Can computer games be assumed as a new media or it is only a game?
Computer games are one of the intensively developing entertainment industries today. Once created in 1970s as video games today this industry has enormous psychological, social and financial influence on its consumers. This paper will discuss computer games as the new form of media showing similarities and differences between the games and the traditional forms of media.
The computer games derive from video games like Pong and Pac-Man which were created in 1970s.[1] Firstly considered as just an entertainment for spending free time computer games later were assumed as an art form like a painting and a designing. Generally it is difficult to disagree with it because the game creating process involves both of them. In the recent decade the technological progress in game industry invented new types of hardware like CD-ROM which helped to produce a big size games. But this process which began in early 1990s made people to look at the computer games from another view point. The most of people began to consider that the computer games were very violent. The problem of violence was the main problem. And it is the main problem in the computer games today. Researcher Arthur Asa Berger wrote that in the computer games the violence is mediated as in any other forms of traditional media[2]. This is the one of the substantiations to suggest that computer games are the new form of mass media. But on this case it is better to use word ‘contest’ instead of ‘violence’. Thus we can compare the different narratives and analyse the game narrative in terms of storytelling.
Janet Murray who analysed the computer games as a modern graphically wrapped form of storytelling suggested the following similarities between story narrative and game narrative: contest (between opponents), puzzle (contest between player and game designer), linear storytelling and the obvious distance from reality[3]. Applying the traditional methods of narrative analysis we find the following similarities. The first is the similar narrative structure: the beginning, the middle and the end. The second similarity is the development of plot. Christopher Vogler in his book The Writers Journey wrote that the development plot in any story is the same and the ways of acting made by main hero are the same[4]. He suggested that in first act something in ordinary life goes wrong (Todorov’s disequilibrium) and the hero takes challenge. In the second act the hero crosses several thresholds and in the third act the hero finds villains and eliminates them. For example in Super Mario (1985) in the beginning something goes wrong and Mario’s girlfriend is captured by dragon. Then Mario controlled by player crosses several levels and in the end destroys evil force represented as a dragon. We can take the more graphically progressed like Half Life (1998). In the beginning the hero Gordon Freeman works in top secret nuclear laboratory. Then something goes wrong and explosion happens. Then he challenges to find the truth. But in order to achieve this aim Gordon Freeman being controlled by player has to cross the particular levels. The game levels are the same thresholds in any other storytelling. The third similarity is the game genres. The computer games have their own genres which is the next well-founded proof to suggest that computer games are the new form of media. Apparently, the computer games are also made in different film genres. The most of the game genres are action and adventure like Mortal Combat (1998). This is the action-arcade game made in kung-fu style with different types of martial arts in which the player can choose his character and fight against computer. Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive (2005) is the example of western in which the player can make very engaging adventure by saving somebody’s life, robbing trains and banks, fighting with Indians and making duels which are very common to the most of westerns. The most of game genres share common features and stereotypes defined by the same film genre. But today it is difficult to define the genres of computer games. Because the game designers try to make more unique games blending different genres together as the most of traditional forms of media do[5]. The fourth similarity is the narrative theories which are usually applied to the traditional media forms. Arthur Asa Berger analysed some of the computer games by Vladimir Propp’s narrative theory and suggested that the video games as the stories follow the same narrative conventions as the simple stories do[6]. As an example we can take Cossacks II: Napoleonic Wars (2005), real-time strategy which depicts historical battles in Europe in 19th century and apply Propp’s theory to any part of it. Thus we can find that the hero is French, the villain is Russians, and the helper is British army.
Despite the fact that the computer games have many narrative similarities with other storytelling, there is one main difference which distinguishes them – their interactive narrative. The interactive narrative has different advantages for its user:
- user plays
- user is active
- user creates his second self
The interactive nature of the computer games is the main reason why many people like to play computer games. James Newman states that the interactive narrative gives the following joys for players: challenge, immersion and players expect to do, not to watch[7]. The players are active at that time. They are not passive any more. They are engaged in it, they rule it, they manage every step thus they cross levels after levels. The players create their adventure themselves. If we compare films and computer games we can find that playing computer games is more interesting than watching movies just because we can rule our way, we can manage surrounding virtual environment. When we read any form of printed narrative we read about magic and marvellous, we read about main heroes, we read about their fights against villains and we have only belief in justice. But while we play computer games we imitate main heroes, we experience magic and marvellous, we lead our character to fight against villains and we struggle to reach justice. By the way we get some feedbacks like some information about achievements, rewards and prizes. In this case we can use psychological model made by Steven Reiss and James Weltz for realty TV. That may apply to our behaviour when we play the computer games. As an example we can take some of psychological motives from that model like power, independence and idealism. The final joy will be the efficacy, the freedom and the compassion[8]. In computer games we struggle against the villains because we want to be powerful, we will do all our best to be free because we want to be independent.
