Art: Something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important ideas or feelings.
This is the Merriam-Webster online definition of the word “art.” When one hears the word art, the first thing that often comes to mind is a beautiful painting or perhaps a classical piece of music. Even literature and poetry have moved their way into the “art” category. But, out of everything we consider art, should video games share that sacred space?
In my opinion, yes, video games can be considered art. Video games have come a long way from their origins, and they are no longer a few pixels on the screen. Video games have evolved into rich platforms where people can bring their imaginations to life for others to enjoy.
Looking back at the definition of art, the first part says that art is something that is created with imagination and skill. Games have advanced significantly since the first one was created, and it is no easy feat to create one. Even with programs such as “RPG Maker,” it requires skill and effort to create a simple video game. And while there are video games that are nothing more than carbon copies of something that came before it, imagination is necessary to create the vivid world of a video game. It was imagination and skill that gave birth to video games such as “Pokémon” and “Mario.” Two games that have transcended generations to bring people of all kinds together.
So, if video games are indeed created with imagination and skill, are they beautiful? Do they express important ideas of feelings?
As the saying goes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Therefore, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to measure the beauty of games. However, in my opinion, there are games that are easily as beautiful as paintings. “Eternal Sonata,” a fantasy role-playing game about the last hours of composer Frédéric Chopin’s life, is a vibrant game filled with history, as well as the actual music composed by Chopin and played by pianist Stanislav Bunin. The story follows Chopin in a fantasy world created in his imagination as he lay dying in the real world. A beautiful story that deals with friendship, escapism and ideas of death. This game is an excellent representation of beauty, that also expresses important ideas and feelings.
Indie games, games which are often created by a small team rather than a large company, are also responsible for a large portion of games containing more mature themes rather than just being a simple video game to pass the time. “Undertale,” a fairly popular Indie game, is one example. This game, while not as aesthetically pleasing as some more modern video games, contains a story that is dictated by the decisions made by the player. The player can choose to spare any monster they come across, or kill all of them, or spare some and kill others. The writing in this game is hilarious, and heartfelt at times. This game deals with issues of love, friendship, trust and moral values.
But are all video games art? What about games that are unoriginal, or those that don’t convey any important ideas? They are art in a way that some people consider a child’s drawing art. We have a tendency to rank art by how high class it is. Some art is considered “high art” and some is “low art.” At the end of the day, it is all a matter of opinion.
That’s the wonderful thing about video games: it’s all a matter of opinion. To some people, video games are not some high art that should be revered in the way artists love paintings. To others, it is a combination of skills coming together to create something beautiful that is accessible by so many people. To me, that’s what video games are— a beautiful product created from the skills of many talented people. Video games are certainly not for everyone, but next time you find yourself looking at a video game, pause and think about the efforts that went into making it and the number of people who honed their skills to create a product for people to enjoy.
