- Question
- Are video games art?
Video games are not meant to elicit an aesthetic or emotional response from a player. They are instead a media which seeks to sell itself to as many people as possible, just like any mass-produced, off-the-shelf product. A car may look aesthetically pleasing, but it is still just a product meant to drive a person from point A to point B. A video game is the same.
Supporting arguments · 4
- Video games are a mindless distractionPeople play video games to escape the drudges of daily life. Video games are meant to be relaxing activities which do not demand too much mental work of their players. They are a toy, not an art form.
- Video games are productsProducts are meant to sell, not to elicit an aesthetic or emotional response. Video games are mass-produced and fly off the shelves to serve consumers' desire for entertainment. Art seeks to appeal to aesthetics and emotion; video games seek only profit.
- Video games do not elicit an aesthetic or emotional responseVideo games are meant to be played with as a toy. A child does not ponder the meaning of the toy nor does one connect with it emotionally. A child does not stop to appreciate the aesthetics of the toy; the child only plays with the toy. Such is the nature of video games.
- Video games are not art because art is not interactiveArt is something to be experienced, not influenced. Anything which claims to be interactive art is an activity, not a work of art. Video games fall into this category therefore video games are not art.