Which games do you consider to be art?

[end_boss]

So, I'm sure that pretty well anybody on this site would argue in favour of video games being a valid art form. But to me, just because a genre CAN be art, doesn't mean that every entry qualifies as art. There are plenty of movies, books, songs, pictures, etc that cannot and/or should not be considered art, even though there are plenty of entries in each category that can and/or should.

So, which games do you consider to be a genuine "work of art?" I sure do like a lot of games, but after thinking and thinking about it, the only names I could really pull up were the original "Alone in the Dark" for the PC (for its time), "Shadow of the Colossus" and "Okami." Even some of my favourite games of all time, some which I indeed like better than even those three (as much as I love them), I could not bring myself to define as a bona fide "work of art."

So, what is it for you? What games would you present as being examples of video games as art?

EDIT: I changed the title of the thread in case it was misleading as to the intent of the discussion.

 

[Vrex360]

Otogi: Myth of Demons.

It wasn't a big success and it probably isn't the greatest Hack N' Slash game ever but the art design and atmosphere of the game is like a historic Japanese painting come to life and is beautiful to behold.

 

[RheynbowDash]

Okami.

/thread

 

[Sworm]

Okami.

/thread

This, unless you're talking about narrative, in which case, Bioware

 

[BlindMessiah94]

Mario Paint

 

[reg42]

Nothing can prove that games are art, because art is pretty subjective, but Flower is an arty game. It's pretty awesome too.

 

[tjarne]

Cave Story, good music, story, gameplay, design and characters.

 

[TheComedown]

The Path and in a way i think Brain Pipe could be classed as art.

 

[Srdjan]

Syberia, Planescape Torment, Bloodlines, Psyhonautes, KotOR, Grim Fandango, Arcanum, Gabriel Knight, World of Goo, Braid, Max Payne, and many more, I just wrote what first came to my mind...

 

[deofayte]

Even bad art is art, same goes for games that don't really mean or accomplish anything, same as the label on your soup. They're just there, the scribbles on your notebook won't land anywhere in a museum but they're still art. Don't easily dismiss the majority of games as art just because they're not accomplished. Simply embrace the fact that they're "bad" art, or meaningless

Games tend to focus more on the entertainment of the individual or individuals interacting with them over a period of time, where as most other recognized art forms can be interacted with in the span of a few seconds and then move on. That leaves a very big distinction and makes it much harder to compare games to more traditional forms of art.

 

[Ubermetalhed]

Okami,Shadow of the collosus... and i know most people will disagree with the next choice...Metal gear solid 4.

 

[Frybird]

...phew.

You know, i'm not really sure as to even agree that games are really art, because (1) It's pretty hard to define (2) It's more like games contain art, rather than being it itself (3) Video Games in General don't really manage to be great in being recognizable art.

And, well, i really disagree with MANY games considered as art actually being art.

Okami, yeah, it's pretty, and you could say the graphics design is closer to being art as most other games, but does "looking pretty" make it art? Is "Muramasa: The Demon Blade" art because it is pretty?

And saying that Indie Games generally have more "artsy" games than the mainstream ones?...Well, Maybe, but it's a slippery slope for me because really, most games that may give you the impression of being art are just, well, pretentious pieces of shit that look unique.
And well, for me, if a game is really "art", it should offer more than nice visuals or a unique way of playing.


I really shouldn't even give a suggestion of what games i would consider art, but if i had to choose, the closest thing that felt to me like being art was actually "DEFCON".

Sure, it doesn't come with artful looks or sounds, but it's a surprisingly meaningful game if you look deeper into the theme of the game wich is "everybody loses".
Of course, you CAN win the game, strictly speaking, but actually, you just win by losing the least, and no matter how hard you try, unless you cheat, there is no way that millions of your own people die.
But of course than again, as a player you won't care as much, because you are so detached from any kind of emotional response to what happens in the game that 10 million or 20 million dead people don't really count for much unless it's a greater number of losses than the one of your opponent.
It's a play on the saying "one dead person is a tragedy, one hundred dead people is a statistic". DEFCON actually shows you what your and your opponent's actions cause in the straightest way possible by always letting you know the number of casualties and slowly filling the world map with traces of yellow to show long term radiation caused by the attacks, but since it doesn't give you any kind of feedback that is supposed to trigger an emotional response, like images of the dead or how destroyed your cities are or who actually died, it completely robs the impact of killing 20 million (virtual) people with a mouseclick.

And MAY make you understand how real people in real wars are able to make decisions over life and death...

(Of course, you could argue if all this really makes this game art, but as i said, it's pretty hard to define)

 

[Anachronism]

Shadow of the Colossus.

You can take basically any screenshot and call it a work of art; the art direction is among the best I've ever seen in a videogame. More to the point, like 2001: A Space Odyssey, it tells a fantastic story in a very minimalist style that really makes the most of the fact that videogames are a visual medium. It's also the only game to have made me cry.

 

[Lordmarkus]

Artsy wise: BioShock and every Tim Schafer game he has made and will eventualy make.

Story wise: Fallout (1 & 2), BioShock, and BioWare's gaming catalogue.

 

[Pegghead]

Hmmm, that's kind of a tough one. I'd have to say Braid, it's so pretty.

 

[Corpse XxX]

Uncharted 2 has alot of nice scenery.. Many times i just stopped in aaaww of the awesome views..

 

[Cosmic Humor]

Nothing can prove that games are art, because art is pretty subjective, but Flower is an arty game. It's pretty awesome too.

Thanks. I'm glad someone else said it. Art is truly subjective and you're not to going to convince someone by showing them your favoritest game ever.

 

[Moonboots]

Definitely Braid. If you haven't played it, you should most definitely look into it. It blends amazing art with some of the most beautiful music I've ever heard.

Also, I agree with Anachronism about Shadow of the Colossus. Again, a visually stunning game with beautiful music and a story that had me shouting at the TV (which doesn't normally happen).

The two CoD: Modern Warfare games could be considered artistic, in my opinion. Multiplayer mode aside, the games have strong criticism of war, and both endings leave you speechless. They go beyond being "just another FPS," which, to answer Fyrbird's doubts, would make them art. Games that strive to be more than just another game, more than just another stereotypical genre, those would be considered artistic.