Video games Criticism and related media-The State of the Game.

With the introduction of any new technology we as an industry get a little overexcited about the possibilities it may bring. That it might be this generation of consoles which yield the games of our dreams. You know, those games you’ve had in your head since forever, which many have come close to touching but never really quite made it. As we stand at the begging of a new generation of home consoles it seems diligent that we should perhaps look back at an industry still in its infancy and to ask the age old question of ‘Where are we going?’ ‘How are we going to get there?’ ‘And will it be any good when we do?’
If we as industry take note of our other favourite older brother, the movies, and start to compare our arms size and strength, as any younger sibling would, we begin to realise that we are similar in many ways and it is not surprising that we have grown up trying to emanate such a successful industry. But as we have grown up we have begun to be taken seriously and as we begin to mature it is time to stand on our own two feet and shout loud and proudly ‘I’m a GAMER’ and I love it!! We are unlike any other entertainment industry for many reasons but the one which has the most far reaching effect is the simple fact that five or six years, give or take, I’ll be getting extremely excited about the PS4 or the WII 2 or whatever else those smart boggins in the industry have come up with to while away my precious hours. It is for this reason that essentially the games industry can remain fresh and relevant to its user base. The fact that we go through a mini revolution and


This is a work in progress and will be updated shortly.

Freedom of Speech - the video game way.

What does freedom of speech mean to you? Nothing? Is it something to do with what your grandad fought for? Or perhaps something more substantial. The topic i am going to be looking at is one that effects us all, in ways we may not even realise. Not Me!! I hear you cry. I lead a simple life. I play games, watch my films, have a beer and go to work. I keep my head down, you know, don't rock the boat.
But I'm afraid this attitude is quickly dying as more and more gamers begin to realise that freedo of speech makes up one of the most important factors of our lives. After all, if you don't do politics, you don't do anything! It is a sign of an art form growing up, the mass media is sarting to take notice. Games as an art form are begging to observe and question itslef and what it stands for.
Over the last few months this question of freedom of speech has been brought violently to the media spotlight. Examples such as the muslim 'Swedish' cartoons which caused such outrage in some communities and violent anti-western protests. While on the home front, religiou persecution has reared its ugly head in the form the muslim veil, faith specfic schools and the breaking down of once harmonious cummunities. Also the Cristians being told to remove thier Crucifex. All because someone, somewhere has taken offence.
To understand freedom of speech we must look at how it applies and effects to our own media, the video game or interactive entertainment. Let’s examine the closest relative to the videogame, film or more to the point the VCR/DVD and the revolution in home cinema system. During the 1980’s technology went through a huge boom which made previously unattainable technology mainstream. But this also brought with it unprecedented media coverage the effects of which are still felt today. The argument at the time encouraged that young children would view ‘harmful material’ and adults would lose control of what their children watched. Through this action the community feared all youth would grow in to abnormal people not fit for the civilised life. The fact that during the 80’s the ‘video nasty’ was hitting the height of its unpopularity didn’t help matters and it was not long before the media was claiming all the ills of society were to blame for this technological revolution.
In 2006/07 we have the benefit of hindsight (what a wonderful thing!), and the majority of people can see that media and the public over-reacted to the situation. A bit. Now this technology is part of our everyday and evolved so much so that most of us can watch one of these ‘morally corrupting films’ on our I pods or PSP’s if we so choose. How things have changed. The point I’m trying to make is, if the media can over- react about something we now consider tame, surely it is diligent of us to realise that perhaps history is repeating itself. It is important to remember that these papers, national and regional, are in fact businesses and as such have to earn money. They do this by appealing to certain demographics of society who conform to the papers point of view. It is not surprising that the media exploits a lot of the arts to create sensationalist claims to help sell their papers. After all they need to make money. Hence, we can assume they are bias and that means we as consumers are not being told the full story. Not then, and not now.
This cycle has now repeated itself in the form of the video game. In the deep past they said books killed conversation, then in the 50’s TV made the youth rebellious and in the 80’s video corrupted them now in the noughties videogames are making it worse. Art has always struggled for acceptance against the establishment. From riots at Mozart’s 5th symphony to Stanley Kurbick’s banning of his own film A Clock Work Orange. This is not a new phenomenon; we should not even be surprised. As an art form we have a responsibility, how we react now as a media could mean the success into the mainstream, or failure to perpetual cult status.
Art reflects life, not the other way round. With this realisation we cannot blame video games for individual’s violent outbursts. Some parts of the media have claimed that people who play violent games for extended periods become violent themselves. Not that these guinea pigs act violent, but there brains show an increased activity whilst playing. This revelation has led to some extremists to label games as ‘violence simulators’. The fact that the sort of brain activity that was witnessed during these ‘tests’ could just as easily be attributed to any activity that raises blood pressure and is exciting did not seem to past the journalists minds. The same sort of activity that arises during a film, reading an exciting book, having a heated debate or even a particularly exciting dream. If people commit violence it is because there are other forces acting on them. (E.g. troubled past, trauma, etc) If we are to point the blame for unjustified acts of violence perhaps we should look to our countries leaders, Bush and Blair who seem intent on leading us in to an unprovoked war. An unforgivable act of aggression I’m sure you’ll agree.This is a complex matter, and I don’t pretend to have all the answers, no one can. But censorship is never the way forward. As I write this one of the first games in Britain has just been banned and not granted a classification. Rules of Rose for PS2. Is this how we encourage an art form to take risks and deal wit increasingly complex subject matter. No, is the short answer. We do not want to sleep walk into an Orwellian nightmare and the protection of our freedom of speech and expression is key to our evolution as a society. This is a young art form, it is debatable that it is not even sophisticated enough to handle complex topics. But it deserves the opportunity. Every generation needs its form of expression and desires to explore its problems through art, as we stand on the brink of this explosion and exploration we should not hold back. Or allow anything to hold us back!

David Lynch


This is work is un-edited.