Playing computer games we can create our second selves. This is almost magic advantage which today’s game industry can offer its consumers. The first video games were with one character (heroes like Super Mario), then there were games in which player could choose different framed characters (games like Mortal Combat). But modern computer games let us create our character as well as we want. For instance in Need for Speed series player creates his own car, tunes it and develops it as much as he wants. It becomes his favourite car and his second self. The car becomes one’s second self. This is the psychological problem of the most of the role playing games. The character identity replaces the players’ personal identity. And there is no need for the characters to look like a human being, it even can look like mechanized super sport car as on the case of Need for Speed. This is what researcher Darian Leader wrote about:
‘We are continually encouraged to break with the past. TV shows turn frogs into princes and allow lives to be swapped with a freedom that knows no bounds. Jobs, wives, even skills such as ballroom dancing can be traded, exchanged or speed-learnt. The moral of these staged adventures is that we can create who we are. And now we don’t need to do it through a TV show: we can activate a new self in virtual space. We can choose what colour hair we have and how thick our calves are; we design our own tattoos. A separate economy has sprung up to service our virtual needs — there are now companies that sell accessories and designs for our alter egos, offering clothing, haircuts and beauty treatments. Where once we could look after virtual animals such as the Tamagotchi toys, today we can become them’[9]
It is worth considering especially in online games. In the recent decade massive multiplayer online games (MMOG) became increasingly popular. In 2006 the MMOG market in the western countries reached $1billion. On the top of this North American subscription market reached $ 576 million, European subscribers achieved $ 299 million[10]. Well, why so many people play Second life, Habbo Hotel and World of Warcraft online? There are the same psychological aspects as we discussed before but there are some other aspects which offline computer games can not give.
Firstly, creating your own avatar is one of the pleasing moments in online games. I’ve never played MMOG like because of my network. But I tried to play, so I’ve experienced very ridiculous moment of creating my avatar in Habbo Hotel. When we create our characters we try to be more cute, extraordinary and unexpected because we are creating our second self. Millions of people go to that virtual world using their avatars, they spend thousands of hours in it and actually they live in it. They create their second world and that world became a simulation of the world in which they want to live. MMOGs based on simulations (Habbo Hotel, Second Life, The Sims) are one of the phenomenon in gaming industry today. There is no doubt that thousands of people around the world live in their simulated life. Online gaming replaced their life. They do not need books, because it became their fiction. They do not watch TV serials, because online gaming became some sort of cyber serial for them: every day new story and new adventure. They meet people online, talk to them and have fun. It is one valuable point to suggest that computer games become new form of media. Many critics state that online gaming became new form of Internet chart-rooms. It is worth considering because MMOGs like Second life in which plays nearly 4.6 million people everyday become more and the amount of consumers also increases.[11]. But on this case we face a question: do people become more social or more isolated? Many researchers like Darian Leader suggest that creating new identities usually lead to isolation and exclusion[12]. But it is still doubtful. For example James Newman argues that gaming helps people to socialise more. According to him there are just several games designed for a single player and there is no need to think that all computer games make people isolated just because of those single player games[13]. From another point of view this is a new substantiation for how computer and online games become the new form of medium.
The last point to suggest computer games the new form of media is the emergence of in-game economy. The Times media reporter Adam Sherwin wrote: ‘It is only in the past few years that these “massively multiplayer online role-playing games” (MMORPGs), with their real cash exchanges, have taken off. There are an estimated 350 worldwide, many of which claim more than 100,000 subscribers’[14]. Second life is the game which famous for its in-game economics. Its in-game economy based on Linden dollars and 500 Linden dollars is equivalent to £1. In-game money can be used to buy clothes, properties and products. There are even sites where people can order several fashionable items of clothes (http://blog.secondstyle.com/, http://www.second-man.com/). People can buy even properties and blogs like Virtual Suburbia (http://www.virtualsuburbia.com/) may help people in it. Second life has nearly 4 million registered residents and 144 108 of them use in-game money[15]. Second life is probably the pioneer which let thousands of common people to earn real money just sitting in front of their computers. And some of residents actually became rich. For example, Ailin Gaef, avatar Anshe Chung, a teacher from Frankfurt who sold land and property created in 3 D computer modelling and earned L$300 000 000[16]. Gareth Lancaster, avatar Moopf Murray, created Skoopf skates which became Second life’s bestseller item. He sold 60 000 and earned £15 000[17]. Many globally famous brands opened their virtual offices in Second Life. Even Hillary Clinton and Republican George Miller held press conference in Second Life in recent Senate election in USA[18]. Entropia Universe is the next game worth discussing. It has 250 000 subscribers and not as big as the previous one. The designers of Entropia Universe are going to release special ATM cards which can be used to convert in-game money directly to real world money by ATMs[19]. All these facts are substantiations to suggest that online games become a new kind of medium with enormous psychological, social and financial impact on its consumers.
