I could take it a step further and say that if video games are art, then they deserve the right to receive subsidiary funding from government grants to produce their next project.
On a different tangent, I'm finding it to be increasingly difficult to find a game that's truly avant-garde, a game that truly stands out from the others as a unique metaphyiscal experience to the participant. I mean, how many avant-garde artists would be willing to put in the time and money to see their unique, thought-provoking opus be chiseled down and smoothed out so it would look like the next RPG of FPS or MMORPG?
The hard part for avant-garde post-modern artists is deciding whether or not to embrace commercialism. Do they allow their work to be hyped and exploited by a market that's simply hungry for the next new game? Do they participate in a system that turns high art into low art so it's better suited for mass consumption? Of course, when an artist goes commercial, he makes a mockery of his status as an outsider and free thinker. He buys into the crass and shallow values art has been known to transcend. In essence, the artists trades the integrity of his art for riches and fame.
Regarding the second paragraph, after I played Yume Nikki (the game that inspired all of my avatar art) I thought that nothing would be cooler than a finely chiseled, enormously vast, breathtakingly rendered, say, PS3 version of "Dream Diary" (English translation of Yume Nikki). Imagine a game where the entire point was to explore an enormous dark dream world which actually operated on "dream logic". Imagine being able to get lost in that game for hours. Imagine it taking decades for players to figure find all of the content! Doesn't the prospect sound enticing?
And, regarding the third, I don't think that anybody is holding it against
Pixel for allowing Cave Story to be
ported to WiiWare. Most of the fans of the game are happy to be able to support him financially, although undoubtedly a lot of money will go to the studio that is currently trying to finalize the port. (I wish they'd hurry up!)
The video game industry being multi-billion strong, it's not too far-fetched to claim that the arts are under attack in this industry. As such, what was the last game that you played in the past decade that truly made an impact on your senses and left you both with an ndying impression and unwavering respect for that game and its artists? Obviously, CT is one of them. Altered Beast would be another for me. One final game that made me truly think and comprehend its contents was Freedom Fighters.
What says you?
Well, I began with one game and got carried away! I also went ahead and counted games that I originally played over a decade ago. Hope the rule-bending comes across as warranted.
First, there is Metroid Prime. Metroid Prime is the game in which I became most engrossed in the story, the visuals/world, and the action. The world of Tallon was breathtaking, the Chozo ruins such a source of fascination, and the Space Pirate forts and Phazon mines daunting to infiltrate and disrupt. Taking out the Omega Pirate is still one of my favorite video game memories of all time, and I remember for weeks after I played that game I was worried that I would hear the "Chozo Ghost" theme when I turned the lights off anywhere. Of course, now I think I might see Uboa...
And, on that note, I find the game Yume Nikki to be a real treat for the senses. It obviously impacted me, but honestly mostly for the reason that I felt it blurred the line between video game and modern art more so than any game I've ever played. The game also has a very diverse and creative fan base, and one that is surprisingly devoted and imaginative with regard to coming up with theories about the story behind the game.
Cave Story has earned Pixel my unwavering respect, seeing as he programmed the game, did all of the artwork, and composed the story and music by himself, with some input from his kids, apparently! It took him five years to complete, and I'm amazed that it did not take him longer given the quality of the game.
I never played them myself, but watching a playthrough of Disgaea and a half-playthrough of Disgaea 2 was great fun. Those games are amazingly fine-tuned tactical RPGs, they're remarkable to behold, and their stories are captivating and sweet.
ActRaiser! What visuals! What music! What an original concept for a game! Part Civilization, part Wizards and Warriors. Terrific dungeons and boss fights! Love it! Got it on WiiWare!
Secret of Mana and Secret of Evermore! Excellent visuals and music in both, but Secret of Evermore just hits closer to home for me. Probably because the dark ancient/antiquity and machine worlds in the game, and the quirky humor. (Femur of fury anyone?) Not to mention the fact that
(SPOILER ALERT!) the whole world is actually just a (virtual?) manifestation of several people's personal utopias via a machine. Cecil from FFIV also makes an appearance at one point, something which earns this game a gazillion bonus points in my book.
(End spoiler - Sorry that I'm unaware of how to properly tag spoilers here.
)And, of course, Chrono Trigger for obvious reasons. And, I'll also say Super Metroid for obvious reasons, because I cannot think of anything not to like about that game.
Edited a day later: Realized I'd confused avant-garde and post modern with "independent" in my second point. But, going back to Dream Diary for a moment, if there was a push to remake Dream Diary in the way that I described I don't know that it would be met with criticism just because it would be commercial. The game would still be a transcendental experience, regardless of the fact that it happened to be sold at, say, Toys R' Us. I think the hardest part about an "avant-garde" artist working with a studio to produce something for the market would be that they might want to hold very tight control over the production of their vision. But, that's not necessarily a given.