Why I Like Video Games

• A lot of people who are productivity minded have vendetta against video games

  • "They're a waste of time"

  • "It's fake progress / achievement"

  • "Violent / anti-social behaviour"

• I want to spend some time making a case for why I love games and why, for me, they are the ultimate form of creative expression

• It may be surprising to note that I actually play games quite rarely, maybe only once a week or so on average

• Playing games can feel like homework, research and critical analysis

  • I'm always testing the boundaries, wondering how they did something technically, how it was designed and thinking of the people behind it

• This is the price you pay moving to the creative side of a field, it becomes harder to find the time and energy to earnestly consume the medium you work in

• My taste in games is reflective of this too, I have a decidedly specific taste in games

  • Single player and local co-op

  • Precise controls

  • Playing as a character, very few god mode or strategy games

• Despite this, when a really good games comes along... I totally lose myself in it and remember why I fell in love with the medium in the first place

  • Zelda

  • Persona

  • Dark Souls

  • Adventure, tiny worlds, exploration etc.

• To make a game requires a lot of different skills

  • Programming

  • User experience design

  • Narrative design

  • Digital illustration

  • Animation

  • Sound design

  • Music composition

  • The list goes on...

• Games are a microcosm of almost every form of expression that interests me

• But when it comes down to it, games are the most reliable way I can take the emotive landscape in my head and reify it for others to experience