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To the shock of many, I also believe that game developers have no responsibility to make games with any important meaning or message--it's just nice when they do. Our first amendment rights offer protection for all speech--both important and baseless--and it's the unpopular speech that needs protecting more than any other kind. Anyone who truly embraces the first amendment (rather than merely giving it lip service) will tell you that. If unpopular speech isn't protected, then it means the wrong people are deciding which speech is ok and which isn't. Incidentally, a lot of games that the public seems to think offer no socially redeeming values actually do. Fighting games are on the surface about violence, but they are actually tests of skill that promote a meritocracy and self-improvement, rather than teaching kids that if they spend time at something, they are "entitled" to rewards. To me, this is clearly on the list of "good lessons" and cries from parents about "violent video games" toward fighting games are completely misdirected. Grand Theft Auto, a favorite target of anti-free speech activists, teaches you that if you cause trouble, the cops come after you in greater and greater force. More than that, it's a sandbox that lets you actively explore and do whatever you want. For some reason, the critics only ever want to beat up prostitutes in that game, which says a lot more about the critics than players such as myself. In closing, I would draw the line of socially-redeeming game in a radically different place than someone with only a superficial understanding of the medium. But we don't need to quibble over where that line is, because ALL speech, especially unpopular speech, needs to be protected and free from government regulation. The next time the marketing department of game company decides to cave on an issue like this in order to keep more people happy, they should consider that they've lost my business, and I hope they've lost yours too. -David Sirlin As one of a few hundred people that was at DICE last week, and witnessed his speech, I have to say I thought it was a good message to send. While I do think he allowed some whining to bleed into the overall tone, I think his points were good. This industry does have a tendency to work in a vacuum sometimes, and I think Doug's frustration is interesting if not entirely warranted. There are good, stand up people and companies in this industry, and their are assholes. Doug was simply calling out the assholes. At the end of the day, it doesn't make any difference. It won't change anything. And, he did this at the END of his tenure. He basically made a scene and left. Is that really taking responsibility? -Sutton Trout, IGN Lowenstein had a lot of really good points to his speech and as President of ESA its clear that these issues have been bugging him for sometime. Even though the points that he brought up had a lot of credibility, there are just things that can't be changed in the long run. Even though its not always the case, it's a dog eat dog industry and when something is in jeopardy, its easier to back away from the situation and place the blame on others where as they will be the first to claim credibility upon a games success. We are indeed an army that is capable of doing great things, but in the end its a business. No one wants to take a stand to fight the tide of controversy when its easier to jump on the bandwagon that someone else paved through fighting the tide. Things will change if his words are heeded but things are too complicated now. It's a double edge sword -- risk taking is often not considered because the gamble is too great but risk taking in the end is the very thing that will preserve the industry's future. -David Rodriguez, 7 Studios Doug Lowenstein is absolutely correct. I will name one developer which I feel should take his address seriously: Rockstar! I choose this company because the whole "Hot Coffee" debacle is the perfect example to illustrate why he is correct and doe snot need explaining. Did Rockstar stand up for their decision? No, they didn't but decided to instead make excuses and remove copies of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. It's time game developers stood up for themselves and defended the decisions they make. It's this wish washy attitude and passing blame that actually enables people like Jack Thompson. The developers make themselves and easy target. Lowenstein is also spot on the gaming press which often times I feel like is run by high school students. Often times, very chauvinistic high school students that take the overall industry for granted! I'm appalled by how many editors treat the women within the industry alone and often act shocked at female involvement (that's a whole side topic). They do treat the industry overall like a child's hobby, not a business which average buyer is now over the age of 30 but as something only people under 21 are interested in. There is not a single game related news magazine out there that is worth the paper it's printed on as far as respectable and responsible journalism and news goes. If it were not for sites like Gamasutra, I don't think I'd have a realizable and responsible source for news related to the industry. I also want to make a note on the Video Game Voters Registry which is unfortunate for them, has nothing to do with how they run their organization. I do not like their requirements for registration. I should not have to submit my social security number in order to join such an organization. It is why I am not a member and likely never will. -Anonymous He is bang on. If members of the industry are unwilling to 'join up' on something as simple as the VGVN then how is the industry to fight any meaningful sort of battles? If producers are going to release increasingly controversial content and back down or run and hide from the fall out, how is anyone going to take the industry seriously? The video game industry is constantly being dogged as a children's arena, full of childish people. A big step to changing that image is to get up and actively participate in a meaningful manner. Frankly, censorship is always going to be an issue. It is an issue in Hollywood, it is an issue in print media, it is an issue in music. It is a constant grinding battle to combat censorship and the only way to effectively fight that battle is en masse. A wise move would be to make connections with other industries that deal with censorship issues, and form lasting partnerships with them. There are lots of solutions, but not a single one will be successful without the backing of the community as a larger whole. -Marcus Riedner, Verse Studios Incorporated Yes he's right but it's not like this is news. Industry professionals don't even stand up for their rights as employees so what chance is there that they're going to stand up for their creative rights. People need to be more politicized and a little more militant and stop being afraid that rocking the boat will end in dismissal. If enough people rock the boat the captains have to listen or the boat's going under. In the UK there's a resource crisis, our pay rates are so poor that most of our really talented people end up in movies or crossing the pond but it never occurs to them to do something about it. I will, of course, be posting anonymously for fear of dismissal.. With regards to censorship the biggest worry for me is developers and publishers self-censoring and avoiding any kind of contentious issue or subject matter in case they offend anyone. Video games for me are a powerful medium capable of equaling the emotive and informative weight of cinema if used correctly, but they rarely are. If we refuse to tackle issues and remain purely a thing of fluff and fizz then interactive entertainment will never have the gravitas of its cousins. -Anonymous Heck yeah! Absolutely on target. The people out here in blogs, newsgroups, the voter's network and other outlets are people concerned for the future of the art. Among those people I have not seen anyone for the teams we have to defend on a daily basis from the legions of the uninformed spurred on by Sen. Clinton and Sen. Lieberman. Letting these people dominate the arena of ideas means your job or the job you dream of getting. Unless you dream of writing "Hello Kitty Adventures #489", then got right ahead and be silent. -Anonymous |
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