🚀 go-pugleaf

tedb512 (ted...@hotmail.com) wrote:
: Old debate, I know. But I never thought video games were an artform
: myself. Sure, the music could be great or the art could be moving, but
: in those cases, it was the musical track or the onscreen picture that
: was art, not the game.

Surely, you jest. Of course games are art.  Art is any creative act that
furthers neither of man's two basic needs: survival and reproduction. I
could crumple up a piece of paper, spray paint it gold, and then leave it
in a toilet, and it would be art.  You might not get it, but it's art.
Heck, there doesn't even need to be something to "get" for it to be art.

If artistic value is how deeply it affects us, then videogames have a long
and powerful history.  Remember Pacman Fever or the wait for Super Mario
Bros 3? How many people are hopelessly addicted to FreeCell and Tetris?
How many billions of dollars are spent on buying games every year? At last
count, more children around the world recognized Mario than Mickey Mouse.
Some people even fear videogames because they believe that videogames can
cause normal kids to go completely bitch evil overnight (controversy is
almost a given in the early lifespans of most media).

Videogames are definitely art, but like movies and radio before them, it
will take a while before people realize it. They have always been art,
but until the public is ready for that eventuality, they won't be
acknowledged as art. Remember, just because it is fun doesn't mean it
is a waste of time.

@@
Sean Howard