Ever since Pong became one of the first mainstream video games to hit the market, gaming has been viewed as the preferred pastime of social outcasts, nerds, and undesirables. The mainstream media never really began to embrace video games until the last generation of consoles, when things like online gaming became overwhelmingly popular. Suddenly, gaming possessed a previously unseen social aspect, one that even the mainstream struggled to deny. Gamers have long considered themselves social creatures, whether it’s amongst themselves or over the internet with other like-minded players, but never has society fully accepted them as “normal”. Even today, gamers suffer from instances of social discrimination, and although there are some that take their hobby to an obsessive, unhealthy level, it’s worth mentioning that in this day and age, gaming isn’t just for socially awkward males who live in their mom’s basement.
When did this paradigm shift occur? It’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment at which the gaming industry became culturally accepted by both mainstream society and the media. While games are rapidly growing in popularity and the industry has reached astronomical levels of commercial success, the respect for video games has never really followed suit. Ignorance of gaming as an entertainment medium has lead to incidences such as the FOX News Mass Effect “scandal,” in which FOX abruptly cut Geoff Keighley’s respectful explanation of the sex scene in Mass Effect on live television. While these occurrences are becoming increasingly rare, gaming has faced such incredible opposition in its induction as an “official” entertainment medium it’s miraculous we still have M-rated games and online gaming. The disrespect for gamers has been absurd, and it’s refreshing to finally see a change of pace in both the maturation of the industry as a whole, as well as the expansion of people who like playing video games.
Part of the reason more and more people are jumping on the video game bandwagon today is almost entirely due to the handsomer face of gaming. As unfortunate as it may be, America is materialistically obsessed with its pastimes’ appearances, and until recently, gaming has always been viewed as an “ugly” hobby. Today, however, game designers and gamers alike are disproving the stereotypical gamer’s appearance. People like Cliff Bleszinski of Epic Games are exhibiting their extroverted personalities in public events, something that the majority of people thought to be unlikely given the “typical” personalities of people like programmers and graphic artists. Hell, even Tim Sweeney gets up in front of a crowd of eager games journalists to discuss the exciting new features of their latest gaming engine. Some people have a hard enough time stepping in front of their English class to deliver a 5 minute presentation.
Cliff Bleszinski chainsaws Major Nelson. Oh noes!
In addition, gaming is beginning to receive ample representation through television, whether it’s through ads or the popular Sci-Fi special WCG: Ultimate Gamer. Either way, gaming is getting positive exposure, and it only benefits gamers in general. Another part of the wider adoption of gaming is also due to the wider audiences that games are catering to. Nearly every Wii game targets the mainstream “non-gamer” and even then the console acts as a kind of gateway drug for newcomers to get hooked on and discover the other things that gaming has to offer. Girl gamers are becoming more prominent, the average age of a typical gamer is on the rise, and the industry as a whole is maturing to a point that is beginning to rival that of the mammoth movie industry.
That being said, some consider the gaming industry to be taking itself too seriously. For a business that is centered around aliens getting pulverized by space marines and spiky-haired, sexually-ambiguous characters taking turns slashing each other, some find the analysts and critics to be a bit too much. The mere fact that some consider game design to be an art form is enough for some to immediately discredit the entire practice without a moment’s hesitation. Roger Ebert, an esteemed movie critic, has gone on record saying that video games aren’t art, even with sophisticated games such as Bioshock on store shelves. While there are still a number of trigger-happy, shoot-this-because-it’s-ugly narratives in games, the medium’s story-telling has increased in quality exponentially since the days of Donkey Kong. Morals, underlying metaphors, and other advanced literary devices are making their way into games, and to deny that the artistic styles of certain games is art is unbelievably ignorant.
Who says games aren’t art?
As the video game industry matures, so do its supporters and participants. Gamers today are different than the gamers of five or ten years ago, and things are only looking up. With each bold new step gaming takes towards earning its stripes as a legitimate entertainment medium in the eyes of the mainstream, gamers can begin to proudly admit their favorite hobby and the time they put into it. Whether it’s a new graphical leap, innovations in presentation, or even a new way of immersing the player in an interactive experience, gaming is constantly raising the bar for entertainment. It’s been a long haul, but we’re finally there. Here’s to the fantastic men and women who made my favorite pastime into a legitimate form of entertainment that I can constantly learn from and admire. Hell, I can even make a living out of it!
-Adriaan Noordzij
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