We're Still Silent
11 February 2008 by Administrator
I love some of my videogames. I think they're a thrilling form of popular culture, and have far more interesting things to offer than many of the material I've seen that gets called 'art'.
I think that strictly speaking they aren’t an art-form, because their fundamental basis is the desire to play – which predates the very notions of art and culture.
I learned this by reading Johan Huizinga, the father of ludology. In his book ‘Homo Ludens’ he said ‘play is older than culture, for culture, however inadequately defined, always presupposes human society, and animals have not waited for man to teach them their playing’.
Fantastic.
Having said that, I still believe that you can sit some fantastic, moving, revolutionary art on top of the play mechanics of a videogame, or overlapping with them. It’s just that we haven’t yet. We’re still, in the majority of cases, dealing with crude stereotypes, an emphasis on action, and quick dumb thrills.
But it’s happening…
We’re beginning to move people in more sophisticated ways. We’re beginning to really talk to people.
You can sense it, right?
Provided we continue to push for improvement – in the face of disdain, ridicule, ignorance and censorship - our crude current state is nothing to be ashamed of. It was the same with novels, plays, movies and much more during their respective infancies. Many were thought of as ‘just for children’; many were slated or banned for being puerile or offensive or a waste of time. Throughout the ages, pioneers have had to struggle for artistic freedom in the face of...idiocy.
We’re only about three decades old. That means we’re only just starting to grow despite our technological leaps. When movies were the same age, they were still silent. Jack Warner (of Warner Brothers) once asked “who the hell wants to hear actors talk?” Nobody could have predicted what an incredible art form they would become – but they did.
So, if someone chooses to ridicule your passion for videogames by saying ‘these silly wastes of time will never be considered art’, please reply by saying that they are already more important than that. That we’re on an inexorable march to cultural domination.
And that we’ll show ‘em in the end.
We’ll show ‘em ;)
\Matt
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