Obama: "Turn off the video games and pick up a book."

[peruvianskys]

Watch Extra Credits and then make that statement. Ignorant people like you aren't welcome here.

How is that ignorant? In my experience, there has been no video game I've ever played that has had an emotional impact/intellectual worth even close to an average book. Can you honestly give me one example of a video game that enriches someone like a book can? I love video games (and watch Extra Credits too, btw) and I probably play them more than I read books but just because I like them doesn't mean I need to delude myself; video games are primarily an entertainment medium and books aren't. It's that simple.

 

[Zap Happy]

Jeez people, calm down. How could anyone be offended by this? He's not attacking gamers personally, or even games. He's doing his job as president and asking families to take an active role in raising their kids, instead of plopping them in front of the X-box.

And seriously, I get that books are not inherently more intellectual than games, but I think every kid could benefit if they put down the COD once and a while and read.

 

[Troublesome Lagomorph]

...Besides interactivity, what the hell is the difference between a book and a well written game? NONE. People always seem to miss this and it ALWAYS annoys me to hell.

The fact that you cant tell the difference is proof that you need to read more books.

Oh yes, for I'm totally illiterate...
What I'm saying is: media is media. When its fiction, it tells a story. I don't see how a game with a well written story instantly because invalid as a good form of media because its interactive. And I'd love for you to explain exactly how a game cannot be anywhere near valid as a book. After all, if its story telling, the game might actually be better than some books.
And yes, I've read A LOT of books. I love to read. I also love to play games, which is why I don't see why games get a bad reputation for being brainless wastes of time (which they can be, but are not always.)

 

[Mjolnir36]

How about I just read "The Fall of Reach" again?

 

[Varanfan9]

When will people learn that video games are also story telling tools like books and are just as or more so effective than books at presenting a narrative. Also way to insult the people who gave you the Witcher 2.

 

[Chris^^]

I'm all for what he's saying, good man

 

[Woodsey]

He's just mad because The Witcher 2 is handing his arse to him on a plate.

EDIT: You can stop quoting me. I get it.

Do you? DO YOU?!

 

[Shadie777]

I don't need your advice Obama, I know how to balance my gaming and all other aspects of my life,in fact I spend more time reading books .

Besides, video games could also improve education and reading skills for people who don't like to read. I believe that Extra Credits already covered this.

 

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

Now if only games were the problem...

Oh Mr. President how you irritate me at times, and what do you have to say when I do BOTH, huh?

What if I'm playing a game and the story has some historical basis to it where I want to pick up a book and read about it? What do you have to say to THAT?

Jeez people, calm down. How could anyone be offended by this? He's not attacking gamers personally, or even games. He's doing his job as president and asking families to take an active role in raising their kids, instead of plopping them in front of the X-box.

And seriously, I get that books are not inherently more intellectual than games, but I think every kid could benefit if they put down the COD once and a while and read.

I agree. Despite what I said earlier, I'm not offended, I'm just annoyed. I don't see how telling kids who would rather play games than read a book would do any good, and I think that it would've been directed at the parents who might actually listen to him.

 

[MaVeN1337]

I do my fair share of both Mister Obama, now go do your job. You know the one you aren't remotely qualified to be doing?

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

He's just mad because The Witcher 2 is handing his arse to him on a plate.

No, he got tired of hearing people ***** about it lacking a tutorial and being 'hard'. Barry's just telling kids "RTFM!", only being Prez of the Seppos he has to word it nicer.

 

[peruvianskys]

When will people learn that video games are also story telling tools like books and are just as or more so effective than books at presenting a narrative. Also way to insult the people who gave you the Witcher 2.

I agree about the Witcher 2, rude move Obama.

However, it's a mistake to say that books exist to present a narrative. I could sum up the plot of Crime and Punishment (Guy kills woman, feels bad for 500 fucking pages), but that doesn't capture the huge amount of philosophical/emotional weight behind that narrative. A video game can present a story better than a film or book because of the interaction of the audience with the medium, but that doesn't mean the narrative presented will have the same intellectual value. Just because a story is well-told doesn't mean that it's worthwhile as art or literature.

Again, with Crime and Punishment, you could tell that story in ten pages and it would be worthless. It's the characterization and theme and philosophy and all that in between the story that makes it literature. Stephen King tells his stories well in that his sentences are well-constructed and flow nicely but his work isn't good literature because there's nothing behind that story, which is the problem with almost every game out there. King's novels/video games are about plot, which is fun to get wrapped up in but offers no emotional/intellectual stimulation. Things like characterization and theme get lost in almost all genre writing as well as in mediums like video games. Metal Gear Solid tries hard to shoe-horn in some of those lost aspects but, because of the medium, it just comes off as a poorly-written animated film shoved between gameplay sequences. It's fun and engaging but it's not the same as a book and unless there is a major, major change in how games are presented, it never will be.

