SkyFyre: Art?

Having just played SkyFyre on newgrounds.com, I realized that clearly not all video games are art. Yes the game was very fun and addicting, I realized that in order to be art it a game can't just be a game. Substance is required. By substance I mean story, a creative thought or idea, visual appeal, or something in which it's artistic value can be measured.

In result, the game was fun, but fun does not equal art.

By Method of Comparison...

In my personal opinion, art is any and all forms of creative expression. If you've read my blog anytime before now then you already know my stance on the topic of whether or not video games should be considered art. For those who haven't: I am all for it. Now as any philosopher would tell me, I must argue my stance and show why I believe what I believe. So let's get this show on the road.

First and foremost, I believe video games should be considered an art simply by method of comparison. Most would agree with me in saying that music is a form of art, and most (maybe not as many) would agree with me in saying that Miley Cyrus's (yes, the Disney girl turned superstar) music is, in fact, music. Therefore that would make Miley Cyrus singing about "throwin' her hands up" and "partyin' in the USA" a work of art, and if you're trying to tell me that that song is art but games like Okami aren't then I'm not buying what you're selling. Plain and simple, cut and dry, end of story. Sorry Miley Cyrus or any Miley Cyrus fangirls (or fanboys.......), but I don't thinking singing about listening to other artists' songs and dancing to them is creative or an example of expressing any educated thought. There, I said it.

Another way I, personally, define is art is a work that may provoke you to look at something in a different way, or present a brand new idea to you such as films (not movies, films. There's a difference) often do. Now, I dare you to pick up any Square-Enix game and say it didn't do just that. SPOILER ALERT: In Final Fantasy X they present the idea of what makes an individual real by having the main character never truly exist, but instead be a dream of a group of omnipotent beings. Another concept is presented in the Kingdom Hearts series (NEW ONE COMES OUT TODAY!!! Go pick it up!) which has characters and the player questioning what the nature of the human heart is: good or evil. Anything that sprouts this kind of thought from the player, reader, listener, watcher, etc MUST be considered art if we're also going to put "It's getting hot in here" in the category. Once again, sorry to Nelly or any Nelly fangirls or boys.

I don't know though, maybe I'm just crazy. I'm not going to pretend like my word is the word of God or like everything I say goes. Maybe there's something to get out of reading between the lines of those songs and I'm just missing it. You tell me:

So I put my hands up
They’re playing my song,
And the butterflys fly away
Noddin’ my head like yea
Movin my hips like yea
I got my hands up,
They’re playin my song
I know im gonna be ok
Yea, It's a party in the USA
Yea, It's a party in the USA

Get to the club in my taxi cab
Everybody's lookin at me now
Like “whos that chick, thats rockin’ kicks?
She gotta be from out of town”

2009: Chinese Year of the Fanboys

Two words... fanboys (yeah, I know, technically it's one but it's a compound word so we'll cheat a little). The gaming community is littered with them and I don't believe it'll be getting better any time soon, especially with this year being the year of big sequels. Actually, I'm going to take that back. This DECADE has been the decade of sequels thus far. It seems like every big title coming out these days is a direct sequel, prequel, re-release, or just plain and simple: something that has been done before. I'm convinced that God was pissed off by a couple gamers, and in retaliation, took away all the creativity of the developers as some secret master plan. Just looking at almost all of the big games at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) we had Mass Effect 2, Assassin's Creed 2, Halo 3: ODST, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Left 4 Dead 2, Final Fantasy XIII, Metal Gear Solid: Rising, and many more I'm sure. These are only the one's that made it into Microsoft's press conference (oh yeah, and this is JUST the games for the 360. Did I mention that?). Before I let you know exactly how I feel though I'm going to say that not all fanboys are bad. In fact, most of them aren't. I, myself, am a huge Nintendo fanboy. I will buy every one of their systems till the day either they die or I do (bets anyone?). The one's that have given us the bad name are the extremist fanboys that either think without saying, argue just to argue, or are really just that ignorant. So keep in mind that for the remainder of this post, I will be referring to these "extremist" fanboys.

