Super brain Michael Abbott at The Brainy Gamer has been discussing playing games in his last few posts. Playing games, eh? Nothing new? But in this series of posts Michael is discussing what it means to play. What do people think of play? Is it really playing or something more? Something elusive and arty?
Anyway, interesting quote about World of Warcraft:
“…Play itself is a kind of sin. A form of play that consumes hundreds and hundreds of hours would almost surely condemn a good soul to hellfire and damnation. Blizzard and other game developers have, however, found a way to integrate the protestant work ethic into the design of their games: they have created an alternative universe in which play is a form of work. Players are willing to spend hundreds of hours in World of Warcraft, not in spite of the fact that it often seems like tedious work, but precisely because of that fact. When play feels like labor, and one toils to achieve objectives, play does not feel like a waste of time. Play that feels like frivolous entertainment would be intolerable for the good capitalist. Play that feels like work, on the other hand, must be good.”
My levels of super brain don’t reach Michael’s or the guy who wrote that quote, but here’s my take on the World of Warcraft: what if work is wrong? Then playing to work is wrong. I dislike work quite intensely. If I could, I’d grow money on a tree. That tree would also provide me with Pepsi Max (replace sap with the Max) on tap, or branch thinking about it.
What if in seeking objectives – like a miner would seek a coal vein – we’ve missed the point of games completely. Games shouldn’t be jumping through hoops or collecting fur from the backs of Elder Gyrohumapdons or whatever. Games should be enlightening. Games should strike you, squarely in the face, like a hammer to the cranium.
Would you want to watch a film or a TV series that just ticked boxes? Explosions – check, love scene – check, American values – check. Wait, isn’t that any Michael Bay film?
Personally I think that Michael Abbot is a cylon. Asking questions like these clearly identify him as a Red. These questions are designed to pick at the moral fabric of our gaming lives, reducing us to casual game loving fiends.
Godspeed!
