Games are art essay.

[Nickolai77]

In your essay, obviously you would talk about the aesthetics of virtual environments as an art form (you could contrast say, ES IV Oblivion and Fallout 3) but also try to think up of "artsy" themes which appear in video and computer games.

For instance, one thing i have noticed is that the games Total War: Barbarian Invasion and Assassins Creed have a certain anti-Christian bias. This is evident from reading the "historical event" notifications in Barbarian Invasion and the "historical entries" written by the character Sean from Assassins Creed. So you could, for instance, outline what various games have to say about topical issues such as religion and perhaps relate that to the idealogical views of the games developers and their young liberal audience.

You could write reams on what various video games have to say about warfare and violence by going into some FPS's such as MOH and COD or perhaps even games like Fallout 3. Speaking of Fallout 3, you could relate a lot of what happens in that game to the American Dream and 1950's idealised America. (Arthur Miller would have loved Fallout 3) Fallout 3 has a lot to say about politics, but as does also Bioshock coming to think of it.

My point is, you can draw these above themes (religion, war, politics) from video games, as you can with novels and films. So, perhaps after discussing one of these themes you could match it with a similar theme expressed in a novel or film, with the intent of highlighting how video games can stand on an equal platform to these forms of media.

 

[nifedj]

I think a good way of seeing the potential of games to be art is by starting with an argument that they aren't - Roger Ebert's, specifically. He argued that games (meaning video games and games in general) are not art because the objective is to win. As any gamer knows, however, you don't spend £40 on a game to reach the end of it - you do it for the enjoyment along the way. That's what sets video games apart from traditional games - it's not about winning, because in a single player game you know you'll complete it at some point, it's about the content leading up to it. And when that content is designed to/has an emotional effect on the player, or is thought provoking, or basically is purposefully engaging in a big way beyond simple fun, I would consider that game to be art.

 

[someonehairy-ish]

(Spoiler alert)

You're supposed to put those in BEFORE the spoiler, not after it -.- I read that statement only to then go 'oh bollocks, I wanted to play that eventually.'

 

[2012 Wont Happen]

For examples I can think of, certain flash games like Everyday the Same Dream and Company of Myself, talked about by Extra Credits a couple weeks ago, are quite heavy on artistic meaning. It might be a stretch to truly call Everyday the Same Dream an actual game, but Company of Myself is a pretty cool puzzle game.

In addition, within AAA titles there are some artistic moments at least. I remember I had tears come to my eyes when Dom found Maria in Gears of War 2. You could argue that any narrative invoking strong emotion is art.

 

[Vausch]

(Spoiler alert)

You're supposed to put those in BEFORE the spoiler, not after it -.- I read that statement only to then go 'oh bollocks, I wanted to play that eventually.'

Sorry man, I was trying to be funny. I figured since it'd been out for 8 years most people knew. It has multiple endings though, that one's just the easiest to get and even if you know it's coming it'll still get you teary-eyed.

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

I define "art" as being any piece of media that is created to incite certain emotions or to change a spiritual or worldly understanding in those people that perceive it.

Under this definition, videogames would definitely be considered art, because they attempt to make you establish a connection with the character and the game world, and try to make you empathize with what the character feels, and understand the driving force behind his/her actions. In some ways the emotions elicited can be even stronger in a videogame than in a movie or a book because the player is performing the actions themselves, and is actively engaged in the story and the world, instead of just passively viewing them (the reason that a good survival horror game will always be scarier than any horror movie).

Videogames are definitely an emerging art form, and the better they get at creating emotionally charged experiences the more valid the claim that "videogames are art" will be.

 

[More Fun To Compute]

Let's see if I can help you out with a personal testimony.

A while ago, before I ever played video games, I thought that they could never be called art. This was when I was about 3 years old or so, so what did I know? Nothing! That's what I knew back then. What changed my opinion on art and the qualification of computerised entertainment in such a category as art, vis a vis, was a primal encounter with an upright cabinet showcasing a particular work of art called "Asteroids" by an artist who only identified himself with the nom de plume "Atari." Straining to see the screen, standing on tiptoes, I was presented with the most profound vision of moving lines abstractly representing the hopes and dreams of humanity as a whole. It was the human condition writ large in flickering cathode ray beams. Imagine my shock and delight when informed by an elder that such an amazing moving image could also by directed and manipulated by anyone who had a spare coin and could reach the controls. Sadly, at that time, I met neither requirement, and my life as a connoisseur of the finest modern, no, post modern art was sadly postponed.

 

[Zoomy]

Nearly all games put you in the shoes of the main character, whether it be Master Chief, God, The Stranger from Myst et cetera. Even in a top down game, or a third person game, you are SOMEONE. This, for me is the true potential of why games are art. The active participation can make you re-evaluate your morals and life choices. Rather than watch a film and think "what would I do?", you play a game and think "what do I do?", a far different experience. I'll relate my experiences from one of the Phoenix Wright games.

SPOILERS AHOY

Spoiler

For those that don't know, you play as Phoenix Wright, a defence attourney that strongly believes in the innocence of their clients.

At one point, you are asked to acquit a Hollywood star of murder. Not by the actor, but by a trained, ruthless assassin that kidnapped your best friend. As the case progresses, you discover that:

A. Your client hired the assassin to do the murder (i.e. he's guilty)
B. Said assassin was also hired to do the kidnapping to ensure your compliance
C. The assassin will stop at nothing to make sure you win, even shooting the prosecutor in order to make things a bit easier
D. Your best friend wants the actor found guilty at all costs and won't speak to you again otherwise

With some expert - albeit convoluted - wrangling, you end up with the following choice:

1. "Prove" an innocent woman with mental health issues did the murder, meaning that she'll be given the death penalty and the real killer gets off free (also losing your best friend in the process as she'll never speak to you again)

Or

2. Outright state your client is guilty, which will get him convicted, allow the innocent woman to go free but also kill your best friend.

I literally sat there for half an hour trying to decide. What was more important? The truth, or saving your friends? Could I condemn an innocent woman to save those I cared about? It was no longer "what would Phoenix do?" or even "which choice will allow me to progress with the game?" it was purely, "what do I do"?

Other, passive forms of media will never achieve this.

(For those wondering, I chose option 2).

Yeah, I know I kinda ripped off Extra Credits there. It just seemed more relevant to divulge my own experiences rather than point to someone else's.

 

[DreadfulSorry]

To me personally, art is something which inspires some form of meaningful emotion in me, like awe, sadness, joy, discomfort, etc. Games allow for a unique opportunity to deliver art to an audience: because the medium is interactive, not only am I seeing the art, I am also participating in that art. (Some spoilers follow): In Portal, when I first went "behind the scenes" and saw what other test subjects had written on the wall, and in particular when I noticed that the writing looked suspiciously like it had been written in blood, I felt this sick feeling in the pit of my stomach, and for a brief moment, I was the one trapped in that test facility with a psychotic AI. The game in many subtle ways had drawn me in, and made me feel as if I was in that world.
To give another example: in the game Flower, the premise seemed simple enough: bloom all the flowers, everywhere. But the experience was far from simple: the way the music began each level soft and simple, and built in complexity as I continued, the way the six-axis controls forced me to physically move as I directed the wind, the dizzying, beautiful visuals; all of these things gave me the feeling that I myself was soaring on the wind, collecting an enormous trail of petals behind me, and I have not played any other games that have made me feel such an intense joy.

Anyway, sorry that got kind of long-winded; I hope at least some of it will help you with your essay. Good luck!