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In Defense of Games
darkwing_bmf writes to mention an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal in praise of videogames. Specifically, author Brian Anderson discusses the negative reactions videogames have gotten in the press, and why that reaction is unfounded. From the article: "The truth is, critics are often ignorant of the moral universe of video games--violent games included. Yes, the wildly popular Grand Theft Auto series, in which the gamer plays a criminal on the make in the big city, is pretty amoral. But most violent games put the player in a familiar hero's role, notes Judge Richard Posner in a 2001 Seventh Circuit appeals-court decision overturning an Indianapolis anti-video-game ordinance. 'Self-defense, protection of others, dread of the 'undead,' fighting against overwhelming odds--these are the age-old themes of literature, and ones particularly appealing to the young,' Mr. Posner observes."
Long ago, there was the art of spoken word. Whereby stories were passed on from generation to generation by simple speech. Some of these were true stories, some were factious but they were popular.
... or better yet, letting the user experience their own story & interacting with other users.
Eventually, writing & printed word became a popular means to pass on these same stories. Poetry, plays, odes, short stories & eventually novels caused these words to persist through time.
Then followed music and the art of telling a story through a song. Chorals, hymns, operas, symphonies & musicals would forever bring us stories--again both fiction and non-fiction--across time and space to our theatres and living rooms.
Motion pictures evolved and suddenly acting was more popular than ever. The actual events of a story were unfolded before our eyes and could be repeated over and over. These rose in popularity because all of the above could be recorded in the form of a movie (and many movies are remakes of one of the above).
Games are not much different but there's a new twist. The user can interact with the story. Sometimes on a very limited basis with no influence at all but, in others, the user feels/is integral to the storyline. A story is often told, some very basic, confusing and short (Tetris, Super Mario Bros, etc.) while others are much more in depth and consuming (Final Fantasy, World of Warcraft, etc).
Unfortunately, most video games are produced just to give the user a previous story with some limited involvement in it. Look at how many Lord of the Rings video games there are out there. Look at how many games are spurred from a successful book or movie. Is this really necessary? Do game makers lack so much imagination that they are relying upon movies or books for their storylines? If this is the case, then gaming is doomed to be a mere wanna-be art medium.
What are games missing to truly take hold among the masses & become a popular medium for entertainment? Some may argue it's already happened. Some may argue that games are the best form of story telling and factious tales of adventure.
I would disagree and so does a majority of the public. Novels, magazines, television & movies seem to be the preferred medium.
Gamers seem to be caught up with trivial aspects of games. Graphics, console wars & and status seeking has torn apart the community. Did Shakespeare bitch and moan about his lack of fonts? Did Plato refuse to write on shitty papyrus based paper? Did Mozart refuse to write music because he didn't have the right instruments yet--or a mixer for that matter? Did Fritz Lang stop making motion pictures because he didn't have color film and light meters?
No.
Why are we spending our time arguing over whether cell processing is the best for gaming when we should be talking about our favorite characters from our favorite games? Is this what gaming is about? Laughing at the Wii for its name and bickering about pixel shading and polygon counts? For Christ's sake, how could anyone not technologically inclined pick up a console without being abased by a gamer?
When technology catches up to games and graphics/CPU power/egos are out of the way, hopefully games can be made that truly aim at evoking emotion and telling a good story
My work here is dung.