Ludology
For some time now I have, in secret, admired video games as not just a past time for teenage boys with poor social skills, but also as an exciting and revolutionary new format. I cannot stress this enough and hope you do not underestimate just how big a deal I think ‘interactive media’ is going to be. It is already bigger than cinema from a financial standpoint. Yet I think this is merely the first step. Games are going to rival movies and literature from a creative and artistic standpoint also.Interactive media combines everything films have (sound, visuals, scripting etc) with an entirely new and as yet, little understood, phenomena of interactivity. This presents two significant developments. Firstly it is possible to integrate and submerge the user into the author’s world far more convincingly than in any other type of format. It also allows for the user to fundamentally reshape the in game world. This is more than the differing interpretations of a fixed piece of work like we see in other formats – in interactive media the user gets the chance to change the piece of work as they go.
In the August edition of Edge magazine (a ‘videogame culture’ magazine of considerable prestige and journalism) the editorial makes a very important point. Graphics have reached a dead end. Ever since the revolutionary jump from 16-bit machines to 32-bit machines (which was in essence a jump from 2D to 3D) graphics have developed at a steady and impressive rate. Yet it doesn’t offer anything new. The format can only go so far by looking pretty. Now the focus, so the magazine believes, is on content. Content will expand the market in such a way as to truly make games mainstream. Just as the Da Vinci Code was the ‘must read’ book, soon there will be ‘must play’ games that are just as controversial and provocative as Dan Browns accurate and ground breaking masterpiece.
I dream of a day in the not so distant future when it is a video game that grabs headlines for exposing the lies of old man made institutions, or, and here is one of my more explicit fantasies – presents a fully interactive piece of historical research. Histories, biographies and current affairs for example could all, with a stroke of genius be adopted by interactive media with what I believe could be a staggering success. Already in a state of high growth, albeit from a small base, is the study of ludology which is becoming more and more complex by the month as serious academics begin to consider the awesome consequences of this underachieving medium.
Of course there are some difficulties, as yet no system exists that can see individual authors create interactive media as easily as someone can write a book or shoot a home movie. Yet the potential is still there and as the larger games publishers begin to realise they must innovate to save their industry from stagnation and with the continued growth of the ‘mod’ community, chances for talented interactive authors will emerge and they will soon begin to realise the formats massive potential. And all this without ever touching on the already massive social implications of MMORPG’s. If mankind can postpone global ecocide for a few more decades then things are going to get very exciting indeed.
Insert coin to continue.
posted by Benjamin Nakizo @ 2:28 pm
2 Comments:
I refer you, for some contrast, to Biffovision in Edge 163, which rebukes the editorial in the current edition. He states that:
"Speaking as someone who has dabbled in writing scripts for videogames, I say this: stop now. That's enough. Games don't need a story. They don't need a theme. They don't need a narrative. They're just games, and that's enough."
I, however, agree with you. Google the videogame "Mass Effect" to learn a little as to why. I love realism in games, and want to see it expand further, along with narrative. I want games to immerse me - hence my love of Battlefield 2.
I think this is an interesting debate because there is a conflict within 'Ludology' between so called Ludologists and narratives. With the former seeing games as simply games, a little like Biffo does, and the latter seeing them as a story telling devise.
Most games (but not all) feature both in varying amounts depending on the genre and designers preference. I am really excited about the potential for interactive narratives, they really could be something staggering.
(I read a book in sixth form called 'Trigger Happy' by Steven Poole. Well worth a read, he takes a look at the whole format from an accademic perspective. This book is now five or six years old and I know the debate has moved on since, but still worth a look for those with the time.
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