Literary Games

[zen5887]

I'm a bit fan of the idea of games as an art form, but I think, generally speaking, we are a long long way away from any kind of art game renaissance. Which is fine, considering the medium is still so young, and thinking about how much progress we've made in the last few years.

So I was wondering, what do you think the future of games as an artistic medium looks like? Will we ever see a AAA literary game? Have we already seen one?

Personally, I think games are sticking too closely to movies to realise their full artistic potential. I feel like it's a waste if all the big moment of a game happen in a cutscene. Interactivity and agency are what makes videogames videogames, and taking that away to get your message across feels lazy.

And, I'm ready for games to "grow up" and talk about some real shit. The Last Of Us and Spec Ops: The Line are awesome steps in the right direction thematically, and I can't wait to see more games tackle heavy topics like this. By that I mean more AAA games, the indie scene is doing so great in terms of art games.

I'd just like to add that there are still room for mindless shooters and strategy games and racing games and all that fun stuff we all love.

So, what do you think?

 

[MammothBlade]

If we're a long long way from any kind of art game renaissance, then I doubt the possibility of such a thing at all. AAA in what terms, blockbuster, popular, big budget, strong production values? That itself is a pretty farcical term.

Not sure I agree that agency makes the videogame so much as interactivity does. Most games - and these are real games I'm talking about - don't have player agency unless they're multiplayer sandboxes/MMOs. It's very hard to allow for true agency in single player, so they only provide an illusion.

I think that we have seen plenty of literary games. But most of them are either not thought of as games (visual novels tread the line between game and book) or have critical flaws which detract from their literary value. Being timeless is hard, since technology becomes obsolete. Still, you could say that some games have reached literary cult status with their mythos. Final Fantasy VII is a literary masterpiece in spirit, as is the Metal Gear Solid series. The problem is an interrupted narrative. It's locked behind bosses, roadblocks to progress. At the same time, those bosses are a part of the story. So actually, the bosses may be roadblocks, but the real issue is lots of fluff in the way. Gameplay which does not help to convey the story.

So, gameplay needs to be integrated with the narrative and characters to the highest degree, whilst being still a game. It's an issue of creativity, or technology, or both. I'd say it needs vision. Someone with a vivid idea of what they want to convey, and how to convey it inside the package of an interactive video-game.

 

[zen5887]

So, gameplay needs to be integrated with the narrative and characters to the highest degree, whilst being still a game.

This is a really great point.

I know that true agency might be a pipe dream but aiming towards it is important. Shit like invisible walls and forced walking is the stuff we need to steer clear of. It feels lazy.