A nonlinear essay on a problem I’ve been having with games for years. There is this mind map tangle on the left; you can navigate to the right for a more linear essay-like structure.

Thanks for reading.

games reward for doing right things

games punish for doing wrong things

analyzing and strategizing -> contribute

analytical results -> felt

games score you on right/wrong

games non-overridable value structures

but only the games with strategizing

strategizing -> feeling

choosing games?

gaining knowledge

open observation -> not right/wrong

(Feynman’s flower)

am i allowed to be tired of a specific feeling?

games with overridable value structures?

gaining knowlege specifically to better pass human judgement

analysis focusing on “what is it doing” / “what’s going on”

analyzing is itself feeling

right/wrong mindset

genuine surmounter of obstacles - i would prefer to strategize real problems

“right/wrong” judgement faculty

less computer judgement

things don’t have to be done right in paintings (shrug)

i can ignore these things when they block other lenses

things don’t have to make sense in novels/films (shrug)

stylistic constraints -> right/wrong

i like to strategize in my mind; tools are 🎵 very 🎵 unnecessary 🎶🎶 they can only do harm

arbitrary -> right/wrong

preconceived notions -> right/wrong

i like to strategize with other real people

inner perspectives

games with fewer computer tools

reflective mindset

interpretive or creative mindset

videogames are computer tools

fewer computer tools

an accumulation of lenses, right/wrong voices

a plurality of judgements, even right/wrong ones

“this is always right” is very rare

to accept as much as possible, openness

the majority of videogames enforce a canonical judgement of what’s right, and what’s wrong.

they enforce this through specific coercive language:

if you do it right, you are rewarded materially, with the ability to engage with more of the work

you are tested, and if you fail, you are held back and must repeat the class.

this is deeply part of the language of videogames and i find it to be unacceptable

coercive submission to a value structure

i’m all for recreational submission

it’s too narrow for an art form

as an art form, videogames get in their own way. art thrives on a plurality of experiences (and interpretations, but not necessarily in the formally capitalized Art Interpretation way).

the relationship with the game is inherently non-reciprocal

to get “better” at a game -- even a mediocre one -- means to submit more fully to its value structures

existing media literacy and judgement struggles and fails here because “bad” works in other mediums are so often also “incoherent” works and so seeking to understand them more deeply sees them unravel completely

it is effortless for a game to possess coherent value structures

ask why, why, why, all you like

the answer in a videogame is so often “because it had to be coherent.”

seeking to understand “bad” games uncovers deeper structural depths in almost every case and therefore this form of judgement is no longer functionally useful

okay, as a designer and a programmer i would like to say that i understand it is not “effortless,” in fact it’s quite hard, but it is the bare minimum requirement for constructing a videogame: without a coherent value structure, you do not have a functioning game.

furthermore,

can i appreciate this? is there beauty in this? there is some, and i can in some cases.

but only so much.

it would be more correct to say it’s very hard to make a game without coherent value structures, so even the “worst” complete games will still have coherent value structures

machines do not pass interesting judgement on my actions

i am not interested in what a machine has to say to me

design which trusts a machine to grant access

i suppose that i believe such access is extremely valuable

therefore denying access is one of the most violent acts

therefore, a machine’s judgement becomes prized

and *therefore,* the most important value structure possessed by such a game is limited

it is freedom

the most coercive

to value structures which can be encoded in a machine-friendly way