So I wanted to try my hand at writing a video game related article. I know this is short for such an article, but meh. I also know that this has been said by many people before, but this is my take on it. I'm looking for discussion, but also advice on writing...so thanks in advance for that!
So your mum and your dad and your siblings and your cousin and loads of people you know watch films, keep up with TV, listen to music and even indulge in the odd novel or so. Yet most of these people don't play videogames (this is a generalisation, of course), but why?
Truth is that videogames have never truly risen out of the rut the likes of the Daily Mail and Fox News had shoved them in since they gained popularity over a decade ago. As videogames were taking their baby-steps, the mainstream were doing their very best to wolf-pack games into a whimpering, bloody pulp. Mainstream media has always looked at gaming in the same way we look at chickenpox, or puberty - some sort of awkward phase that should work its way out of our systems in due course and never be mentioned at the dinner table ever again.
Even now mainstream media outlets still have that same sort of snooty disapproval towards the world of gaming, choosing to concentrate on the controversy - the 'customizable sodomy' of Mass Effect, for instance, which was actually nothing more raunchy than glancing at an undressed mannequin in a shop window. The point is that videogames still provoke unjustified ire from the uneducated, and this ensures that many people are put off from even approaching what is a creative and burgeoning industry.
Yet there's logistical reasons for this as well. Next time you're running through a level in a 3D game, deftly moving the character with one analogue and flicking the camera into position with your right thumb, spare a thought for just how difficult this actually is. It's very difficult, and to someone who isn't used to games - who haven't grown up through the inception of 3D gaming like many of us have - controlling a modern videogame is simply impossible. Asking somebody new to gaming to complete a level of Call of Duty or Zelda is like asking a non-driver to drive you to work without killing a dozen pedestrians.
Compare videogames to almost any other medium. How hard is it to watch a film? DVD players are in almost every household in the country, and watching a film requires no skill beyond the ability to drape yourself across a chair and silently paw salted food into your gaping mouth. Playing games requires a huge investment, and many newcomers simply can't be bothered with this.
This issue with difficulty is severely restrictive to a newcomer. If a shiny-eyed novice wants to experience Grand Theft Auto's satirical brilliance, or Bioshock's art-deco loveliness, then, even on the easiest difficulty (should such an option be provided) they will face a frustrating uphill struggle to have any sort of positive or enjoyable experience amidst all the punishing failure.
There's other issues with games which aren't particularly newbie friendly, like the amount of time needed to complete your average retail title (10-15 hours) or how damned expensive it all is (£200 for a console, £40 for a new release), but I feel that control is certainly the main barrier.
Some people might ask "Why are games even worth playing in the first place - those bleepy, bloopy, murder simulators. Those scourges of our modern society: I want them all thrown in a big fiery hole with all the other things I'm too ignorant to learn about." To which I'd say to such a person: go lie in traffic.
Truth is videogames are the fastest growing creative industry in human history, and there's a reason for that: they're ace. At their best they're exciting, immersive and utterly effecting. Gaming, as a growing industry, is something that should be experienced on some level by everybody, and its only a shame that they naturally present such a barrier as to put a lot of people off. Not all games are enthralling, complete personal experiences - do you watch Eastenders, or The Hangover for their intrinsic artistic merit? Videogames - just like any other medium - offer a gambit of experiences. Exhilaration, sadness, fright and even quiet introspection are all some of the things the medium can offer, in a way only interactivity can provide.
The solution? If you ever try to spread the joy, be weary of the constraints. Don't push that weird, alien controller into the unwilling hands of a parent or partner and expect them to get on as well as you do. Start off with something simple and forgiving, and work up there. Control is a barrier that needs to be slowly overcome - but I'd certainly argue that it's worth it.
So your mum and your dad and your siblings and your cousin and loads of people you know watch films, keep up with TV, listen to music and even indulge in the odd novel or so. Yet most of these people don't play videogames (this is a generalisation, of course), but why?
Truth is that videogames have never truly risen out of the rut the likes of the Daily Mail and Fox News had shoved them in since they gained popularity over a decade ago. As videogames were taking their baby-steps, the mainstream were doing their very best to wolf-pack games into a whimpering, bloody pulp. Mainstream media has always looked at gaming in the same way we look at chickenpox, or puberty - some sort of awkward phase that should work its way out of our systems in due course and never be mentioned at the dinner table ever again.
Even now mainstream media outlets still have that same sort of snooty disapproval towards the world of gaming, choosing to concentrate on the controversy - the 'customizable sodomy' of Mass Effect, for instance, which was actually nothing more raunchy than glancing at an undressed mannequin in a shop window. The point is that videogames still provoke unjustified ire from the uneducated, and this ensures that many people are put off from even approaching what is a creative and burgeoning industry.
Yet there's logistical reasons for this as well. Next time you're running through a level in a 3D game, deftly moving the character with one analogue and flicking the camera into position with your right thumb, spare a thought for just how difficult this actually is. It's very difficult, and to someone who isn't used to games - who haven't grown up through the inception of 3D gaming like many of us have - controlling a modern videogame is simply impossible. Asking somebody new to gaming to complete a level of Call of Duty or Zelda is like asking a non-driver to drive you to work without killing a dozen pedestrians.
Compare videogames to almost any other medium. How hard is it to watch a film? DVD players are in almost every household in the country, and watching a film requires no skill beyond the ability to drape yourself across a chair and silently paw salted food into your gaping mouth. Playing games requires a huge investment, and many newcomers simply can't be bothered with this.
This issue with difficulty is severely restrictive to a newcomer. If a shiny-eyed novice wants to experience Grand Theft Auto's satirical brilliance, or Bioshock's art-deco loveliness, then, even on the easiest difficulty (should such an option be provided) they will face a frustrating uphill struggle to have any sort of positive or enjoyable experience amidst all the punishing failure.
There's other issues with games which aren't particularly newbie friendly, like the amount of time needed to complete your average retail title (10-15 hours) or how damned expensive it all is (£200 for a console, £40 for a new release), but I feel that control is certainly the main barrier.
Some people might ask "Why are games even worth playing in the first place - those bleepy, bloopy, murder simulators. Those scourges of our modern society: I want them all thrown in a big fiery hole with all the other things I'm too ignorant to learn about." To which I'd say to such a person: go lie in traffic.
Truth is videogames are the fastest growing creative industry in human history, and there's a reason for that: they're ace. At their best they're exciting, immersive and utterly effecting. Gaming, as a growing industry, is something that should be experienced on some level by everybody, and its only a shame that they naturally present such a barrier as to put a lot of people off. Not all games are enthralling, complete personal experiences - do you watch Eastenders, or The Hangover for their intrinsic artistic merit? Videogames - just like any other medium - offer a gambit of experiences. Exhilaration, sadness, fright and even quiet introspection are all some of the things the medium can offer, in a way only interactivity can provide.
The solution? If you ever try to spread the joy, be weary of the constraints. Don't push that weird, alien controller into the unwilling hands of a parent or partner and expect them to get on as well as you do. Start off with something simple and forgiving, and work up there. Control is a barrier that needs to be slowly overcome - but I'd certainly argue that it's worth it.