More Game/Film Reflections
Games as film...Not earth shattering news in the world of game studies, but I have been thinking about the differences between the mediums from a few perspectives. First of is the obvious one; games that are intensely narrative driven are the (bastard) children of film. That games are nothing short of interactive cinema. The more I play FFX-2, the more I believe that this theory has some merit (more than I have given it credit in the past). I do think that games have the capacity to move beyond this choose your own adventure style, but I am not so sure solo, narrative-dependent games do so. Sports, racing, network and mmo games do break out of the narrative mode somewhat - but there is still room for innovation.
One of the (obvious) differences is that a game does not need narrative as in depth as a film. This is why (imo) games-cum-movies don't quite live up to the expectations. Games rely on other elements to entertain. The play elements make up for the lack of solid story, or developed characters. Resident Evil is a great game. But the movie - for me - was little more than the game without the interuptions of the load screen and 'game over' resets.
There is also something different in watching someone play a game compared to watching a film. Besides the story line being a bit thinner (although Final Fantasy does not fall into this category), the interuptions of narrative caused by 'game play' act alot like commercials for me - an interuption of flow that is disruptive (and usually causes me to talk). The player's emotions play a part in how I enjoy the game as a spectator. But I wonder what else seperates watching a movie and watching someone play a game.
Finally, a friend mentioned today about work that has been done on collaborative game play that resembles the actor/director relationship. I fell into this category last night when playing FFX-2 with my partner. He was very concerned with the efficiency of my game, directing my navigation... if I spent too much time exploring one corner too long, he would get impatient and tell me to move on. He instructed my battles and sighed when I died. The lesson I've learned was to play while he was at work so I could admire the scenery and take as much time I wanted exploring a 'useless' zone.
Games as film...Not earth shattering news in the world of game studies, but I have been thinking about the differences between the mediums from a few perspectives. First of is the obvious one; games that are intensely narrative driven are the (bastard) children of film. That games are nothing short of interactive cinema. The more I play FFX-2, the more I believe that this theory has some merit (more than I have given it credit in the past). I do think that games have the capacity to move beyond this choose your own adventure style, but I am not so sure solo, narrative-dependent games do so. Sports, racing, network and mmo games do break out of the narrative mode somewhat - but there is still room for innovation.
One of the (obvious) differences is that a game does not need narrative as in depth as a film. This is why (imo) games-cum-movies don't quite live up to the expectations. Games rely on other elements to entertain. The play elements make up for the lack of solid story, or developed characters. Resident Evil is a great game. But the movie - for me - was little more than the game without the interuptions of the load screen and 'game over' resets.
There is also something different in watching someone play a game compared to watching a film. Besides the story line being a bit thinner (although Final Fantasy does not fall into this category), the interuptions of narrative caused by 'game play' act alot like commercials for me - an interuption of flow that is disruptive (and usually causes me to talk). The player's emotions play a part in how I enjoy the game as a spectator. But I wonder what else seperates watching a movie and watching someone play a game.
Finally, a friend mentioned today about work that has been done on collaborative game play that resembles the actor/director relationship. I fell into this category last night when playing FFX-2 with my partner. He was very concerned with the efficiency of my game, directing my navigation... if I spent too much time exploring one corner too long, he would get impatient and tell me to move on. He instructed my battles and sighed when I died. The lesson I've learned was to play while he was at work so I could admire the scenery and take as much time I wanted exploring a 'useless' zone.
posted by Kelly at
17:31
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