Video Games: The Largely Ignored, Yet Superior Storytelling Medium
VIDEO GAMING SPOTLIGHT BY PETER FRANKO
For too long have literature, cinema, and theatre been, to most, the only legitimate forms of storytelling.
There is an alternate and widely neglected form, however, that has been blooming under the radars of the close-minded for some time now, but still hasn’t been given the respect or recognition that they rightly deserve: video games. Chances are that your parents, your grandparents, and all of your teachers look down disdainfully on video games, whether because of their newness in the entertainment spectrum, or the fact that most people over the age of thirty can't even use a video game controller. Or maybe it’s because they think of games as a mind numbing destination for kids to mow down virtual terrorists in a game of Call of Duty, or pick up virtual hookers and proceed to drop them off skyscrapers in Grand Theft Auto. But to me, this can be attributed to the fact that video games are in their transitional period in the eyes of society; as this new medium enters its adolescence it’s bound to go through some growing pains, but this shouldn’t keep our society from recognizing the massive potential video games truly have.
Video games aren’t the first medium to be the subject of an almost universal bias in its early days: film, which is now considered to be just as capable of portraying a work of art as a painting or play, was condemned and dismissed by many critics during its formative years as being a crass and lowbrow medium. In fact, after the release of “talkies” in the early 1930’s a critic for a British literary digest railed that "The majority of films in the future will be made stupidly for stupid people, just has been the case with the silent movies for twenty years”. But as we all know, Hollywood developed, technology improved, and cinema earned its rightful place in the entertainment industry, as well as the hearts of many. And at the apex of people’s awe with cinema, it moved into its “golden age”.
I feel as if video games are shifting into their very own golden age. As games begin to tell more intriguing, immersive, and mind-expanding stories, the harsh critics may begin to take notice. The first game that I feel was embraced by the intellectual and literary crowd was Irrational Games’ 2007 hit, BioShock. Critics were obligated to take notice of BioShock as one of the first games to tell a multifaceted story with literary merit. To most non-gamers, this was the first time they had ever heard of a video game with actual depth. The game explored the philosophical ideals of russian author/philosopher Ayn Rand and the individualistic philosophies discussed in her novel, Atlas Shrugged, such as altruism and objectivism. BioShock told the story of a man with a unique vision who wanted to separate himself from the political, religious, and social restrictions of the world.
On Metactitic.com BioShock is hailed as one of the best games ever created, and is coveted by those who have played it. One of the reasons for this notoriety was its ambitious way of storytelling. When your silent protagonist avatar starts the game, he knows nothing and, by extension, you know nothing. You arrive at an underwater civilization, after its demise. You come to learn everything about the game in the most unique of ways, through audio diaries left strewn all over the city. You learn who you are, why you're there, how the city crumbled from within, and why the inhabitants are insane, mutated drug addicts. It also was one of the first games to feature moral dilemma and choice, where the player could affect the outcome of the game. To many this is one of the most terrifying, and flat out awe-inspiring experiences to be had in gaming to this day. And in some ways it pioneered an entire genre of survival horror games, which let me tell you are a million times more bloodcurdling than movies.
A unique aspect of BioShock is that because the game is in played in first person. Not the fact that you play the game through the eyes of your avatar, but rather that you feel like you are witnessing the events of the game firsthand, an element of games that you cannot get from books or movies. Also because you are silent, the thoughts you have become the thoughts of the character, and in some ways you become the character.
My term for this type of storytelling is “immersive storytelling”. This is commonly used in horror and role playing games, but I have also come to realize that this is just one form of storytelling in games.
The other, I refer to as “social storytelling”. Social storytelling is the conveying of a story through the players decisions, and how they interact with the game and its characters. The only game so far to truly utilize social storytelling to its full potential is the recently completed Mass Effect trilogy. At first glance, Mass Effect appears to be almost a CG movie; about 65% of the game is shown in cutscene, where the player is no longer actually controlling his or her avatar’s movement (or trigger finger). However, in these scenes the player is hardly a passive bystander. When your character interacts with another, you are given free reign to take the conversation where you want it to go. You can be nice and considerate, or be a complete ass as you converse with the game’s thousands of unique and incredibly well written characters. There are also hundreds of difficult decisions throughout the game that work similarly to the conversations, that can have huge and lasting repercussions and even affect the outcome of the game. To many it can even be quite the emotional rollercoaster. The fact that the Mass Effect trilogy puts the story in your hands is what separates it, and makes it better than conventional entertainment. You no longer witness stories being told: you shape them. Think of it as a beautiful baby between a blockbuster movie and a “Choose your own Adventure” book.
With the many game studios like Bioware (Mass Effect) and Irrational (Bioshock) upping the ante by providing unique storytelling tactics, it won't be long before your Grandpa is telling you about this cool game he just played. Video games will become a respectable medium, you have my word. But unfortunately, it could be a while, so in the meantime find a console of choice and establish familiarity with it. Learn how to use the controller, maybe play a game or two, because when video games replace books on America’s living room shelves, you’re the only one to blame.
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