IGTM - Response

Indie Game: The Movie – Response

IGTM did much to evoke additional reflection on certain points made in this week’s essays. The movie lent support to Gee's and Steinkuehler's theses in a few interesting ways, and I also feel that it struck a substantive blow at one of Leonard’s assumptions.

Perhaps the strongest statement was with respect to the controversy surrounding the question of whether video games are art. Some of the most compelling and (in my estimation) genuine footage was of the developers agonizing over the quality of their work. They showed the same sense of artistic integrity (“I made this for me”) as any painter or musician that I’ve met when reflecting on their creations. These are not mere work-products, but are indeed labors of love.

The film pointed toward something that was missing from the discussion of the meaning systems assigned to games from Gee’s perspective. Jonathan Blow’s dismay at players’ interpretation of what was “important” in his game was telling. He felt that most people didn’t “get” what Braid was really all about. I think Blow was missing the point (as self-obsessed artists are perhaps wont to do); Gee’s so-called “second story” is quite distinct from the meaning systems as understood by the developer. This is why I reject the notion that the developers of Grand Theft Auto have a misogynistic, racist view of the world. I’m sure the GTA creators would have felt exactly the same as Blow if they were to encounter Stormfront’s ridiculous interpretation of the game’s statements on race issues.

Aside from the literary stuff, I didn’t appreciate the editing of the film. I believe it was deliberately manipulative of the viewer. During the first half of the movie, the only character I didn’t find detestable was Edmund McMillen. Everyone else seemed like narcissistic ego-maniacs (complete asses, if you will.) Towards the second half of the film, the clips the moviemakers employed were much more humanizing; they introduced Edmund’s wife, the most sympathetic character, and as it progressed the developers were shown as more vulnerable, greatly humanizing them. The exploration of their personal struggles allowed the audience to finally connect, so that by the end, I was rooting for them (even Phil Fish!)

Thus the cultural dialog on and around games must be also analyzed for the writer’s intentions; in this case, the movie producers seemed to be after a Sundance-winning tear-jerker. They succeeded. By the end of the movie I had even warmed up to Tommy and Jonathan. I still find it very difficult to like Phil Fish.