This has resulted in a fanboy community that you have to see to believe. Go ahead and watch Adam Sessler's response to his review of Killzone 2 on G4 to get an idea or just to get a good laugh (there's a link to it at the end of this post for sake of time and effort). The comments left by the message board users (a.k.a. fanboys) are a little insane to say the least. WARNING: I am about to be extremely bias so turn away if you do not agree... and away we go. The ONLY reason the fanboys of Killzone 2 are so upset by G4's review of the game, and the ONLY reason they left comments as nasty as they did is because they are PS3 fanboys. For some reason they feel a need to be at war with the 360, and no offense, but the 360 is leaving them in the dust and this makes them very mad indeed. Potential doesn't make a system (which PS3 has more of, in case you didn't know), how you use that potential is what matters. Accept the fact that you're a little behind! Don't get all mopey and complain about every little thing you don't like or agree with. This isn't just for Killzone fanboys either, this is a general statement to all. What do you get out of bashing something that's in your favor?! On the other side of the 360 vs PS3 fiasco is the 360 fanboys who complain about every good game that isn't on their system. Sorry for the rude wake up call boys and girls, but you can't win them all and I'm going to go ahead and say you SHOULDN'T win them all. I don't even own a PS3 but I think every system should have there own big exclusive titles because that's what keeps every console developing company afloat and keeps variety in the genre and thus keeps the gamers happy. So I guess if you want to complain until you really hate how the industry works, then you can just ignore my advice.

Just some closing remarks to clear up any thoughts you may have about me after that rant: I do not hate all fanboys, PS3, Killzone 2 (so please don't kill me Killzone 2 fans). All I'm saying is that extremist fanboys need to consider what they are saying, why they are saying it, and what will come out of it BEFORE you actually open your mouth. I also realize that some people may like PS3 more than the 360 and good for them, honestly. There are some great aspects about the system that some may prefer over the 360. When I said that the PS3 was behind, I was taking an objective stance and considering all aspects of both systems, and I just feel that the 360 is ahead.

Link: http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/692992/Sesslers-Soapbox-Killzone-Mailbag.html#commentpost

Personal Game History

Since first picking up the NES controller I have, and will always, be a fan of video games. They have altered my life and helped me get to where I am today. Although I play just about every type of game under the sun, there are a few that will always stand out in my mind such as my very first game, the first game I beat from start to finish, the first game that helped me win money, and the ones that I will always love and remember. Though I may have had a late start due to the fact that I'm a 90's baby, I have just as much, if not more, gaming experience as the next gamer.

The first game I ever played was the Duck Hunt and Super Mario Bros fusion game, but I would still consider myself to be a Super Nintendo era gamer. In my memories it seems like more times than not my days would begin with my mom yelling at me to stop playing Donkey Kong so I could get ready for school or church or whatever else I was doing at that age. It is easily the system that influenced my gaming lifestyle the most, and I wouldn't have had it any other way. In my opinion the Super Nintendo was the best platform to grow up on. It was easy enough to where a 5 year old could beat some of his or her favorite games but still challenging enough to keep people happy with even just a couple games. To me, Donkey Kong was a religion, and King K. Rool was Satan himself. He needed to be brought to justice for stealing poor Donkey and Diddy's secret banana stash beneath their elegant tree house. I thought the first game was the epitome of heaven, but when I found out that there was a second one coming out I knew video games were my calling in life and that was where it all started.

Fast forward to 1996 and all of the sudden I find myself with a Nintendo 64 in my hands and a desire to conquer yet another system of platforming to the best of my ability. My first N64 game, like pretty much everyone else, was Super Mario 64. I was baffled by the fact that I was running, jumping, flying, and swimming more than just from left to right. I was going forward, backward, around, under, over, and every other direction as the famous Italian plumber. This system opened up my eyes to what video games could be. In awe by this accomplishment, I also really started exploring more than just the big Nintendo adventure games. I dabbled in racing, sports, RPG, strategy, simulation, and everything else the Nintendo 64 had to offer until I came to Super Smash Bros. which is easily the series I have put the most time and effort into. From the minute I received it on my seventh birthday I could not put the game down. I wanted to be the best. I wanted to cut through any competition as if it were like cutting through melted butter with a broadsword. Super Smash Bros, in my opinion, is what took me into the hardcore level of video gaming. It is the first game that I did more than just play. I would look up guides on different moves, strategies, combos, and everything else it consisted of. I remember holding neighborhood tournaments for all the kids my age so I could play other people and establish my dominance at the game. Because of this game, I consider the golden years to be the three years after I turned seven.

