... but some games just have all the elements that come together to make a truly artistic experience. Oftentimes, these games are not commercial blockbusters, but are relished by the community or a small loyal fanbase (Okami is the best example I can think of off the top of my head).
Then, you take a game like Shadow of the Colossus. The creator had a vision on exactly what he wanted when he made that game, and all elements flow smoothly from one to the next. From a storytelling perspective, the plot is highly subjective. If you asked 10 different people what their synopsis of the plot was, you would probably get 10 different answers. Once again, this was by design, as the director has said he wanted to keep anything "definitive" out of the story and let the player fill in all the holes by him/herself.
If anyone asks me if I think video games are art, I will loan them my copy of Shadow of the Colossus and tell them to play it all the way through; THEN we can talk about video games as art.
I do think however, that games can be completely devoid of artistic merit. That also doesn't mean that the game isn't enjoyable or fun. But you can definitely tell when there is a vein of artistic vision running through it; it makes the game something completely different than anything you've ever played before.
Anybody who hasn't yet red the Red Mars series by Kim Stanley Robinson, you probably should. That trilogy really defines some of the major issues of Mars colonization. Fear the transnationals!
I would think some librarians would be interested in the literary aspect of video games. Some video games have really good stories and character development. Off the top of my head, these come to mind: Final Fantasy 12, the (new) Prince of Persia series, Myst, etc. etc (please add to the list!)
I beta tested this software and it was really fun. A friend of mine is one of the music cataloguers for that company and he got me on the beta. I got some great music recommendations off of it.
For example, my favorite musician, Ben Folds, had the following characteristics:
Syncopation
Singer / songwriter
Piano lead instrument
Alternative... and a few others I can't remember. Then it picks out stuff with the similar characteristics and gives you a little "private radio station" I think is what they called it. Then you can add other artists, songs, albums or genres to give you a little variety. So for example, from my Ben Folds suggestion, I got some selections from Elton John, Joe Jackson, Tori Amos, The Beautiful South, Aimee Mann, etc. etc.
I then went through and added The Postal Service as a favored artist, then I started getting new flavors added to the mix. Pretty neat.
The hitch comes from the fact that their recommendations aren't always great. You can skip through their recommendations but you're only allowed to do like 6 per hour. To circumvent this, you can rate each song as it's playing (5-point rating system with the highest being "I really like this sound -- play more like this and the lowest being "Don't play anything like this ever again").
It's a fun little app. It's nice to just throw on and leave on all day... a good alternative to cheesy shoutcast stations and it's WAAAAY better than the alternative...... corporate FM crap.
Slashdot Mirror
... but some games just have all the elements that come together to make a truly artistic experience. Oftentimes, these games are not commercial blockbusters, but are relished by the community or a small loyal fanbase (Okami is the best example I can think of off the top of my head). Then, you take a game like Shadow of the Colossus. The creator had a vision on exactly what he wanted when he made that game, and all elements flow smoothly from one to the next. From a storytelling perspective, the plot is highly subjective. If you asked 10 different people what their synopsis of the plot was, you would probably get 10 different answers. Once again, this was by design, as the director has said he wanted to keep anything "definitive" out of the story and let the player fill in all the holes by him/herself. If anyone asks me if I think video games are art, I will loan them my copy of Shadow of the Colossus and tell them to play it all the way through; THEN we can talk about video games as art. I do think however, that games can be completely devoid of artistic merit. That also doesn't mean that the game isn't enjoyable or fun. But you can definitely tell when there is a vein of artistic vision running through it; it makes the game something completely different than anything you've ever played before.
Anybody who hasn't yet red the Red Mars series by Kim Stanley Robinson, you probably should. That trilogy really defines some of the major issues of Mars colonization. Fear the transnationals!
what's the name of your band? why haven't I heard of it? I sure know who Elton John is though.
I would think some librarians would be interested in the literary aspect of video games. Some video games have really good stories and character development. Off the top of my head, these come to mind: Final Fantasy 12, the (new) Prince of Persia series, Myst, etc. etc (please add to the list!)
Deck16 ftw
I beta tested this software and it was really fun. A friend of mine is one of the music cataloguers for that company and he got me on the beta. I got some great music recommendations off of it.
... and a few others I can't remember. Then it picks out stuff with the similar characteristics and gives you a little "private radio station" I think is what they called it. Then you can add other artists, songs, albums or genres to give you a little variety. So for example, from my Ben Folds suggestion, I got some selections from Elton John, Joe Jackson, Tori Amos, The Beautiful South, Aimee Mann, etc. etc.
For example, my favorite musician, Ben Folds, had the following characteristics:
Syncopation
Singer / songwriter
Piano lead instrument
Alternative
I then went through and added The Postal Service as a favored artist, then I started getting new flavors added to the mix. Pretty neat.
The hitch comes from the fact that their recommendations aren't always great. You can skip through their recommendations but you're only allowed to do like 6 per hour. To circumvent this, you can rate each song as it's playing (5-point rating system with the highest being "I really like this sound -- play more like this and the lowest being "Don't play anything like this ever again").
It's a fun little app. It's nice to just throw on and leave on all day... a good alternative to cheesy shoutcast stations and it's WAAAAY better than the alternative...... corporate FM crap.
*shudders*
~sj