Did they? I know they did in cutscenes, but I can't remember any when you're just talking to the NPCs hanging about. Maybe I'm forgetting it.
Your video game hot take(s) thread
- Thread starter Dany_the_penguin
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- Feb 7, 2011
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Yeah, npcs' mouths move when they talk in Sekiro.
That's where the Activision money went.
I’m thinking FROM won’t be able to get by on minimalist production values for Elden Ring. They were able to get away with it through SoulsBorne and even Sekiro to a somewhat lesser extent, but ER will need to step it up as FROM’s no longer some small studio with limited resources for such details.
See? This is why we need the
button back.
Art imitates life and that's life in Poland.
Simmering take:
While having art and creativity put into them, most video games aren't art. In fact I'd give that honor only to Undertale, the Portal games and maybe Spec Ops: The Line.
Bububut what about Shadow of the Colossus?
j/k (well not completely), but I’d probably sooner add games like Flower and maybe Journey to the list.
Agreed, most games aren't "art" per se, but there are a several gems out there that prioritize "being themselves to be experienced" over "being a product to be consumed," which is where I'd draw the line between art and entertainment. How well the former is done is subjective, but there are those games whose clear intent is not to compete on the playing fields of the main $tream.
Haven't played Journey, but Flower got plenty of my attention in its day. It's still a game I think of fondly in that it was just there to be beautiful. Yeah, it showcased Sony's Sixaxis functionality, but I feel most gamers who ultimately appreciated that game felt the feature was more a means to an end as the game itself is so immersive. I'd throw Playdead's INSIDE on that pile as well, being a game that focused on what you as a player took away from it over what they objectively dropped in your lap. It isn't a game to be "beaten." It's not a game that tries to confound you and force you to YouTube videos to figure out how to best it. It's a game that invites you in to see and bear witness to what it is and doesn't offer any answers which left those who played it with questions, discussion points, theories, etc. I've said it before: it broke me. In my decades of gaming, no other game engaged me so handily on that self-reflective level. It's the only game I've watched countless "let's plays" of just to re-capture that awe in someone else seeing it for the first time. THAT is art, IMHO.
I agree with you to an extent, but remember beauty is the eye of the beholder. I got more on that list than what you have, I consider art. MGS2 > Spec-Ops.
Games I consider art:
- DMC 1, 3-5.
- Evil Within 2.
- Silent Hill 1 through 3 and Shattered Memories.
- Sayonara Wild Hearts.
- Lumines, Child of Eden, and Tetris Effect.
- Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike
- Tekken 3 - Seriously and unironically, both of these games deserve to be in a museum for all the hardware that took to do that back in the '90s.
- Resident Evil Remake 1-3. The original RE2 and RE3.
- Shadow of Colossus
- Panzer Dragoon series.
- Viewtiful Joe
- God Hand
- Mad World
- Almost anything done by Treasure.
- Asura's Wrath
- Ori and the blind forest. And just so we're clear, I've never played any of the Ori games.
- Limbo
- Parasite Eve
- Sonic
- Streets of Rage
- No More Heroes & Killer 7
- Jet Set Radio
- Comix Zone
- Danganronpa
EDIT: Added No More Heroes, Killer 7, and Jet Set Radio.
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How are you defining "art?" Is it strictly being visually appealing? (You state that you've never played the Ori games, but consider them "art?") Because I don't think that's necessarily in the spirit of the OP's statement. @McElroy is obviously free to correct me, but I think he/she meant "art" as in games that engage the player beyond the superficial levels of being entertaining or looking nice, those with a heavy focus on intellectual or emotional engagement. From your list, I'd certainly give you Limbo and Shadow of the Colossus, but the rest? IMHO, not so much.
I have no clue. I'm on mobile right now.
All the above, though each game varries. It's not just only emotion or "feeling", but put the passion or intent of passion behind the creators.
DMC1, & 3-5 it's about the story, characters, and use of music. The series as a whole knows how to make fun of itself, yet have a serious story that's not too serious and up its own ass. You see how characters gradually develop. Especially Dante, Lady, and Nero. The use of music is the best I seen in an action game. Four or five got it right the most.
