As a forenote, I searched the forums from archive using the keywords "video game art" and found nothing specific to this topic. But please, if it has been created already, a link would be appreciated.
As I sat through a year of Humanities class, listening to lectures on major human creative developments (Specifically visual art, literature, and music), I came to this conclusion: What are video games if not a complete fusion of all the genres that I'm studying about right now? I think that, given the right minds behind the development companies, video games will soon become more than just a pastime, or "entertainment medium." Video games can become the newest way to retell the human experience and incite emotions just as well as any novel or paining or symphony. So, with that being said, I'd like to hear what the rest of the gaming community believes about it. Do you think that games can one day be accepted as a legitimate art form?
For sure. The Prime example of this would be Shadow of the Colossus. From the way the story is told, to the actual fights, amazing graphics, and the intensely dramatic music... it's gotta be one of the first to bridge the gap from Entertainment into Art.
Another game that does this job almost equally as well as SotC would have to be Gears of War. Okay, it may be a shooter, but from the standpoint of a fiction writer, the story is told amazingly well, and the cover-action firefights are done very well. I feel that this experience is intensified when playing Co-op with another friend... the feeling of immersion, for me at least, bridges the gap between entertainment and art.
But of course, we'll always have games that aren't making aims at Art, just as there are movies that aren't trying to win the Academy Awards. There'll always be a place for party games and summer action blockbusters.
Art, as what I've been told through that Humanities class, is the creation that expresses and narrates an emotion or experience that other humans can sympathize with.
Now, for the most part, I agree with PapaBrain. Most puzzle games aren't art. Art has depth. Full length games have depth. Puzzle games are not full length games. And please don't point out EchoChrome. It's more of an homage to art than art in itself
Agreed, though admitadly a game is a different kind of art than say a movie. Just like movies are a different kind of art than a book. With each new form of media we must rethink what is art in regards to the medium.
Hold on, who are you agreeing with? Because if you're agreeing with blank that Tetris/puzzle games are art, you end up contradicting yourself with the final sentence:
With each new form of media we must rethink what is art in regards to the medium.
For me, this means more than visual stimulation, which is what paintings/sculptures and such are based on. I think that video games should be judged in a manner similar to movies. Of course the main difference between a movie and a video game is control. When playing a video game, you are the one making the decisions, whereas in movies, the director picks each shot specifically and you have no control over what you watch. Therefore, one of the most important points in making an artistic video game would be one that using the given controls, immerses you into a
creation that expresses and narrates an emotion or experience that other humans can sympathize with.
And of course, the immersion would also include how a story is told to the player and the how believable the setting the player is in is made. All of which are stylistic points that film makers take into consideration when making a movie. Only with a video game, there is a bit more added into the mix.
The two games I've played that I would consider art are Shadow of the Colossus and the Half-Life series.
Shadow of the Colossus for the reasons stated earlier and the fact that people can have different interpretations of it, much like paintings.Also, I chose Half-Life because that game tells the story in a way only games can tell. So instead of having to watch long cut scenes of games trying to be movies you experience what everyone in that world does. You learn whats going on by reading the newspaper scattered about, listening to the broadcasts played all over City 17, and by seeing the Combine oppression for yourself. All that leaves you feeling like you are in the world.
I haven't played Bioshock but I hear that's another game that helps the argument of games being art.
I haven't played Bioshock but I hear that's another game that helps the argument of games being art.
Fuck yes, the art deco style and the overall narrative is amazing. The only reason I forgot about this game is because I haven't finished.
I hate to say that I haven't played Half-Life yet, but I have been meaning to for a while. I'm definitely going to buy the Orange Box when I get back to the States. Is Half-Life 1 on the old Xbox?
Yes, that's all correct. Bioshock is an amazing show of what kind of experience video games should be. Another is Mass Effect. And yes, I would even risk saying that the single player campaign in Halo is a work of art. Towards the end of Halo3, I had the experience of the same like that is the reason that readers love novels.
Only Half-Life 2 was released for the first Xbox. Though I think the first Half-Life is available for the PS2. I suggest you just get it for the PC. It's an old game and should run on just about any system.
It does, and there are many people that are in the development business right now that do have specific stories to express.
I think moving towards publicating the big name designers in the industry would be a step forward, because being able to relate a title to a name would help credibility of those that work towards it and the title itself. This can be specific lead designers (i.e. Cliff Bleszinski, David Jaffe) or entire development companies (Bungie, Infinity Ward)
I know that when I hear a name like Fumito Ueda, Tim Schafer, Ken Levine, Will Wright or when it comes to developers Blizzard and Valve I know to expect a great game. Though are you saying all games are art? When I think of Halo, God of War, Gears of War, or Call of Duty I'm expecting a fun game but thats all. Like when I go watch Rambo. All I'm expecting is to watch some fun explosions and mayhem but I wouldn't call it art. Just entertainment.
But I guess the meaning of art would differ from person to person so that's just my opinion.
