Games Now Legally Considered an Art Form (in the USA)

[digital warrior]

I still don't really get why everyone thinks games have to be art.

They don't have to be art, just as television, or books, or movies don't have to be art. But at the same time just that like these mediums video games can be art, it can inspire, make us think, or just explore a new reality. Games have the potential to explore ideas more profoundly than any book or movie because we are a part of whats going on.

You are right not all games have to be art, but if even a few of them are truly recognized as art by the general public they will help dive this medium towards something better, something profound, something that no one will ever be able to look down upon. We are a long way from that yet but this is step in that direction.

 

[mechanixis]

I still don't really get why everyone thinks games have to be art.

Yeah does this even matter
does anybody get more enjoyment from games now compared to before this?

People will certainly enjoy them more if it prevents them from being censored. "Art" is a better label than "Children's Toy."

 

[Madara XIII]

Now we can always run into the "But were are a art form, bitches!" every single time someone make a fuzz about some game.

And to that I happily say VWOOT!!!!

 

[clanknfrends]

bout damn time if you ask me

 

[IvoryTowerGamer]

I still don't really get why everyone thinks games have to be art.

Very few people think this actually.

Most just want games to be recognized as an artistic medium. That doesn't mean that all games need to be art, or even that most do. However, there are already some games with artistic aspirations, and those deserve to be recognized for what they are without someone saying "but it's only a game".

That's all

I just don't think we have to force ourselves into another medium in order to be accepted.

Art isn't a medium. Video games are. Video games being recognized as art doesn't mean we'd be forced into another medium.

Then why not put that control into the hands of STATE governments, which can far more accurately reflect the will of the people, than the federal government, which oversees so many separate clashing cultures (I'm talking specifically about America now, which has a wide abundance of cultures and subcultures spanning across an entire continent) as to make any sort of potential discussion of the matter convoluted and meaningless. Saying "It's better than a poke in the eye" doesn't bring us closer to solving the issue, it's just a dodge.

We constantly espouse the importance of freedom at the individual level, of Liberty and Justice for all, yet when it comes time to truly face what that means, we all just end up attempting to enforce our OWN freedoms, our own moralities on one another.

The "Only Essential Taxation" government has NEVER existed. It's never been attempted, because everybody tries to enforce their own ideologies through subjugation and power. There's always a caveat to the "Freedoms" we want. When we say "Liberty and Justice for All", what we keep quietly to ourselves is, "All Except for Them".

Part of the purpose of government taxes is to support things that wouldn't normally get funding. Art has always fallen under this category, as has education, infrastructure, etc.

Also, afaik art is also funded at the state level.

 

[mad825]

Now we just need this in the UK.

We do because.....

This is not the US where the law is needed to recognise the medium to prevent heavily censorship.

The UK can censor art and speech, movies, games, books etc. regardless if they know the mediums or not if they deem it too "offensive". Manhunt 2 was banned by the British Board of Film Classification. Other parts of Western Europe do it too; Germany turned Team Fortress 2 characters into robots that leak oil, and Command and Conquer armies were visually edited to make them all cyborgs. Australia does it all the time as Yahtzee laments.

No game has ever been banned in the US.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/leicestershire/6767623.stm

Also, my 3D animation degree is a fine arts degree, same as yours.

I thought "dumb fat Americans" were the only ones to have a superiority complex and short, selective memories who don't bother to learn about other countries before speaking.

:/....Lame.

I never ruled out censorship in my statement. All I just said is that the restrictions are not tight, Manhunt 2 is not banned btw although it has faced cuts.

 

[Choppaduel]

As I understand it, Portal was a side project for Valve and so its production & budget are nothing like COD X's. Portal 2 on the other hand...
[hr]

I still don't really get why everyone thinks games have to be art.

This is either a massive over generalization or an enormous straw-man. I'm part of the group "everyone" and I don't hold this position.

My position: Art is subjective, not absolutely, but to a large extent. Categorically denying, as "art," all works in a medium, because of the medium, is irrational. I must consider certain interactive programs to be "art" if I am to be consistent in what I consider to be "art."

Edit: Stop quoting this post. Reading through dozens of quotes all saying roughly the same thing gets old.

This is not an effective strategy to get people to stop quoting you; you should have revised or removed your post. Also, I think you can disable quote notification.
[hr]

 

[Piction Froject]

Finally It happened!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[MercurySteam]

Was there ever any doubt? This had been a long time coming.

 

[Nickompoop]

That's right, Roger Ebert, fuck you! How do you like them apples?
But seriously, this is great news. I'm gonna print out this story and frame it on my wall.

 

[Orange Monkey]

Woo, bust out the champagne Now can we get started on working on more artistic games?

 

[Zoe Castillo]

-- .

 

[Gregg Lonsdale]

From what I can tell, this isn't so much an acceptance of games as an art form as it is a trial-by-fire. This is just the bit where the big guys kick the new kid into the deep end so he can prove himself, but really everyone thinks he'll fail miserably (just like that one bit in every movie ever). It's still up to the games industry, and especially the indie market with cash amounts this small, to believe in themselves and release a few more really good games now that we've got the attention of the art industry as a whole. So yeah, this is really good news.

 

[Racthoh]

After reading this I popped in a game and started to play it. I had the same amount of fun I was having as before so... yeah, really don't care about the whole art label. Unless this change is going to usher in a new era of super intelligent AI, thought provoking challenges, or something along those lines the actual "game" part of the game doesn't benefit from this title at all.

 

[Nurb]

Exactly, we don't really have the stigma against games over here, so it's a non issue. Also, when I was studying for my Fine Art degree, games were included in the "applied arts" section, alongside film and literature. So they are already considered art here

Now we just need this in the UK.

We do because.....

This is not the US where the law is needed to recognise the medium to prevent heavily censorship.

The UK can censor art and speech, movies, games, books etc. regardless if they know the mediums or not if they deem it too "offensive". Manhunt 2 was banned by the British Board of Film Classification. Other parts of Western Europe do it too; Germany turned Team Fortress 2 characters into robots that leak oil, and Command and Conquer armies were visually edited to make them all cyborgs. Australia does it all the time as Yahtzee laments.

No game has ever been banned in the US.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/leicestershire/6767623.stm

Also, my 3D animation degree is a fine arts degree, same as yours.

I thought "dumb fat Americans" were the only ones to have a superiority complex and short, selective memories who don't bother to learn about other countries before speaking.

lol banning manhunt 2 as a point xD
that game had no redeeming qualities. ignore the fact it actually does not play well. You still have an immature handling of a mature subject matter.

I'm entirely proud our ratings board told them to piss off.

You reply to him saying you don't have a stigma about games over there and act smug about the UK having a higher appreciation of art, but then you voice support of censorship of artistic expression? How is censorship a good thing? Wether it's good or not doesn't mean anything, it's a government making a form of expression illegal.