My third generation of game consoles was the PlayStation2, Xbox, and Gamecube era. Fortunately, I lucked out when my cousin's got a hold of two PlayStation 2's the night it was released so I had one before everyone else in my fifth grade class, and I was the cool kid in town and I loved it. The only game I had was Madden for the longest time which I didn't really care for so I really learned to research games I was interested in and follow them throughout development in this time frame. If I had to limit my experience on the PS2 to any one genre it would be Role-Playing Games. My brother introduced the Final Fantasy series to me with Final Fantasy 7 and I was hooked. At first the music of the series is what drew me in most because music has always been a part of my life, but I instantly loved everything else about the game the moment I got a hold of it. I am addicted to the idea of your character growing and becoming stronger as you progress through the story. This aspect is what still draws me to Role-Playing Games today. After Final Fantasy 7 I bought numbers 8, 10, and 10-2 in the series. I also branched out from the Final Fantasies and became addicted to the Kingdom Hearts series. Basically, the PS2 is the system where I established my love for Squaresoft, known now as Square-Enix. My brother also owned an Xbox during this time but I never really played it much due to the fact that it wasn't mine. I played Halo religiously for a while just like everyone else but my commitment died after the second game. Sadly, I never owned a Gamecube. My cousin did however, and with him living a couple minutes away, I was at his house from the minute school got out on Friday till the minute my mom picked me up Sunday night playing nothing but Super Smash Bros Melee. Since I was older during the lifetime of the sequel I had to opportunity to go to venues and compete in tournaments which is exactly what I did. I didn't get too far into the competitive scene at this time since I was still only twelve or thirteen, but I did go to four competitions by the time the game was winding down, winning three of them and earning over 200 dollars for playing video games. These results are probably what kept me in the competitive community and helped me realize that I could make money doing what I loved most.

With the current generation of consoles came tons more opportunities. Knowing what I learned from the last three sets of systems I had owned, I knew exactly what I was doing. The Wii was the first system I got due to the fact that Nintendo had played such a big role in my life and because the chances of Super Smash Bros being multi-platform were slim to none. I got my Wii opening day, camping outside for thirteen hours, in freezing temperatures, a week before Thanksgiving. At the time I wanted to die but the moment I got home, plugged that thing in, and used to motion controls to play video games, I knew it was all worth it. From the day I got it I started counting down the grueling 16 month wait till the new Super Smash Bros. Once it finally came out my calling was revealed to me. Being the game I spent the most time playing, Super Smash Bros Brawl is also the most rewarding game. Diving even more into the competitive scene of gaming, I established a name for myself in the Super Smash Bros Brawl community as one of the best Diddy Kong players in the state of Michigan. Obviously my choice of Diddy Kong was based on my love for Donkey Kong over a decade earlier. To this day I would say the Super Smash Bros series would have to be my favorite of all time. It is not the only game I devote my time and effort into though. Not even a year ago from now I finally broke down and got an Xbox 360 because I'm addicted to online gaming as much as anyone else and that is something Nintendo has always lacked in. The game that came out not even two weeks after I got my 360 and still takes up the majority of my time is Left 4 Dead. Me, my two cousins, and a friend all play the game together, and for a while it was just about every night. Mowing down masses of zombies while trying to escape a deserted city, river town, airport, or farmland is just about the most fun anyone will ever have playing games in my opinion. Taking what I have learned from Super Smash Bros, I decided to try to get involved in the Left 4 Dead competitive scene, but unfortunately it is still a very underground community that has yet to take off. Until that time I am doing everything I can to speed the process up.

