories heard by, gathered by, or experienced directly by the developers, who wish to remain anonymous for safety reasons, simply going by ‘We Remember’ and maintaining no online presence. More than just a game, this has been designed as a space to witness and understand oppression, and stand in solidarity with an ongoing struggle for autonomy and freedom.

Gameplay

Players make their way through I Don’t Want to Be a Good Woman at a moderate pace, with no ability to sprint or jump. This limited walking simulator style of gameplay lends itself to reflection and understanding of the important and often harrowing subject matter being relayed. The game features very few types of interaction, with players exploring an unconventional museum of objects, stories, and messages relating to the systematic oppression and discrimination of women in Iran under the guise of religious law and propriety.

I Don’t Want to be a Good Woman allows the player to visit a digital open-air museum and experience, in an abstract way, what it is like to grow up as a woman in Iran, without the risk of persecution and punishment that instils so much fear in the girls and women that are subject to it.

Narrative

For a game that will only take 45-90 minutes to complete, I Don’t Want to Be A Good Woman packs a narrative punch. It will shock and educate players with the realities and experiences it portrays, and encourage those not facing such oppression to appreciate the freedoms that they take for granted. Beginning with the message “for Mahsa” the player is immediately made aware of the magnitude of the situation in Iran as it refers to Jina Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died under suspicious circumstances whilst being detained by the Guidance Patrol, or Morality Police, for violating compulsory veiling laws. Her tragic and avoidable death inspired the Woman, Life, Freedom protest movement.

The facts and stories within the game are relayed through imagery, and text revealed by interacting with objects, as well as books of ‘dark facts’ and letters sent from someone who had moved to London to a friend in Iran. The anonymous developers create a disturbingly captivating combination of words and visual elements that convey the harrowing and almost unbelievable conditions that women in Iran are forced to live in, the guilt and shame they are conditioned to feel, and the opportunities and basic human rights that are denied to them.

Players are made aware of strict, discriminatory rules such as the fact that women need permission from their father or husband to get a passport, travel, study or work, or that they forbidden to show their hair, or any skin below the neck apart from their hands or feet, and that doing otherwise could be considered promoting prostitution and lead to arrest, or worse. The disparity of 13-year-old girls (younger if father or court permits) being allowed to marry, yet they are committing a crime if they dance or sing in public or the contradiction of holding hands in public being indecent and illegal, when children are allowed to attend public executions. The relentless portrayal of the tyranny, injustice, and often brutally enforced oppression is enlightening in the most alarming and upsetting way.

Styling

I Don’t Want to Be a Good Woman uses a minimalistic 3D art style and a primarily greyscale colour palette with occasional meaningful pops of colour (mostly red, but green when traversing the “right path”), and subtle but dramatic, warm lighting. Some of the visuals are a little abstract, which adds an air of aesthetic discomfort that fits well with the subject matter. There is also a lot of yonic imagery, nothing explicit or excessive, but enough to be a constant reminder that the game is about the injustices suffered specifically by women. The scenery varies, including floating platforms, desert-like environments, and overbearing corridors that occasionally add to the overall picture but mostly provide a backdrop for more meaningful figures, items, and messages.

The soundtrack is contemplative and consists of single piano notes and light metallic sounds like those made by a glockenspiel, often with a light echoing hum in the background. It is a well-suited accompaniment to the experience, adding to the atmosphere without dominating it. Conversely, when the player makes their way down the “right path”, a disturbing walkway lined with figures of men (mullahs), with religious laws displayed, the music is louder, less tuneful, and much more oppressive. It drones distastefully as the player’s screen is gradually limited, representing the restricted view from behind a niqab.

None of the audio or visual elements are especially prominent, and some can seem quite simplistic on the surface. Yet, they are used tactfully and with intention to create significance and meaning, resulting in a very powerful aesthetic.

Summary

I Don’t Want to Be a Good Woman belies its simplistic appearance and, in fact, sits amongst some of the most powerful indie games out there. It is informative, moving, and inspirational. It raises awareness of the level of repressive discrimination inflicted on women in Iran. Discrimination that allows marital rape, considers a woman on a bicycle indecent, that allows the enforcement of religious laws without restriction, and that segregates all aspects of society from weddings, to beaches, and even schools. Discrimination that led to female football fan, Sahar Khodayari, committing suicide by self-immolation in 2019 after she was arrested and faced a six-month prison sentence for attempting to gain entry to a football match at a male-only stadium in protest against laws forbidding women to attend sporting events. All masked by manipulative oppression tactics that censor media and internet content to the point that most people feel the need to use a VPN, which shuts off internet access for days at a time.

The information provided by the game is disturbing and upsetting, and probably quite incomprehensible to those not living under such despotism. The extreme nature of many of the stories highlights not only the bravery of those sharing their experiences and the developers producing the game, but also how important it is for those with the freedom to have an unimpeded voice and speak out without the risk of persecution to do so – loudly!

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