BBC News has an article (linked from Slashdot again; I've got to stop doing this), which quotes Laura Fryer (head of the XBox group, of all things) as basically saying that games need to be fun, not just pretty. I am glad someone finally agreed with me. While to the gamers such as myself this is a "Film at 11" type of deal, it's nice to see a major news source such as BBC News posting a competent article on gaming. Perhaps gaming really is finally being accepted as a valid form of entertainment, along with movies and music -- at least in the UK.
I should also point out, however, that just as with music, movies, and literature, games fit into a wide spectrum of quality. Most of the games are pure crap or crappy sequels to average creations -- similar to "Son of King Kong Returns" or whatever. Some games are "artsy", such as Rez or Black and White. However, a select few games are actually works of art -- for example, Ico or Syberia or Planescape Torment (though that one is more like literature, I suppose), not to mention qunitessential gaming classics such as Tetris or Morrowind, which have no analogue in other media. It's true that most games, movies, books, etc. merely entertain the audience (ok, most actually fail to even do that) -- but it doesn't mean that the sole purpose of these works is entertainment. Gaming is a medium, not a pigeonhole.
On a sidenote, I might have to reconsider my opinion of the Xbox console if the ideas listed in the article are actually implemented into practice... Though, realistically, this is unlikely to happen, the financial/organizational situation of Xbox being what it is.
Posted by metabug at 2003/09/03 05:20 | TrackBack (0) | Categories: Games