The art of video games

[gaffner]

For anyone interested... the Smithsonian American Art Museum is doing an exhibit on "The Art of Video Games".  They had a vote on which games would be included in the exhibit and which wouldn't, but today they announced the winners!

To see the winners, you can go to http://americanart.si.edu/exhibitions/archive/2012/games/winninggames.pdf

[Blanka]

I do not get the "Art" part about the expo. Why let 3.7 million people decide what is art? Isn't the thing about art to confront the masses with something they don't know?
If we talk art in videogames, I think
- Tempest
- We Love Katamari
- Sonic 1
- The Path
- Bohm
- Q*Bert
- Megaman
- Centipede
- Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
- Leasure Suit Larry
- Wolfenstein 3D
- Shuffelpuck Cafe
- Dark Castle
- Patapon
- Rolando
- Chuckie Egg II
- Rick Dangerous
- Boulder Dash
- Another World
- Space Harrier

[Vigo]

If we talk art in videogames, I think
- Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

Wasn't that a text game?

[Blanka]

Wasn't that a text game?

Yes, text can be art too. It was pure poetry!

[Vigo]

I concede you have a point there. It was an amazing game.

[RandyT]

Someone tell me how VCS Pac-Man made the list.  That wasn't art....that was more a case of "how do we program a screen that looks even remotely like the game of the same name on a machine with almost no memory and very limited graphics capabilities", and a liberal amount of "sorry, we tried".  It's an iconic image, but it's because it was burned into everyone's mind by the trauma they experienced seeing it the first time after hearing that it was coming to the 2600.

Ok, that was probably just me. 

[gaffner]

Someone tell me how VCS Pac-Man made the list.  That wasn't art....that was more a case of "how do we program a screen that looks even remotely like the game of the same name on a machine with almost no memory and very limited graphics capabilities", and a liberal amount of "sorry, we tried".  It's an iconic image, but it's because it was burned into everyone's mind by the trauma they experienced seeing it the first time after hearing that it was coming to the 2600.

Ok, that was probably just me. 

Funny you should mention that one... That was the first memory of a video game I had.  My older brother (9 years older) and I would sit and play that for hours.  I was 4 or 5 years old at the time.  I remember learning the patterns and beating him; I think he was pretty irritated by that.

Good times.  Now the 5 year olds can beat me.  Ah... karma.

[Dan_Dan_91_07]

I wish Grim Fandango, Broken Sword 1-2 or Monkey Island 3 won...

Totally glad Heavy Rain won as well.

[SavannahLion]

Someone tell me how VCS Pac-Man made the list.  That wasn't art....that was more a case of "how do we program a screen that looks even remotely like the game of the same name on a machine with almost no memory and very limited graphics capabilities", and a liberal amount of "sorry, we tried".  It's an iconic image, but it's because it was burned into everyone's mind by the trauma they experienced seeing it the first time after hearing that it was coming to the 2600.

Ok, that was probably just me. 

Not only that but did you see the nominee in the Adventure category? E.T.? What kind of sick twisted ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- is that?

[Blanka]

Not only that but did you see the nominee in the Adventure category? E.T.? What kind of sick twisted ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- is that?

LOL, I was at an exposition where this ET was exposed as worst video game ever. Maybe that's why it is art too.

[Gray_Area]

Someone tell me how VCS Pac-Man made the list.

I remember learning the patterns and beating him; I think he was pretty irritated by that.

What patterns? The difficult part of the game was being deft enough to pull a corner with an 8-way stick.


Blanka, where have you been? Don't you know that 'art' is relative?

[Blanka]

Art is absolute!

[JcProAm]

I loved that Bioshock made the list.  It was a such a graphically beautiful game.  And not just the shine and polish on it,  the decorating style (art deco i believe) is such a lost art.   

[gaffner]

Someone tell me how VCS Pac-Man made the list.

I remember learning the patterns and beating him; I think he was pretty irritated by that.

What patterns? The difficult part of the game was being deft enough to pull a corner with an 8-way stick.


Blanka, where have you been? Don't you know that 'art' is relative?

How should I know?  I was 4 or 5 at the time... 

All I remember is that they had to kick me off of the game because I could play without dying.  My brother and I would take turns, but my turn never ended.  I remember doing the same sort of pattern over and over again, but that's about it.  Maybe my brother put it on the easy setting for me.

[Vigo]

All I can say is that I had a ton of C64 games back in the day, and I wouldn't consider any of the winners as the finest art the commodore had to offer. Attack of the Mutant Camels? Seriously? That camel could only walk forward, and that was even animated poorly.

When I think of artistic c64 games, these titles come to mind:

Forbidden Forest/Return to Forbidden Forest
Maniac Mansion
Wizball
The Last Ninja games
Impossible Mission II
Samurai Warrior: The Battles of Usagi Yojimbo

[Spacejack]

Not only that but did you see the nominee in the Adventure category? E.T.? What kind of sick twisted ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- is that?

LOL, I was at an exposition where this ET was exposed as worst video game ever. Maybe that's why it is art too.

E.T. is a pretty lame-assed game, but it's far from being the worst of all time. It gets way too much press for being awful, when in reality, the fact that you need instructions for a game is not an inherent flaw. Sure, it's riddled with other flaws--primarily that it's boring and too easy--but the fact that people find it incomprehensible without RTFM is the thing that gets it all the flak. It's the Plan 9 of video games... which is to say, it's about four to eight times better than whatever constitutes the Glen or Glenda of video games. And that's not even getting near the Turkish Star Wars of videogames. "Superman 64" for instance... "The Room" of videogames.

[yotsuya]

"Superman 64" for instance... "The Room" of videogames.

That's pretty damn bad.