 

[PissOffRoth]

How is that ignorant? In my experience, there has been no video game I've ever played that has had an emotional impact/intellectual worth even close to an average book. Can you honestly give me one example of a video game that enriches someone like a book can? I love video games (and watch Extra Credits too, btw) and I probably play them more than I read books but just because I like them doesn't mean I need to delude myself; video games are primarily an entertainment medium and books aren't. It's that simple.

If you have watched Extra Credits and truly listened to what they had to say, you would know that games are more than entertainment, the same way movies are more than entertainment. There will always be bad examples, and if you think there are no books that are purely made for entertainment, you're a deluded individual. Some games are made simply to occupy time, but others are MUCH more than that. Perhaps you don't examine life because of games, but I do. I've learned more from video games than I ever did from books, and I've read the classics. 1984, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, Catcher in the Rye, Of Mice and Men, all taught me lessons I had already learned from video games. There are so many times I was reading and thought "This is like the choice in Mass Effect 2 with the Geth" or "I remember making that decision in Fallout 3" or "Metal Gear Solid talks about that aspect of war as well." I learned about greek tragedy from God of War.

Duke Nukem is obviously not going to have any redeeming qualities. Neither is Epic Movie or the Twilight series. Nor screamo indie crap bands, nor those inspirational poster parodies, nor drawing a troll face over everything. EVERY medium has shit as well as gold. If Every Day The Same Dream doesn't make you re-examine your life, you are ignorant. If you believe every book is art, you are ignorant. If you believe games have nothing to teach us about life and that it is anything less than a form of art, you are ignorant.

 

[Kevon Huggins]

so umm basically he wants me to put down the literary masterpiece that is Beyond good and evil and go read twilight sigh you just lost a vote obama

 

[sergnb]

"Turn off your call of duty"

FTFY

 

[bigredmnky]

It would be nicer if he told off all the soccer moms of the USA to stop being such irresponsible parents perpetually squirting out entitled little shits who scream down their mics in FPS games.

That is exactly what he said. If you didn't read the article and you're here to whine about how obama is a terrible president, then please, shut your dong holes. To the guy who mentioned mein kampf, you're an idiot. Every one of you has been in a call of duty lobby, or a halo one, and been told you're a fag by a nine year old who's playing games that his inattentive parents bought for him to be an electronic baby sitter. I'm fairly certain that's what he's hinting at the problem being. (the E-babysitter thing. Although I'm sure the president hates being called a noob too)

I've read a bunch of arguments here saying that videogames can be just as educational as books and that's true. That new tim schafer monster game is a great example, portal is not. There are some really awesome games out there for kids, the root of this issue is that those aren't the games they're playing.

Anybody remember the kid like two years who freaked when his parents took his xbox because he played too much COD or whatever so he ran away, climbed a tree, fell out and is dead now? THAT's what we should be talking about here, not how obama only said this because he sucks at witcher 2. That's a given.

 

[Mad1Cow]

So...yeah...don't get on my case mousieur Obama...

Most likely this wouldnt apply to you, or anyone else who reads for recreation. A lot of youth don't, I even have a nephew who once told me that books were a waste of time as he barely took time to glance up over his DS. I vowed never to empower the gamer in him again, until he learns to read for pleasure. This is merely an example, I am willing to bet my life that there are thousands upon thousands of disenfranchised youth across the USA who would much rather occupy their free time in the fantasy of a video game rather than to read a good book.


Now I must get back to World War Z, almost done with it (and I'm at work... tee-hee!)

Actually that's a funny thing. See, I was one of those kids. I played video games 24/7 and absolutely HATED reading. Now I'm an avid book reader, particularly divulging myself in the classic literature (Dorian Gray, Beyond Good and Evil, that malarky). See, throughout my education, teachers and other adults never gave me a book saying "you'll REALLY enjoy this", in fact there were only a few books given to me by some friends and my aunt that said something like that and, well, I did enjoy them. However, everyone else would throw something like 'To Kill a Mockingbird' or 'An Inspector Calls' and it REALLY made me sick of books in general. So, I can sympathise with children on that. Doesn't mean I support it, but I did the exact same thing when they were a child and I'm just a healthy human being with avid interests in media in general...even if I am singling out gaming and choosing that as a career path, but what can I say, it was my childhood ^_^