For Mad World, it use of cel-shading and only in black and white and having a good story. it has one of the best hip hop soundtracks I seen in a game in the soundtrack itself has aged like buying wine. The game is pretty much John Carpenter's The Running Man matched with Escape from New York and Sin City. The gameplay is is just regular solid, there are flaws but it works. For VJ, it's a similar case, but it's characters and how they play off each other similar to DMC., cel-shading,
Sayonara Wild Hearts it's literally pop art/pop album cover. Nothing else needs to be said.
I never played Ori, but I did watch a playthrough on Max's stream. Nothing further. Though my older brother loves it and plays it.
Streets of Rage it's mainly all about the characters and music. When you're inspired by a lot of stuff from the early 90s you'll be surprised how much feeling the music could put you in. Or what type of mood you get it when you just play one of the songs. I have relaxed to many of the softer or ending songs in this series. Black box, Soul II Soul, Technotronic, etc. Plus, Streets of Rage 4 is just a gorgeous game. You're literally playing a 2d comic book. I remember tearing up after the intro when I heard the music for the title screen. And that is not just a nostalgia talking. if you can get people to dance to the music from the Streets of Rage series and not know about the game at all, you've done something right. The same applies to a lot of the other games I mentioned. Not even dance just calming and relaxing music to chill out.
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Silent Hill 4. It’s got its flaws for sure but ultimately it’s the most underrated one in the series for me. If they did a remake and tweaked the room hauntings and escorting stuff with Eileen so it wasn’t so tedious I’d take it over an SH2 remake.
The themes, story and atmosphere are all outstanding, and the gameplay design is the first time in the series that required some strategy leading to a deeper aspect of survival horror.
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Oh man! I would love to see what could be done with a proper remake of 4. There's a beautiful gem in that game that's marred by all it's rough edges.
I know right!?
First you have the room itself and its feeling of safety the first half of the game.
Then you have the portal to different locations, each very unique visually and story-wise, uncovering the past about Walter and co. Especially the water prison, oh my oh my...tragic!
Then your neighbor, Eileen enters the fold
Then you start questioning what is real and what isn’t, as the once safe zone starts turning against you.
Then the “other world” starts, but it doesn’t feel cliche and one-note like the typical Silent Hill style before it. The apartment itself also literally takes on another life of its own, and makes the Overlook from The Shining feel downright tame by contrast.
Then you start getting a sense of thick dread when everything comes to a head involving Walter and the extent of his sins. The game does this brilliantly through both atmosphere and game design, like with the increasing amount of locks on your door from the inside and hauntings presenting a huge mindfuck.
But yeah, it could definitely benefit from the rough edges being sanded down for current standards.
I really don't want to get into the "are videogames art?" debate. But, TL, DR, all games are art, not all are "high art." That goes to most forms of entertainment as well.
I honestly don't remember the story, but it had some fun as hell gameplay that I have tried to find replicated elsewhere, to no avail.
I haven't played Flower or Journey. SotC maybe. As they say on Wikipedia I could improve the list by expanding it.
I mean, "hot takes" and all that, a piece of art is unique in presenting the vision of its creator. Video games are first and foremost digital toys. Some are technically impressive, some have a quality story, terrific graphics, acting, and the gameplay can be fun and engaging, but I see elaborate toys. I'd actually say I'm a bit lenient on Spec Ops: The Line because frankly the simulation elements are all G.I. Joe stuff to sell the game. Then there are so-called "art games" that are oftentimes barely games at all. So that leaves us only a narrow definition: a digital toy that is clearly a toy but also brings about the artist's vision to the audience like in other mediums. Also playing through the game yourself is imperative to the experience (this is why Undertale and Portal are such prime examples while a game like Limbo is not).
Naturally it's just my opinion about a subjective thing and I'm not gonna dismiss someone's different feelings. Art is supposed to make you feel after all.
