Hear me out, hear me out, video games are an artform. Video games are a medium that hold so much potential for expression and depiction. They may not seem like a tradition form of artistic medium, but there is so much creativity that can come out of this medium.
Growing up in the early 2000s on the US East Coast, video games were made a pretty common part of the arising youth. More specifically, everyone had a Nintendo Wii. Likewise, I also had one growing up. Video games have been present in my life for a very long time. I grew up playing a lot of Mario Bros, Smash Bros and Minecraft. But what was always my favorite was the Legend of Zelda game.
In the Legend of Zelda games, you play as Link, a boy who fights like a knight as he tries to save the princess Zelda. I always loved the concept of exploration and bravery, so the way these games encapsulated these feeling really enthralled me. The Legend of Zelda series has many titles, although the game which has stuck with me the most is The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask.
Majora’s Mask is an extremely unique and colorful game. Within this title, Link trapped in the land of Termina where the moon is crashing into the world in three days, so he must be hasty to save everyone by stopping the skull kid possessed by the evil Majora’s Mask. The gameplay is great as all Zelda games are, but what makes this game so special is deep, dark messages and undertones planted throughout the game.
This whole game addresses the complex concept of death. On the superficial level of this game, you get to see how the people of Termina respond to their impending death by the crashing moon. This game expresses that various approaches that humans tend to take towards death. Some people freak out and get scared, others just dance the night away with ignorance. Going beyond the superficial, the way these people act also demonstrates the stages of grief. Each area with their residents demonstrates an approach: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Furthermore, this game is littered with even more symbolism and ambiguity. The way the game starts off, there have been interpretations that Link is dead throughout the while game. And even the side details of this game have been cleverly constructed to add to this lucid experience. For example, the music throughout the game is composed with a distressing and ominous undertone (and leitmotif among tracks) which sets a dark stage for the plot and symbols in the game. Every little detail is crafted to evoke a precise feeling, going far beyond the mere distraction value.
As you can tell by the massive paragraph I wrote (that I tried so hard to keep short while still leaving out immense details of the astounding quality of this game as an experience), this game really excites me. I have always found this game to be a great depiction of how real and legitimate video games can be as an artform. Like any other artform, video games can tell a story, hold deep messages, express certain feelings, and depict certain situations. And there are even some games that let you express yourself and create your own art within that game.
Art comes in many forms, and video games is definitely one of them. I don’t think I need to tell you to try out video games because you probably already have, but I will say be open to video games as an artform. Search for meaning and experience while playing games, try to find something more than mere distraction factor. And even try new games that you wouldn’t normally, test the waters. You never know, you might find new video games that speak to you, evoke a feeling deeper than distraction stimulus.
I often think that people overlook video games as an art form, but there is so much depth, imagination, and expression that go into these games. I think that I grew up on a lot of the same games that you did and I think that the video game industry is becoming more prominent by the day.
I was never a huge video game kid, but I definitely loved Mario Bros. From the games that I have played I’ve always been really impressed by the animation, so I guess I agree with you that the game itself is kind of a form of art, I just never thought of it that way.
I personally have never been a big fan of video games but this blog has somewhat changed my perspective on them, and I do now recognize how they can be a form of expression for people. This was an interesting take that I had never thought of before!