Video Games and Art

While catching up with my web videos this week I watched on from The Nostalgia Critic (Doug Walker) which asked the question "are video games art?" As a gamer myself, I took the time to watch the video to see what he had to say.

For those of you unaware who Doug Walker is, I've written about him before when he made a video about Disney princesses. Doug Walker, known on the internet as That Guy With The Glasses is an internet reviewer, usually specializing in reviewing "nostalgic" media, but recently has started reviewing everything and putting up more commentaries. I'm enjoying his new structure so much more than the old one because it's more commentary than actual set reviews.

But enough about that.

After watching the commentary, I would have to say that I agree with Doug's assessment. Video games have come quite a long way since the days of pong, and many could argue that the backgrounds, colors, and things you see on a screen while gaming ARE, in fact, art.

But then we come to the argument about the storyline. Are video games just a cheap imitation of a movie?

I don't believe they are. And yeah you'll have your video games where the entire point is to kill the other player/characters and don't have much in terms of storyline (I'm looking at you, COD series)...but then you have a vast array of story-based games. RPGs have been...and probably always will be...my thing.

I enjoy getting to see a story. And if my actions in the game get to affect that story, then it's even better.

I had a conversation with a friend the other day about Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (which has an ipad app now? What is this sorcery...) which for me was the first game I really got into. And in that game your actions and your choices directly affected the storyline and what ending you would get to said storyline. You could walk the path of the virtuous Jedi knight (which I always did) or you had the choice to be mean, sarcastic, and evil and walk the path of a Sith lord. For me I had until this point only encountered games where there was one possible outcome and my choices in the game would lead my character to die if I made the wrong one. But this gave me a choice...much like those "choose your own adventure" books I read in grade school.

Although that's a bad example as my character always ended up dying in those too.

But back on track. Are video games art?

I worked on a theater show in college called "The Shape of Things." The entire point behind this show was the question "what is art?" And the basic answer I came up to this question while watching rehearsals every night for my role as assistant prop's mistress was that art, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.

So for me, yes. Video games are a form of art.

But whether they are to you, is up for your own interpretation.