However, as the computer games and massive multiplayer online games (MMOG) are relatively new phenomenon there are many arguable questions. What is the computer game? Is it a game? Is it a next postmodern cultural phenomenon? Or is it a new form of medium? These rhetorical questions become almost fashionable to ask. Why computer games which were accepted as a sign of cultural decay nearly 10 years ago suddenly were assumed as kind of stories, kind of hypertexts and so as the new medium. What is the reason for such thinking? Well, this essay has shown the substantiations to think in such way. But what if it is just a game. One of the ludologists Espen Aarseth stated: ‘Computer games are games [not stories], and games are not new, but very old, probably older than the stories. It could even be argued that games are older than human culture, since even animals play games. You don’t see cats or dogs tell each other stories but they will play. And games are interspecies communication: you can’t tell your dog a story, but the two of you can play together’[20].
Bibliography
- Aarseth, E. Genre Trouble: Narrativism and the art of Simulation. In First Person: new media a story, performance and game. Ed. by Noah Wardrip-Fruin and Pat Harrigan. Massachusetts Institute of technology. 2004.
- Armstrong, R. Who wants to be a virtual millionaire? The Independent. Saturday, March 24, 2007.
- Berger, A.A. c2002. Video games: a popular culture phenomenon. New Brunswick, Transaction.
- Leader, D. Comment: Identity Crisis. The Sunday Times, December 10, 2004. Available from: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article661777.ece
- Murray, J. From Game-story to Cyberdrama. In First Person: new media a story, performance and game. Ed. by Noah Wardrip-Fruin and Pat Harrigan. Massachusetts Institute of technology. 2004.
- Newman, J. 2004. Videogames. London, Routledge.
- Parsons, M. Second Life: Shopping and Faking? The Times Online. March 16, 2007. Available from: http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article
- Schiesel, S. Entropia Universe Players Can Cash Their Online Earnings at the A.T.M. Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/02/arts/02entr.html?ex=1304222400&en=3d951b51b620dd85&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
- Sherwin, A. Gamers make a killing with money for nothing online. The Times. February 19, 2005. Available from: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article516155.ece
- Vogler, C. 1998. The writer’s journey: mythic structure for storytellers and screenwriters. London: Pan.
- Western world MMG market: 2006 Review and Forecast to 2011. March 2007. Available from: www.screendigest.com/reports/07westworldmmog/readmore/view.html
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[1] Berger, A.A. c2002. Video games: a popular culture phenomenon. New Brunswick, Transaction, p 27.
[2] Ibid, p 61.
[3] Murray J. From Game-story to Cyberdrama. In First Person: new media a story, performance and game. Ed. by Noah Wardrip-Fruin and Pat Harrigan. Massachusetts Institute of technology. 2004. p 2.
[4] Vogler, C. 1998. The writer’s journey: mythic structure for storytellers and screenwriters. London: Pan.
[5] Berger, A.A. c2002. Video games: a popular culture phenomenon. New Brunswick, Transaction, p 8
[6] Ibid, p 34.
[7] Newman, J. 2004. Videogames. London, Routledge, p 16.
[8] http: //nisonger.osu.edu/papers/Reisswiltz_2004.pdf.
[9] Leader, D. Comment: Identity Crisis, The Sunday Times, December 10, 2004. Available from: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article661777.ece
[10] Western world MMG market: 2006 Review and Forecast to 2011. March 2007. Available from: www.screendigest.com/reports/07westworldmmog/readmore/view.html
[11] Parsons, M. Second Life: Shopping and Faking? The Times Online. March 16, 2007. Available from: http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article
[12] Ibid.
[13] Newman, J. 2004. Videogames. London, Routledge, p 149.
[14] Sherwin, A. Gamers make a killing with money for nothing online. The Times. February 19, 2005. Available from:http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article516155.ece
[15] Armstrong, R. who wants to be a virtual millionaire? The Independent. Saturday, March 24, 2007. p 22-23.
[16] Ibid.
[17] Ibid.
[18] Ibid.
[19] Schiesel, S. Entropia Universe Players Can Cash Their Online Earnings at the A.T.M. Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/02/arts/02entr.html?ex=1304222400&en=3d951b51b620dd85&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
[20] Aarseth, E. Genre Trouble: Narrativism and the art of Simulation. In First Person: new media a story, performance and game. Ed. by Noah Wardrip-Fruin and Pat Harrigan. Massachusetts Institute of technology. 2004. p 45
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