Lesser noted is the reaction of his sister in the background, as she imitates everything her brother does, from waiting after each consecutive fist pump to do her own, or that weird running their hands over the box thing that she follows him up on. It's funny to me that no one mentions this. Yes, it could be written off as simply copying a sibling, but it still seems genuine. She may not understand why her brother is going nuts about, but she also seems authentically excited about the Nintendo 64, but is simply following her brother's example on how to go about expressing how.
A few years ago I brought my Nintendo Wii over to my girlfriend's older sister's house. We were staying there for a few days to visit and help babysit their kids, a five-year old daughter and a one-year old son. To give myself something to do, I hooked up my Wii, playing Wii Sports and Super Mario Galaxy. None of them had ever played a Wii before and, as a family video game system, it's pretty enthralling. The five-year old thought Wii Bowling was probably the greatest thing ever invented, jumping up and down in euphoria with every strike, and the one-year old stared at Super Mario Galaxy as if unlocking the mysteries of the Universe.
The following Christmas, myself, my girlfriend and my girlfriend's brother and younger sister all decided to pitch in to get their family Their own Wii. There wasn't a YouTube worthy moment in it, but it was kind of special all the same. It was a big box given as a gift to the one-year old, stuffed with his then-favorite thing in the whole world, balloons. The dad opened it, laughing as he took out the balloons and tossed them at his son, before reaching in to find a smaller box inside. He pulled it out in confusion and, seeing the Wii box, his eyes first lit up and then became guarded. "All right, what did you put in here?" He asked, suspiciously.
When they figured out there was actually a Wii in there, the dad was incredulously joyful, the older sister cried, the daughter jumped around, excited that they'd be able to play bowing whenever they wanted, and the son played with his balloons. No, it was nothing that would have made YouTube, and it was really more a celebration of the Christmas spirit, but it made me realize how much video games, of all things, can touch a person's life. And yet, somehow, though they can have a greater impact on our outlook than books or movies, especially in our current age, we still refuse to consider video games art.
Video games are not currently protected under the rights of the First Amendment because they do not qualify as works of art, though just about all other forms of entertainment are. There, of course, have been many arguments made, very persuasive ones in fact, about why video games should be considered under the First Amendment and given the freedom of speech rights that accompany that, so I'll leave that be and instead look at the artistic merits of video games.
If we can't say that video games are art, we can at least say that movies are art. Film, movies and tv shows, is the most advanced form of art that exists, because it can (should) contain within it all other forms of art. The principles of visual art are applied, in the color of a scene that reflects a painting, in the design of a set that reflects sculpture, in the lighting of a face that reflects photography. Music is also applied, as the score of a scene must both stand up in its own right as music but still counterpoint the action taking place on the screen. The art of movement, such as dance, is reflected in the placement and movement of characters, and mimicked in fight scenes. And the writing of a script needs to contain all the great elements of literature to be considered truly enjoyable.
But film even goes beyond that, adding the art of cinematography, which includes framing, direction, the composition of a shot, and many other elements that other art forms simply can't replicate. A photography may be taken from a strange angle, but the decision to mis-focus to the left of the action for a moment, then re-center it and find the focus again is something that can only happen in film.
Well, it can happen in video games, too. Despite the lack of a physical camera, cinematography plays a role in video games. Shots can be composed just as they are in movies and can only really be matched by animated features that can break the same laws of reality as a video game can.
But video games add one thing that, truly, no other art form can offer. Malleable interactivity. Unlike any other art form, video games are different for every person who plays them. Even if a game is at its simplest, like Super Mario, or even Pong, no two people play the game alike and, as consequence, they will get different things out of that game. This also allows video games to play with and convolute that aspect, which is often taken for granted.
In the original Metal Gear Solid, a fight in that game took place with a mind-reader. At the time, the game was for the original Playstation and, when the original Playstation was made, it usually had to be played through the "Video" input on a television. When turned to this channel without the Playstation on, it showed a black screen that, in the upper right corner, would display in green font the word "Video," so you knew you were on the right channel.
During the Metal Gear Solid fight, one of the first things to happen was a strange noise was emitted from the speakers, as if it had lost connection to the Playstation, a black screen would appear and, in the upper right hand corner, in green font, the word "Hideo" would appear. It would be on screen just long enough for you to think that perhaps your game data had been corrupted and you should reset the game. I did the first time. Similarly, in the third Metal Gear Solid game, you had to float down a veritable River Styx, avoiding floating bodies that killed you when you touched them. When you came to the end of the river, you died anyway, regardless of what you did. How did you beat this section? By using an item procured earlier in the game that allowed you to "come back to life" after you had died.
These two examples show art in a way that no other art form can pull off. They show the ability to play artistically with the concept of interactivity that is unique to video games. Like film, games must deal with visual art, music, the art of movement, and the art of the written word. Like film, they add the element of cinematography. But, unlike any other art form, they also must use and play with the art of interactivity. Of course, no games have really pushed these boundaries to their fullest extent. But if allowed to be considered as an art form, video games may actually move in that direction, becoming less base entertainment and more artistic when given the protection of free speech.
Or maybe I'm just a dude who wants to legitimize how much I play Halo.
No comments:
Post a Comment