Films are considered art, or at least a medium where art is possible. Games, not so much, not yet. But don't worry - recognition is inevitable. And when that recognition comes, BioShock will be there as our beacon of 'Games as High Art,' as the pioneer unlocking the potential of the medium. BioShock is what I call a prestige game, and like prestige movies, there is a whole lot to love, and to lament, about that.
First of all, unlike most 'artsy' games that have come before, BioShock is actually a good game. As in, good to play. The critic inside was demanding I type 'great,' but no. Because that is precisely the problem with a Prestige Game. Like a Prestige Film, or a Classic Novel, one feels obligated to praise it from an intellectual, rather than an instinctual, perspective. The result? Inflated praise, well-dressed admirers, a place in history, and a whiff of resentment. Yes, yes, everyone saw Schindler's List. But who the hell wants to see it again? BioShock is much the same animal. After playing it all the way through, I was left with feelings of dutiful appreciation, exhaustion, and numb horror, but not glee or exhilaration.
The core gameplay has many layers, and you can see that the developers worked really, really hard to make it fun. They almost succeeded, but it's not hell-yeah fun, like a Halo, or a Burnout, or Mario. No, it's disciplined, serious fun. Grown up. For a more refined palette. These are all intellectual ways of saying, 'less fun than it could be.'
The atmosphere, conveyed through audio, video, and exploration, is a magnificent achievement: a setting with rich bittersweet dread, showing humanity's squandered potential and the hubris of genius. Etcetera. There are hundreds of twenty-five-cent words that you could toss into a blender and liquefy, coming out with dozens of randomly-generated term-paper worthy talking points. When academia catches on to BioShock, there will be no stopping it, and it will infect the gaming press, too. There will be highbrow. Oh yes, there will be.
All of this is necessary. In order for video games to overcome the Outraged Ignoramus Gauntlet, they need to have their high art. Their prestige. They must have games that validate the academic potential of the medium. It’s a necessary evil; without the highbrow element, gaming as a whole cannot be accepted as an artistic medium. We need pretentiousness. We need some sniveling fool with a Ph.D. and a decorative neck scarf talking sonorously on NPR to an audience of like-minded, subconsciously nodding, overeducated graduate students.
So, I'm thankful for BioShock. And I'm impressed by it. And I appreciate it. And it edifies me as a gamer, because now I have something to point to, as it were, when the Gauntlet lays down its attack. Just don't make me play it again. Thanks.
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