This brief history isn't to say that these were the only games I touched in my lifetime however. I have been a longtime fan of the Zelda series, Street Fighter, Pokemon, MegaMan and many other diverse games. These games are just the ones that influenced my life the most. They helped me grow from the little nerdy kid sitting up late playing "just one more level" to the video game super fan that I am today. Also, the beauty of the whole situation is that there are thousands of games I have never played or maybe even heard of despite my fan-boy status. There are thousands of stories people could take from this one genre. Though I have always struggled to get others to see what I do in video games, as I'm sure every fan has, the fact of the matter is that games are here to stay just as my love for them is, and there is nothing any frustrated mom, ignored girlfriend, or put off school work can do about that.

Game Criticisms: The New Marty McFly

The debate of reviews versus criticisms presented in this sessions reading is an interesting one for many reasons. One because criticisms require video games to be viewed as an art, which is already a controversial topic, and two because of the question of whether or not video game journalism needs more criticisms and less reviews.

I may be bias due to my history with video games, but I have always agreed with the above idea and found video games to be a legitimate work of art. It's hard to not think this way after you play games like Okami, Shadow of Colossus, or any other game that's really innovative in regards to the game's visuals (and I'm not just talking about the best graphics, I'm talking about something that really explores uncharted territory).

Now, the problem I have with criticisms is that even though they are an educated work that analyzes a piece of art, I don't believe the video game genre is ready for that step just yet. For every room or class full of video game fans, there is an equal number that think everything about our hobby is other worldly or may just straight up hate it such as politicians who believe that video games affect our behavior (how often do you see people dressed up as a giant yellow ball, eating dots, and running away from ghosts named pinky and blinky). Additionally, even fans of video games may not see the genre as a work of art so they won't see any point in a criticism of Super Mario Bros. and how it's style and innovation affected the history of video games or how Call of Duty: World at War reflects the average Americans mentality during the World War era (I have a feeling that all the soccer moms playing Wii Fit fall into this category). I do strongly believe however that pure criticisms will one day have a future in the industry. As of now though, the world just sees video games as a product and will see criticisms of this "product" no more legit than a criticism of a toilet bowl cleaner.

Now moving out of the gloomy tone and to a more positive note, I do believe that criticisms do have their place. I support the idea that reviewers could use a bit more critical analysis in their pieces instead of just taking a simple yay or nay stance and here's why: gamers like me (I have to believe that there are people out their with similar tastes as me) are suckers for innovation. I love games that give me an experience I've never had before with anything in the field, and a good way to tell which games are and what games aren't is through criticisms. Specifically, an analysis of where the game lies in the history of video games or maybe how it affects the industry as being the first of its kind. A perfect example of this being being Little Big Planet. Game reviews main goal is to tell a person how good/bad a game is and an analysis covering those points on a game such as LBP would do just that, help push Sony's new genre of "Play. Create. Share." (which LBP helped launch), AND be classified as a criticism. That's a triple whammy right there! And who knows, maybe all we need to do to reach a place where video game criticisms will be respected is take baby steps to that ultimate goal.

Nintendo Let's Us Down, and the World Loves It

I was planning on touching on the subject of Nintendo and the hardcore vs casual gamer on my own time or in an open blog post but since the opportunity has so delicately fallen into my lap I say to myself "why not". If there were any one topic I would take up with video game developers, it would be this. This is the itch on my nose, the torn in my side, my bone to pick, whatever you want to call it. I'll just get straight to the point though.

A hardcore gamer plays games to beat them, be the best at them, or just get better. Casual gamers play games for just about every other reason like just to waste time, because it's the cool thing (who knew, right?), to lose weight (yeah, look what wii fit has done to the world), or whatever else they want. The only thing that unifies the two groups is that they both have fun doing it (they are video games after all), and that is it. Plain and simple. To the hardcore gamer though, the casual gamers are the enemy. Why, you ask? It's because although we may have been picked on, bullied, or just isolated by everyone else for playing games, what we had was a form a entertainment/genre/whole other world all to our self; something that was ours and only ours. Plus, they dare say that they're gamers just because they play Wii Ski or Carnival Games Wii. After all those years of out casting us, NOW you want to be like us? ...No. Another reason why they are the enemy is that as we've seen with Nintendo, more time spent on those lame casual games means less time spent on awesome hardcore games, and we need our hardcore games. Not only that but they are major newbs (get that spell check out of my face, I know how to spell newb).

