Hello everyone, I just watched all of Extra Credits before they came to this site, and it got me thinking a bit. So I decided that because I haven't written a good rant in a while, I'll go ahead and do it. It'll be a short one, though.
Here's the video that's the base for this rant (you should watch the rest of them, too)-
So, the first point. He talks about the controversy behind Six Days in Fallujah, and how it was criticized so much not because it's controversial, but because it's a game. Other media don't have this. Just look at Black Hawk Down or The Hurt Locker or any other movie set in Iraq. Most of these are praised for their realism and are thought of as a worthy tribute to the soldiers who fought or died in the Middle East. But the second a video game tries to tackle the same subject, it's automatically offensive and is brought down by nearly everyone outside our little community.
But, it's not necessarily because of the critics/media themselves. They're conditioned to feel this way. People outside the gaming community have been brought up thinking of games as toys. Movies have been around for over a hundred years, but gaming is just now becoming a recognizable artistic medium. The video also brings up the point of comic books, which were never really taken seriously until they became "graphic novels". But people still believe games are toys for children. And, to be honest, I would find an Iraq War playset with terrorist killing action pretty offensive, but THAT'S NOT WHAT GAMES ARE ANYMORE. Games are now an experience and a way of educating as well as entertaining. We all know this, but there's a huge majority of people who don't and will never try to.
Now I'll go ahead and end it here, I could turn this into a massive wall o' text, but I need to go pick up something to eat. Or maybe make a sandwich. Whatever. Discussion value is implied.
Here's the video that's the base for this rant (you should watch the rest of them, too)-
So, the first point. He talks about the controversy behind Six Days in Fallujah, and how it was criticized so much not because it's controversial, but because it's a game. Other media don't have this. Just look at Black Hawk Down or The Hurt Locker or any other movie set in Iraq. Most of these are praised for their realism and are thought of as a worthy tribute to the soldiers who fought or died in the Middle East. But the second a video game tries to tackle the same subject, it's automatically offensive and is brought down by nearly everyone outside our little community.
But, it's not necessarily because of the critics/media themselves. They're conditioned to feel this way. People outside the gaming community have been brought up thinking of games as toys. Movies have been around for over a hundred years, but gaming is just now becoming a recognizable artistic medium. The video also brings up the point of comic books, which were never really taken seriously until they became "graphic novels". But people still believe games are toys for children. And, to be honest, I would find an Iraq War playset with terrorist killing action pretty offensive, but THAT'S NOT WHAT GAMES ARE ANYMORE. Games are now an experience and a way of educating as well as entertaining. We all know this, but there's a huge majority of people who don't and will never try to.
Now I'll go ahead and end it here, I could turn this into a massive wall o' text, but I need to go pick up something to eat. Or maybe make a sandwich. Whatever. Discussion value is implied.