Theory

[icycalm]

http://insomnia.ac/commentary/are_u_an_artfag/

I came up with these questions while on the way back from the supermarket a few days ago. If you can come up with other ones, post them here and I'll add them to the test.

[Fei_Yen_Kn]

LOST THE GAME.

But I'm an illustrator. I'm sitting at the core of art-faggotry.

[icycalm]

But I'm an illustrator. I'm sitting at the core of art-faggotry.

You are not understanding the meaning of 'artfagottry'. It's not about artists nor about fags. Read the questions.

LOST THE GAME.

This is supposed to be a question?

[Fei_Yen_Kn]

I did read 'em. But you're right. I've never even heard the term until just now. You'd have to elaborate.

Also, "LOST THE GAME" is just something my brother would yell whenever I screwed up.

[xwd]

I have a few problems with #7.
If the author uses the world "elucidate" as a first person verb, then it's okay. Example: "Let me elucidate what Rez is all about: Hallucinogenics."
The word "juxtaposition" could be used in a game review, if only to give context of what other games it's similar to. Example: Audiosurf is a juxtaposition of Phase and Klax. However, since I'm talking purely about the game itself and not about the graphics, this isn't exactly artfag territory. (on a sidenote, the people who are all like "omg Audiosurf is like Harmonix meets Team Wipeout" piss me off since the game is nothing like any Wipeout or racing game I've ever played, it's only superficial since you have no control over your speed or turning and you spend the entire game picking up colored blocks)
Or perhaps in describing the humor, since juxtaposition means the placement of two different ideas next to each other, often resulting in humor. Example: Concerned is a juxtaposition of a dumbass and Half-Life 2.
But since I answered "no" to the part about "poignant" I'll just say I answered no to that question.
So, I guess I'm not an artfag. Nice to know that.

[Molloy]

Ico does make me feel warm inside. Fucking magnificent example of a game telling a story and making you care with game mechanics and environment rather than reams of dialogue. It's a game that has story where 99% of games just have a plot.

I'd agree with your artfaggery synopsis otherwise. :)

[icycalm]

If the author uses the world "elucidate" as a first person verb, then it's okay. Example: "Let me elucidate what Rez is all about: Hallucinogenics."

Or, he could stop being a pretentious douchebag and just say, "Let me explain what Rez is all about." Even better, he could just cut straight to the explanation.

The word "juxtaposition" could be used in a game review, if only to give context of what other games it's similar to.

Yes. Because before game reviewing became dominated by pretentious douchebags using words like 'juxtaposition', we couldn't make comparisons between games. Thank God for kids using words whose meaning they can't even be bothered to look up in a dictionary!

[icycalm]

I did read 'em. But you're right. I've never even heard the term until just now. You'd have to elaborate.

Here is a perfect example of the artfag approach to game writing:

Jason Rohrer (of Passage fame) has released a new game, Gravitation. Where Passage was a meditation on death and life's journey, Gravitation contemplates, in his words, "mania, melancholia, and the creative process".

It's arguable whether or not such a game can contain spoilers -- but since the game's creator has expressed desire that his game be played without any explanation, I recommend you go and do so before reading any further.

The subject matter of this game is more personal than Passage, and it expresses a more subtle emotion. As result, the mechanics are more involved and engaging (this game takes the form of a sidescrolling vertical platformer with variable jump heights), but the payoff is more ambiguous and not as immediately satisfying. In the creator's statement, Rohrer says that he wrote the game about the conflicting feelings brought about by working on a followup to the success of Passage while coping with the question of whether or not a close friend who fell into a coma due to neurological damage should have his life support pulled.

http://forums.selectbutton.net/viewtopic.php?t=12385

[Fei_Yen_Kn]

Wait, are you serious? This is it. This is what I've been complaining about for years. Having to fight your way through every paragraph. I'd feel like a grade-schooler picking apart each article, forced to meditate on every useless line, like they'd purposely singled out their "less intelligent" reader. "Empty calories" I called it. ...And now I can truly express my hatred. "Art fag." Today is a happy day.

[icycalm]

Toups, much like Tim Rogers, is not bad with words. In fact both of them are quite good with words, Tim more so than Toups. The problem is that quite often they have nothing to say, but still insist on saying it, and saying it with as many words as possible. The result is some well-written passages that are either about nothing, or, in the worst case scenario, about something profoundly wrong.

I mean the passage I quoted is about a fucking platformer for the love of God! The first time I read it (I've read it several times), when I got to that point I started laughing so hard they could hear me next door.

[Mr.Stevenson]

I've attempted to interpret the meaning of games before--I was so naive. But in looking back at it all, most of those video games just had some conspiracy theory plot, which is why I feel ashamed for trying to figure out the meaning behind them. Ha.

Anyway, that was a excellent commentary; also it prompted me to go to my university's library and check out some of Wittgenstein's work. I will continue to look forward to future commentaries.

[Molloy]

When discussing stupidly flowery (and really quite clunky) writing about videogames you can't forget Tycho from Penny Arcade. He can be quite amusing but his writing style just grates on me to such an extent I can't read that site anymore.

[taidan]

The worst part about the example Icy posted is that more often than not, someone will write that, and a large portion of folks will simply nod their head in agreement, which is strange considering I often sit there and wonder how in the world they determined that a game expressed a more "subtle emotion"