3.15: The Game

[Dave]

from Wikipedia
John Sheppard and Rodney McKay go head-to-head in an Atlantis computer game, where they each develop villages on opposite sides of a river in competition with one another. For two years now McKay has been pushing his town ("Geldar") to develop technologically.

But what the two do not realize is that this is no game. Their villages, and all the people in them, are real, living on a planet somewhere in the Pegasus Galaxy.

When the team discovers this and visits the planet through the Stargate, they are met by Nola, who immediately recognizes Rodney as their "Oracle." She explains that their people were given life thousands of years ago, but then their Oracle ceased all communications -- apparently an Antlantean, interrupted by the war with the Wraith. Unknowingly, Rodney picked up where he left off.

With a satellite network in orbit to track their development and Ancient technology to communicate with Atlantis, their civilization has all the markings of an Antlantean social experiment. While McKay stays with Nola, Sheppard takes Teyla and Ronon to check out his own country across the river.

There they meet Baden, the aggressive leader of Hallona, whom Sheppard had been encouraging to build up his military. He reveals that at the command of Geldar's Oracle, they have begun mining for valuable coal under his town. He believes that the proper response is to launch an attack.

The two leaders are brought back to Atlantis to learn about the Ancient technology and to have their dispute mediated by Dr. Weir, but things look grim. Thanks to Sheppard and McKay's "game," the two peoples now stand on the brink of war.

Not one of the best, though my enjoyment was spoilt by a bad video recording with parts of soundtrack of the film "The Grinch" breaking through from a previous recording on the tape. Having Rodney and John speak the Grinch's lines did not improve upon it.

 

[Dr.Jackson]

This episode could have been much more than it was.
Too early were we launched into McKay and Sheppard visiting the planet and bringing back their delegates to Atlantis. Throw in what seemed like a quick explanation of the game that they've been playing for the past couple of years. Take time to make sure that we've established the factions, their intentions and motivations, and the fact that only the threat of total destruction will sway them to talk peace (as in the Star Trek episode 'A Taste of Armageddon') - then tell them they are free to do whatever they want and watch the inevitable fallout. Finally, come up with a radical solution in a few minutes just before the end of the episode, as seems to be happening annoyingly often recently, and you have your 45 mins of relatively little.