Delirious Call of Duty

One of the themes of Delirious New York is the transition over time from an authentic human relationship to nature, to an immersion in fake, electronic reproductions of nature which arise in part because the natural world has been crowded out. Koolhaas characterizes these technological reproductions of nature as “the Irresistible Synthetic.” Instead of the ability to ride real horses on Brooklyn land once horses have been removed from the area, you can ride fake horses at Coney Island’s Steeplechase Park.

Immersive computer and console games are a 21st century version of the Irresistible Synthetic. As a sign of their irresistability, there’s news this week of the profits generated by the most recent Call of Duty game – 3/4 of a billion dollars in under a week. As reported by deadline.com:

Activision’s first-person shooter multiplayer game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has grossed more than $775 million in its first five days of sales, the company reported Wednesday. In just its first day on the market, Activision sold more than 6.5 million units in North America and the United Kingdom for an estimated sell-through rate of more than $400 million.  Activision claimed the new edition in its debut — for about $60 a pop — has surpassed the openings of all movies, books and videogames. It even surpassed last year’s release of Call of Duty: Black Ops, which grossed $650 million, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which sold $550 million.