Jaffe: Games Industry Needs to Get Over Itself
- Thread starter Logan Westbrook
- Start date
Recommended Videos
No, he doesn't have a point in my opinion. How can he say what he said at the start of the article, then discredit "artsy fartsy" (this is weird, I'm usually on the other side of this argument) in this industry like that?
The main thing about this that kind of annoys me is that "poser" is quite a broad term, and I don't think it can be tacked on to many, if any games (actually help me on this one please people, I'm at a loss) especially if we say and art(istic) games "is a video game that is designed in such a way as to emphasize art or whose structure is intended to produce some kind of reaction in its audience".
I do think Jaffe is probably smarter than he puts himself out to be, but he needs to stop spouting his opinion like everyone cares.
The main thing about this that kind of annoys me is that "poser" is quite a broad term, and I don't think it can be tacked on to many, if any games (actually help me on this one please people, I'm at a loss) especially if we say and art(istic) games "is a video game that is designed in such a way as to emphasize art or whose structure is intended to produce some kind of reaction in its audience".
I do think Jaffe is probably smarter than he puts himself out to be, but he needs to stop spouting his opinion like everyone cares.
I really need some examples here... What "Artsy Fartsy" games are he talking about, exactly? Most games that try to be artistic pull it off rather well, if you ask me. I don't think enough games try to be artistic. Am I missing something here?
The only genre I think should stop with the artistic stuff is Indie games. I love most of the Indie games out there, but it seems to me that most Indie games focus too much on having an interesting art-style than developing fun gameplay. And don't get me wrong, I like unique art-styles as much as the next person, but I would like to see some Indie games that tout their gameplay rather than their graphics, for once (I over-exaggerate; such games do exist, and I mostly love all of them, but you get the idea).
The only genre I think should stop with the artistic stuff is Indie games. I love most of the Indie games out there, but it seems to me that most Indie games focus too much on having an interesting art-style than developing fun gameplay. And don't get me wrong, I like unique art-styles as much as the next person, but I would like to see some Indie games that tout their gameplay rather than their graphics, for once (I over-exaggerate; such games do exist, and I mostly love all of them, but you get the idea).
Uhmm... I kanda agree with him (gotta love his rants and F bombs), but I kinda disagree with him. I've been buying a lot of "artsy fartsy" games on Steam lately, but I don't think they're pretentious, I think they're (mostly) awesome and unique.
Not only in the graphics department, but on gameplay mostly. Braid, leaving it without it's "artsy fartsy pretentiusness", it's still awesome and unique. Same with the similar and funnier The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom (ok, maybe the name is a bit pretentious, but I like how long it is). Shatter, maybe is not artsy, but damn it has some good graphics and the retro love of Pong clones is great.
The ones I would call "artsy fartsy" would be big names. Crysis is the first that comes up to my mind. Strip it out of its graphics and you have a generic shooter. Same with Street Fighter IV, strip it off it's water colors and you have... a great fighting game?... uhmm... let's try again... Okami... no.. it's still the awesomest game on Wii...
Not only in the graphics department, but on gameplay mostly. Braid, leaving it without it's "artsy fartsy pretentiusness", it's still awesome and unique. Same with the similar and funnier The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom (ok, maybe the name is a bit pretentious, but I like how long it is). Shatter, maybe is not artsy, but damn it has some good graphics and the retro love of Pong clones is great.
The ones I would call "artsy fartsy" would be big names. Crysis is the first that comes up to my mind. Strip it out of its graphics and you have a generic shooter. Same with Street Fighter IV, strip it off it's water colors and you have... a great fighting game?... uhmm... let's try again... Okami... no.. it's still the awesomest game on Wii...
I agree with him, but then I think that gameplay is where the "art" is, rather than, say, the visuals.
From a slightly different perspective, Steven Poole wrote this article [http://stevenpoole.net/trigger-happy/into-the-woods/] on The Path by Tale of Tales [http://tale-of-tales.com/ThePath/]. His conclusion:
From a slightly different perspective, Steven Poole wrote this article [http://stevenpoole.net/trigger-happy/into-the-woods/] on The Path by Tale of Tales [http://tale-of-tales.com/ThePath/]. His conclusion:
(Emphasis mine.)
Ehh. At least the ones that seem pretentious are TRYING to be innovative. It's like the fine/pop art world: there's going to be a lot of failed attempts before they find a brilliant new concept. Otherwise it's space marine games and Mario sequels every year. I think it's better to suck it up and see the failed artsy games as a misguided step in the right direction.
I am fine with a game being proud of creating realistic environments to further involve the gamer into the game... but how often do we have time in a decent game to appreciate the small, subtle touches like that? Make lush and real worlds for a gamer to explore is a far cry from what us of the 80s had to deal with way back when in the 8-bit or less days. I only have a problem when rendering the environment causes the game to run slow because of graphical lag. Just Cause 2 was a nice place to see, and it didn't exactly distract from the overall experience. The remake of Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto 4 was a refreshing touch to a place we'd (sort of) been to before. But games that pay more attention to the environment and create overly elaborate places and then skimp on the characters is just disappointing. Many people didn't like the cell-shading in Borderlands, but I thought it was done rather well. It was as comicy as I've seen previous attempts at using that method, and I wouldn't recommend it as a blanket system for use in all games.
There is a time and a place for everything, and too much of a good thing can ruin something. Once artists and developers find a good harmony between the two, I'd be curious as to what people would complain about next.
There is a time and a place for everything, and too much of a good thing can ruin something. Once artists and developers find a good harmony between the two, I'd be curious as to what people would complain about next.
