Will Games Ever Be Art?

There is dust covering the walls, floor, ceiling and everything in between. Small particles of it are illuminated by the dull glow of one hundred stuttering lamps. A door opens and two hooded acolytes enter, shuffling their feet in small cloth slippers. They pass between rows and rows of artefacts, all categorised and stored for safekeeping. Suddenly one stops, holding up a hand for the other to do so too.

“What is it?” whispers the younger of the two.

“The greatest achievement of our past,” the elder replies. ”A work of a true artist.”

Reverently he lifts a small rectangular item from its place amidst burning incense and candles. As its details come into view, the younger acolyte gasps.

“Who designed such beauty?”

The elder, tears wet in his eyes, sets the copy of Half-Life 3 back in its place.

“His name was Gabe Newell.”

Okay.

So maybe I’m being overly dramatic. I doubt that in any dystopian future mankind will rush to save copies of The Last of Us and Bioshock Infinite to safeguard amongst the finest of humanity’s endeavours. As much as I’d love to imagine Team Fortress 2 being tucked away next to the Mona Lisa, the videogames industry will probably never get the respect (as an art form) it deserves.

Why is that? There are plenty of arguments. Kellee Santiago outlined in 2009 that videogames as an art form are still in their infancy – comparable to cave paintings (in age, not complexity). Several critics have admitted that games do contain art in their traditional forms – graphics, music, and story – but that as a whole they cannot be considered as such.

Notable proponents on the “not art” argument include Metal Gear Solid luminary Hideo Kojima. He told Playstation 2 Magazine that since the highest ideal of a video game is to achieve 100% player satisfaction it should be labelled as a deliverable service, rather than an artistic undertaking.

Videogames represent an incredibly new medium of enjoyment and expression, something that has shocked and alarmed many established art critics. What had traditionally emerged as a toy for children continues to have that connotation for many traditional analysts and commentators.

Gaming faces hypocritical analysis like no other emerging art form has before it. If a game conforms to its child-like origins (games like Kirby’s Epic Yarn) they are facetiously dismissed as juvenile and unworthy of critique (as an art form of course - Kirby’s Epic Yarn is incredible). If a game attempts to stretch the boundaries and introduce adult themes and concepts (Mass Effect, Grand Theft Auto et al) then it faces controversy and criticism for failing to stick to that pre-defined, outdated notion that videogames are for children. It’s a Catch-22 situation for developers and for players.

Games have railed against that labelling as far back as Myst in 1991, attempting to convey that playing videogames was not, as Roger Ebert described it: “a loss of those precious hours we have available to make ourselves more cultured, civilized and empathetic”. I have played games that have shocked me, amazed me and in some cases brought me to tears. I can’t say that many exhibits at the Tate Modern have created any similar emotions.

Museums have begun to acquiesce, however. The Smithsonian held an exhibit in 2012 named “The Art of videogames” and later added Halo 2600 as a permanent exhibit. The Museum of Modern Art in New York aims to collect all games labelled as “historically important” to use in exhibitions on gaming as an art form. Both France and the USA have acknowledged games as art by law, with the USA underlining that games were a protected form of free speech.

Of course, the gaming industry will always be followed by the darker labels it receives from the media. So long as there are news sites, papers and TV channels willing to label troubled people and criminals as “gamers” because they liked to play a few hours of Call of Duty people will forever associate the pastime with childish and even dangerous behaviour.

There is a danger too, of gamers themselves harming the perception of videogames. The vocal minority is always the easiest to listen to: they shout the loudest and hurl the most insults. Issues like #gamergate, while good-natured at heart, have, through misrepresentation, mis-information (and a lot of angry trolling) re-labelled gaming as the pastime of misogynistic idiots, despite how hard gamers are trying to refute it.

Perhaps there lies a key issue – gamers are divided. Recent studies have found that a vast majority of gamers – those who play any form of game regularly – are adult and middle-aged women. Even if you remove those playing Candy Crush on Facebook from 5pm to 9pm, you will still find divisions. I have friends who play games, some who play them regularly, but most don’t really care if it’s considered art or not. To many, gaming will always be what they do to unwind, forget about their day and enjoy. Which, when you think about it, is the same thing people enjoy about films, paintings and exhibitions – does it matter if it’s specifically labelled “art”?

With the proliferation of indie games, which continually push the boundaries of the genre, and the growing population of adult gamers, the future does at least look bright. Gaming has grown up, all it takes is for the rest of the world to realise it. Perhaps one day what had once been regarded in the same breath as ancient cave paintings will be as revered as the Sistine Chapel?

...Maybe