Thursday, June 30, 2011

Video Games: The Deal With Them

Let me get one thing out of the way.

I love my video games.

I want to do bad things to my video games.

If video games were a pretty little female, she would be the victim to my unhealthy obsession, ending with a weekend in jail and a restraining order.

But I digress.

I recently read an article that someone wrote about how video games are straying from what they need to be; how they need to be classified as a sophisticated art form and such.  Some big companies agree.  Some big art critics disagree.  In some aspects, I agree.

But the vidya will never be accepted as an art.

Art is expressing yourself or thoughts onto some kind of viable medium, telling stories and triggering emotions and whatnot.  That's just my interpretation of art though.  Different people will say completely different things.

Ever since the beginning of man, we have been looking for ways to not do anything productive.  Ancient people painted on cave walls with shit and berries.  They kept doing that until sports were invented.  But that required too much moving for some people, so other dudes went and invented video games.  Why?  Because lazy folk susceptible to addiction would pay them handsomely for it.

Like these, only for your brain!


But that wasn't the end of it.  People were happy with their Pong paddles for some time, but soon they wanted better looking paddles.  High-Def paddles.  They wanted that shit in 3-D.  Video game companies kindly said "Fuck that noise", and that led to the video game market crash of 1983.  Then some bright snowflake must have realized, "If we spend more making it, then we can charge more selling it!".  And now you can play Pong in glorious 1080p with you PS3 on your 50" flatscreen.

The point I am trying make is that the video game market is just that: a market.  They supply to peoples demands to turn a profit.  That's all it will ever be.  That is why we have seven Call of Duty games, with each one selling more than the last.  And it isn't for the "beautifully written story", its so they can go online, and shoot other assholes and call them gay; ultimately, to be doing nothing productive.

Every once in a while you come across a game that is just amazing, wonderful, and makes you feel "emotions".  The sad part is you will usually find it in the bargain bin.  Most people don't want to think when they play a game, they just want to find the best way to draw a penis in it.


Thank you Spore!

So there you have it.  Video games are great because they are a great way to pass the time.  Not because they are "edgy", or some nonsense like that.  And for the love of god, don't get me started on indy games.

I think it's time for a beer.

7 comments:

  1. This is a pretty good post, I have my own views on vidya that are in my blog, about how they don't cause violence, I can't help but follow a fellow gamer. I agree with some of the things you said, but I'm one of the few people that keeps an eye out for the gems, even if they are in the bargain bin, and value story over being able to call someone I don't know a dick.

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  2. I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MBIES 1N IT!!!1 is made to such perfection I'd class it as art, same goes for games whose narratives are as good as something like Halo.

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  3. I agree, I would say 99% of my favorite games don't even go online. If I see the occasional gem and have the money, I make that fucker mine.

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  4. Sadly true. I really want to say that games are an art and even have literary merit. There are so many games that have such deeps storylines, with few flaws and holes but are still amazing nonetheless.

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  5. They do exist, but are overshadowed by the mindless killing games.

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  6. I'd say the appeal of them isn't visual like like art (or auditory) but rather the experience that comes without a commitment. You don't have to join the military to be Spec ops in Call of Duty.

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  7. "Most people don't want to think when they play a game, they just want to find the best way to draw a penis in it." Sad but true. Video Games should be recognized more as a form of art.

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