I've mentioned on this blog before that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is my favourite game, like, ever. That's because it took me seven years to finish. Those who've played the game will understand, but for the uniniated here's why that is important. The story goes that you are a young boy, tasked by the spirit of the forest to quest forth and find Princess Zelda who will then task you to find the three spiritual stones and open the door to the sacred realm where the Triforce is hidden. However, once you open the sacred realm, the villian of the piece, Ganondorf, takes the Triforce and takes over the world. But because you are too young to fight him, your spirit is sealed away for seven years. So when I say that Ocarina of Time took me seven years to finish, that means that I played the first three dungeons but had never myself gotten to the sacred realm. Only when I returned years later was I able to save Hyrule from evil. And a lot of things can happen in seven years. My copy actually belonged to my eldest brother who passed away when I was sixteen so when I got to that last boss, it meant something that I can barely describe. So even though I know Ocarina of Time is heralded as The Greatest Game of All Time by a large part of the videogame community, that, in all actuality, means very little to me. I can tell you that the combat is tight, the music is serene and unforgettable and it took me four hours to beat the Water Temple. But I don't want to write reviews of games. Eventually I hope to be a game designer myself, and make something of the same calibre as The Last of Us or Portal. But what I would really love to make is a game that can affect people on the same scale as Ocarina of Time did for me.
I know that there are other forms of artistic expression, pretty much all of which are more highly regarded as art than videogames. My best friend wants to be a film director. And don't get me wrong, I love film. My favourite is The Social Network. During high school I was lucky enough to star in some of my friends films and when he went to film school I got the lead role in his final project. It's not finished yet, but you can check out the trailer and behind the scenes here: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/delusions-of-grandeur-short-film. I even managed to trick him into letting some of my ideas into his many screenplays. And this relates back to videogames. People tend to compare videogames to films. The triple A game industry loves to look up to the summer blockbuster, which is why we get huge explosions and cut scenes and the like. I don't find anything wrong with that and I myself have been emotionally connected during some videogames that are pretty much interactive films, such as Telltale's The Walking Dead series and Quantun Dream's Heavy Rain. But when gameplay organically lends itself to telling it's own story, like you can do in role-playing games such as Skyrim, that's when I feel like I'm in the videogame world, rather than just an observer, like you would be in a cinema. I have found that acting is a closer form of art to videogames than film itself. You may have experienced it yourself, when you "act" or role-play in a videogame. Ever driven normally in Grand Theft Auto? You could've done it because you were bored or didn't want the cops after you but either way, you probably chose to do it and not because the game asked you too. That's the type of power videogames have. Throw in a well written script (because we know that good games with bad scripts are good, but bad games with good scripts are bad) and you're pretty much making art. The key here obviously, is interactivity.
I also like to compare videogames to music, but I can't take credit for this idea. That goes to Ian Bogost, who talks about it in his book How To Do Things With Videogames. "Music and games share a fundamental property: both are playable, offering listeners and operators an expressive experience within the framework of melody and rhythm." I love all art, and I love all music. Experiencing synesthesia while on LSD for the first time was... well pretty damn mindblowing. It's difficult to describe, almost like seeing music come to life around you. Similar effects can be felt while high on cannabis as well. I found that playing Mario Kart 64 with my housemates while we were stoned could be exhilarating at times. Talking shit while high with music on in the background always led to interesting times. Everytime I took ecstacy, someone would always put on Revolution Number 9 by the Beatles and you could feel tension fall and drop with the song. The last time I took it, I got so into Supremacy by Muse that I just started air guitaring. Of course, I'm not expecting everyone to understand where I'm coming from, so I'll put it like this. When you sing a song, play the piano or strum the guitar you're playing. Videogames can be approached like learning an instrument, because you are learning how to operate a system that has rules and must be played a certain way to get the desired outcome. You could talk about someone being in the zone, and you could be talking about someone pulling off an amazing guitar solo or getting 50 kills in a row in Call of Duty: Ghosts. (Or sports, but that's a whole other thing to get into).
Alright, so I'm writing about things I like about videogames and what I think it's like to play a game. But why do I want to be all about about videogames? One more anecdote. I like to dress up as Batman. I have a mask, a bunch of shirts and a pretty spanking jacket that I like to wear. I don't get high anymore but when I'm around my friends and they're smoking, I put the mask on. Why Batman? Well because my brother's Superman. But also, Batman is awesome, why not Batman? I like what he represents, especially in the first two Nolan films (I do like the third, but it doesn't say much about the character) and I especially love him in the Batman: Arkham series. So when it comes to picking a name for my character in any game that lets me pick one? Batman. Get it yet?
Was this article Psykotic enough for you? I have more to say on the subject, if anyone's interested but I feel this is enough for now. Thanks for reading!
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