By Dave Jones: Columnist
Few can deny that the works of classic great masters such as Van Gogh and Monet are art by definition, but in the modern era the very concept of the word is arguably more subjective. Film is largely accepted as such, but how about entries from an even bigger global industry – video games?
Gone are the days of Pong and Space Invaders. We’re in a world where video games can be evocative and moving experiences in glorious realistic 3D.
However, it’s still a hotly-debated question as to whether they can be considered art or not, and it will likely be contested for many years to come.
Cambridge Dictionary defines art as “the making of objects, images, music, etc. that are beautiful and express feelings.” In that regard, there is an argument for their inclusion. However, they are interactive by nature, and the fact that they’re created with play in mind removed them from the definition for individuals who debate the contrary. Japan Studio and Team Ico’s Shadow of the Colossus is often cited as an example of games as art.
To understand its full emotional impact, you really have to experience it, but it’s not without some stunning visual environments and encounters. You play as Wander, a young warrior in a fantasy world attempting to revive a girl called Mono. To do so, you traverse vast and lonely landscapes with little in your way except the environment until you reach one of the titular colossi.
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Unless you’re a keen gamer though, you might not have heard of Shadow of the Colossus. But what about Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us? Such was the game’s success that there’s a popular HBO TV series based on it which has won eight primetime Emmys. Both take place in a post-apocalyptic world where cordyceps mutated, infecting humans and turning them into vicious, fungal monsters.
Yes, there is action and guns, but it’s far from a standard shooting gallery game. Instead, the focus is on main characters Joel and Ellie and their growing father-daughter relationship. It’s about creating bonds and finding something to live for in a world where they thought they’d lost everything… and what they’d do to keep their found family together.
Hideo Kojima’s game Death Stranding is another candidate for your consideration, an experience that defies definition in the way some art evokes emotions you might not entirely understand. As a porter in a future world where people live in isolation from each other, it’s your job to deliver cargo to them - if you can navigate the inhospitable terrain without losing everything you’re carrying.
On the surface it doesn’t sound evocative, but when you throw in the ghost-like “beached things,” or BTs, the cargo-stealing bandit-like porters called MULES, age-accelerating rain called Timefall and the incredible soundtrack, Death Stranding is really something incredibly unique.
These beings are almost elemental in nature, huge entities seemingly combining construct, creature and god. When Wander delivers a finishing blow to a weak point - which are puzzles to reach in and of themselves - you don’t feel elated at the collosi’s passing, but rather like you’ve deprived the world of something wonderful and unique. It’s a mounting feeling that crescendos throughout the game, and culminates when you find out exactly what you’re doing and what the cost is.
It’s far more than the sum of its parts, and it doesn’t take long to realize the game’s actually about rebuilding broken connections in a shattered world. To this end, it uses multiplayer to great effect, allowing you to help out - and receive aid from - people you’ll never meet in real life or in the game.
Its' about connecting...
On the subject of connecting with people, there aren’t many games that can match the emotional power that Nintendo’s Animal Crossing New Horizons had. The comfy social game’s 2020 release came out at just the right time, because the COVID-19 pandemic was just around the corner. When people were isolating in their homes, New Horizons was something of a lifesaver. Its relaxing, pressure-free gameplay was therapeutic to the stress that gripped the majority.
New Horizons provided a creative outlet, too. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, it puts the player on an island paradise, which you can decorate as you please. Upgrade your house, create a beautiful garden or a beach getaway, fill a museum with artifacts, bugs and fish. You can even use the in-game tools to make your own apparel designs.
You could visit your friends’ islands, visit family virtually or connect with strangers in a time when you couldn’t even venture outside for long periods of time. The emotional impact this had was palpable, with news outlets lording New Horizons as the savior of the pandemic.
These are all examples of games that present art in different, emotional ways. Another game called Eastshade does that too, but it references art more literally. In fact, you play as a traveling painter, and you can create artwork from whatever you see in the game world to present as gifts to the people of Eastshade.
There’s no conflict, just exploration, relaxation and helping those in need through the medium of your art. Whether you define video games as art or not is all a matter of perspective.
There’s certainly many more examples of stellar creations combining art, music and experiences that could make a compelling argument. But ultimately, there’s no defining answer, and perhaps there shouldn’t be - debating art is part of its beauty and its ethereal nature shouldn’t be caged in canvas.
