ban games, rather it is to be creative My advice? Find a shorter horse to ride on. and make good games that are at worst, Many of us have just returned from the fun ways to relax, and at best games Regards, Game Developers Conference in San (Editor’s note: In response to a letter that have a positive influence on our Tom Rhodes Jose, California. Along those lines, we’ve to the editor last week, The Escapist lives.” But to relegate games, or other discussed several aspects of game contributor Tom Rhodes responds.) “destructive” types of media, to a world To the Editor: I was refreshed and design and production over the last few of demons and ghosts, we are really inspired by this article by Gearoid Reidy’s weeks. Now we turn to one of the Dear Karl, placing ourselves in this happy bubble, article in last week’s Escapist. Thanks!! outside forces most strongly influencing ignoring that the so-called destructive game development: the government. When I first read your letter, it seemed games, television shows, movies, and I’m an artist at Irrational Games in fair and reasonable enough to me. But books can illuminate something about Boston. We’re working on Bioshock Governments around the world affect as I read and re-read, I started to find our world, or perhaps ourselves. Does which, by all appearances, is shaping up delivery mechanisms and even threaten that, although you were supporting such Hamlet have a positive influence on to be a decent sci-fi shooter with some the very content of games. In this issue, games’ right to exist, you were also people’s lives? I’d say, from the strict RPG elements. It’s my first developer Dana Massey returns with a look at the condemning the people who played perspective of the narrative, it side job and I love it. Bioshock is a cool international development scene from them. doesn’t. But does it enrich our project with some innovative design and how the United States government lives? Most certainly. While Grand Theft features and a relatively sophisticated affects his experiences in Canada. You said “there will always be individuals Auto is no Shakespearean drama, I don’t story, however, at its core, it’s a fairly Bonnie Ruberg discusses the seemingly who make unwise choices in the games think any piece of media in the past year conventional game from a genre and different treatment of porn and in-game they play.” At that I took deep offense. has caused more reflection on ourselves execution standpoint. The real reason I sex in the United States. And while not Perhaps for the same reason that you and society than it has. Random, got into this industry is because I’m within the realm of government, Warren chose to include Dungeons and Dragons senseless violence managed to get us all hoping that games will graduate to an Spector’s continuation of “Gaming at the in with Grand Theft Auto, something of talking, and how about that? artistically legitimate art form over the Margins” discusses some outside forces which I was stupefied to read. Almost as next decade. I feel like currently we are affecting the development of games. much as reading “...there are destructive As for the bloodsports, surely anyone in the infant stages of exploring the Find these articles and more in this books, TV shows, movies, etc. that who associates pixelated violence with interactive medium. It took awhile for week’s issue of The Escapist. should not be read nor watched.” true loss of human life possesses neither filmmakers to come up with anything the clarity, nor the opportunity, to look beyond novelty when it was first Cheers, You further state that, “The proper down on others. invented 100+ years ago...and now it is response to destructive games is not to arguably the most affecting and definitely the most widely appreciated speeches. Yet right up there with the I’m a hard core gamer and proud of it. driving the player experience and not and socially significant artistic medium piles of Atari ET cartridges in land fills, But we’re the very audience he insults shoe-horning stories into pre-made we have (at least in the west) . I have we have Ion Storm, a developer of by implying they cannot to be trusted levels, having quality writers create our such high hopes and ambitions about adolescent power fantasy, hard core with the future of the gaming, the ones content and leaving the fan-fiction “gaming” that I think it could titles, who wasted an obscene amount of “willing - even eager - to settle for the writers to do it on weekends and in their theoretically disrupt the monarchy of money, and became a huge mediocre, the rehashed, the non- role-playing groups. After 5 years in the film and bring artistic expression and embarrassment to game developers and interactive experience masquerading as industry as a Designer and Producer, I commentary to a new level of immersion the industry as a whole. And who was a interactivity.” You mean the very titles left it late last year, tired of the general and emotional significance. partner at Ion Storm? Mr. Spector, of you yourself offered up? direction we as an industry were heading course. I want to make a dramatic game, or a Please, I beg you. Just shut up and work tragic game, or a comedy....is it even If the industry is as stagnant creatively on your game like the rest of us. Let possible? Is it possible to make a game as Mr. Spector believes, he himself is your game speak for itself. Don’t lecture that’s like Thomas Pynchon’s Gravity’s part of the reason why. The man us with your grand plans when all you’ve Rainbow, or Or Terrence Malick’s credited with some of the most beloved, given us are sequels to glory days FPS Badlands? Would it even be called a hard core games of all time, like Deus Ex franchises. ‘game’ at that point? and Ultima Underworld, has the nerve to lecture the rest of the industry that -Anonymous I thought I was the only one with these we’re not trying hard enough to reach thoughts out there ... thanks for keeping outside the 18-25 male adolescent To the Editor: First off, great job; I me optimistic. power fantasy? His last titles were Deux really take my hat off to this sort of Ex: Invisible War and Thief III -- both thing, we need so much more of it in the -Hoagy de la Plante examples of, as Mr. Spector writes, industry. For a long time it seems Edge “licenses, sequels and ‘me too’ games - has been the lone voice when it came to To the Editor: As a game developer, I vain attempts by publishers to increase intelligent writing on games. I’ve only found Warren Spector’s despairing the odds of breaking even or...Profiting.” just found you at issue #37, but I’ll be diatribe on the woeful lack of innovation reading every one from here on in. in the industry offensive and hypocritical. What game has Mr. Spector created that Two words: Ion Storm. I don’t recall hasn’t fit into the mold of the Warren Spector’s piece really struck a hearing about stagnant creativity, rising adolescent power fantasy? chord with me, as did the subsequent development costs, or gloom and doom articles. I’m a big believer in narrative with the seeming lack of real initiative Weddings and a Funeral, Lost in stereotypes, technologies used to amongst Publishers to take games to the Translation, even Brokeback Mountain? enhance the player experience rather places people like Spector seem capable There will always be a place for action than limit it, and a few more stories I of taking them to. I say Publishers adventure, what I’m interested in is think somebody wants to hear. because to lay the blame at Developer’s more subtle story-telling, better writing, feet is, I think, unfair. Right now it is just and starting from a story and deciding Like a favoured child throwing away an too hard to do something truly unique from there what the best way to tell it is. obvious gift, the industry I adore is just without the backing of someone with too frustrating to watch right now. deep pockets who believes in what The self-imposed exile from the industry you’re doing. won’t last I’m sure, gaming gets in your -David Gillespie blood like few other things. What I hope I come from a more traditional creative is not too long from now, a new surge of background, by that I mean theatre, creativity will have begun where writing and music, yet I’ve played games developers craft experiences out of since I could crawl. In the medium, as stories they want to tell and messages Warren says, we have an unmatched they want to convey. Everyone has a potential for communication, for story to tell but not nearly every story is conveying messages, to inspire the worth telling; it’s time for the industry to people we reach in ways that movies, stop taking so much pride in being literature and music can only dream of. marginal, male-fantasy driven and clichéd. That’s not to say people aren’t I’m tired of story-telling that amounts to taking steps toward it yet, but it remains at best, somebody’s Friday night role a severely minor group within the playing group, and at worst, well, greater development community.