Games Need (Level-Headed) Criticism

(tags game, criticism, research)

Grumpy Gamer's newest post "Stop Blindly Defending Video Games" makes good points about discourse and criticism of our beloved games. His post points at the gaming media's overzealous jump to demonize game critics, in this case, an editorial critizing a U.S. Senator trying to motivate youth at a high school speech. ("EDITORIAL: Obama, Too, Plays the Video Game Blame Game" : see google cache) Coming from the game designer Grumpy Gamer himself:

"I am not suggesting we stop making violent games or censor (or let anyone censor) ourselves, but we do need to realize that what we do affects people, and that's a good thing. It means we're relevant and artistically influential, but with that comes responsibility, not only for the people making the games, but for those who are writing about them and standing up for them."

I agree with the post over there by jquilty: "It doesen't seem like he's [Sentator's] bashing them [games]... More like "Get off your ass", for great justice".

It reminds me of the article from Kotaku entitled "Brain Age Professor Attacked Games in 2001". This headline is just waiting for frothing fanboys to hit the comment button, but Kotaku takes the better course by not twisting up the source material and following up with Nintendo in 2006 on the Professor Kawashima's vitrolic opinion. This prof was actually given a chance to make a game instead of just critique it and the result was Brain Age (or the longest name for a Japanese game I can recall in recent memory). Barring the popularity aside, he worked with the medium to improve it. Granted there's motive in his and Nintendo's actions (profit, right?) but at least he didn't adopt a defeatist attitude and discard improving games out right.

There are so many critics that get it "wrong": errant lawyers, politicians jocking for position and stance, Roger Ebert (whoa boy this is a different league, you sure you want to lump him in there?) come to mind. But there are those who push the progress on games discourse. Let's not level the Shock Rifle on everyone who proposes that "games are bad" or "games are inferior". Who knows, they might be right and they might even improve them given a chance?