More on Nintendo now. Though I may be young compared to others and wasn't around when they started, I have loved Nintendo since I played the NES. They offered the world new and interesting games on every platform and because of this, dominated the video game market. They had everything from Mario, to Metroid, to Donkey Kong (my personal favorite as a wee-tot), to Legend of Zelda, the list goes on and on. If you didn't have a Nintendo, you were not a gamer. Nowadays, pretty much the opposite is true. If you own the newest Nintendo system you LOSE gamer credibility. All because Nintendo decided that they were more in it for the money than the satisfaction of their fans. Every year E3, Tokyo Game Show, or any other big video game event rolls around, Nintendo always fails their long time fans and the rest of the world loves it because they are getting Wii Sports Resort or a new peripheral (heart rate monitor, really?). Even when they try to please their fans with something like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, they flop in my opinion. You can't create innovative games for years; make that your norm; and then just develop a game that has already been made on your hand held system, touch it up, call it new, and expect your fans to be happy buying the exact same game twice but with multiplayer this time around. My word count limit is running low though, so I'll just wrap up by saying I don't despise the popularization of games. I think it's a step in the right direction (the legitimizing games direction). I'd be happy to share my hobby with the world. Just don't let down the people that made you what you are in the process....NINTENDO!

Read, read, read

So the first reading assignment definitely had its highs and lows. The low being the reading from "An Introduction to Game Studies" and the high being everything but the reading from "An Introduction to Game Studies". In my personal opinion that book took a lot to say a little. It may have been because I read it while I was half asleep, but then again... it's the thing that put me in that state. All it needed to say was "video games should be respected as a legitimate field of study", throw out a couple examples, and then wrap the section up. Wham, bam, thank you officer. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for legitimizing video games and they're fields of study because they are a form of entertainment and an art, but keep in mind that those grueling 12 pages were just the introduction to the book. If you're going to talk about everything later in the book that you did in the introduction (which is usually the case) then why would you want to drill an idea into someone's head to the point where they are bored of the topic before the book even gets going? I understand that some people enjoy this approach on things, but it's not like I have the shortest attention span in the world so I could only assume that other people were thinking the same thing. Then again, we all know what assuming does.

The other two readings however, did keep my attention long enough for me to get through (possibly because they were shorter or possibly because I did it on the computer so I could check email, facebook, and everything else if I got bored). The argument's presented in the Video Game Style Guide and the blog, "Videogames or Video Games - What are We Talking About?", were hit and miss I found. Yeah, in order for video game journalism to be taken seriously it needs to be unified as far as spelling, grammar, abbreviations, etc, but I think people are looking way to far into it. Take the choice between video games and videogames for example. Spell check just popped up for one of them (no space), but they are both still technically correct in video game journalism and people feel we need to argue which one we should use. There are obviously arguments for each side but honestly now, who feels they are that connected to a word or holds a word that dear to their heart that they would be genuinely upset if they didn't get what they wanted? The whole debate just seems silly to me. Pick one and move on.

Introductions...

Hello everyone, Michael (aka MetaMeeks) here. Welcome to my blog. Over the duration of my Analysis & Criticism of Video Games class at U of M Flint, and possibly longer, I will be posting any and all of my thoughts, critiques, complaints, and anything else that goes through my head about video games. So if you enjoy games and have your own opinions about them, that's great and this is probably the place for you; if not then you may not find as much interest in my blogs as others, but you are still welcome to browse around and have a good time.

Just some info about me:

I am a true gamer. It is easily my biggest and best hobby in life. The current systems I own are a PS2, XBox 360, DS, and Wii. The games I play the most are Kingdom Hearts and Street Fighter games on the PS2; Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead, and Left 4 Dead on the 360; Pokemon and The World Ends With You on the DS; and Super Smash Bros. Brawl on the Wii. I am open to any and all types of games. I have at least dabbled in everything from MMOs to rhythm games so most, if not all, of my opinions have some experience behind them. I am also a competitive gamer. I am one of the best Smash Bros players in the state and I frequently go to tournaments and other events so I also have some knowledge of the professional video game scene.

Once again, welcome to my blog. If you have any questions, complaints, or concerns feel free to leave comments.