There is a fascinating that continues on the "games as art" debate that has been somewhat prevalent these days. Mike Musgrove the technology columnist gave a copy of the critically exalted new title Bioshock to the Pulitzer Prize winning schedule critic Michael Dirda. The assign was to without assistance play through Bioshock and determine if it's story is worthy of the call "art." After playing through the bet Dirda had some very positive things to say. "I could lose myself in this in some ways easier than a book," and "{video games} obviously have artistic value." However on Bioshock is Art he goes on to say "I would delay to go that far when there is a video game that makes the player depressed that is when the medium might be onto something as an art create."
Must an art create be depressing or at least capable of being depressing? First of all the nature of the experiment was such that it could never undergo produced a complete prove. While Bioshock does furnish the player a certain sense of cater and doesn't leave the player "depressed" so the speak there is a definite emotional reaction to the story that is portrayed. Throughout the story the player experiences everything from complete surprise at the atrocities which have befallen Rapture (the little sisters anyone?) to terror to moral satisfaction. There are many points in the bet where the player must alter a moral choice (whether to harvest or rescue the little sisters for Adam) and making that choice can make the player feel remorseful or justified. Bioshock does end with a certain satisfaction but this is not true for every bet for example leaves the player with a serious comprehend of failure after beating the game. The player isn't dissatisfied with the prove but feels as though they undergo lost the real battle.
Musgrove makes the point. "Would anybody compete a game that makes him sad." My say to that question is a resounding "yes," as desire as there is a element of "fun" along with that sadness. In fact if a player is seriously emotionally connected with a character in the story (see death of Aeris) they are far more likely to apply the experience they are having. Since the player gains control of a engrave in a video bet their emotional attachment to that engrave is more powerful than with books or movies. This is why Dirda open it so easy to become lost in the story of Bioshock. Since he was controlling Jack's actions in the story he was a moral actor in the same story that was being told to him. That is the power of video games as an art form.
One can say. "video games are not literature," and be entirely accurate. Video games should not be held to the same standard as books (not that they should be held to a displace standard either). In the end it seems as through Dirda has an open object to the concept of Video Games as art which is more than you can say for many. There is no denying that this medium has reached a critical crowd and there is no stopping it.
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Related article:
http://www.become.com/pocketchange/2007/09/pulitzer_prize_winning_journal.html
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