Bloggasm

Kyle Orland got his start writing about video games when he started Super Mario Bros. HQ, a fansite devoted to the famous Nintendo mascot, in 1997. Since then he’s written as a freelancer for publications including Electronic Gaming Monthly, GameSpot, Next Generation, GameCritics and more. His blog, Video Game Media Watch, takes a highly opinionated look at the way video games are covered in the specialist and mass media.

Simon Owens: There’s been some somewhat recent lawsuits against video-game makers about video games promoting violence amongst teens. My best guess is that you wouldn’t agree with these accusations (if I’m wrong, please correct me), but do you think there will ever be a real conservative backlash against violent video games?

Kyle Orland: Well, I don’t know about a conservative backlash — Democrats like Hillary Clinton and Joe Lieberman are among those out in front on this one. Every art form goes though these kinds of growing pains when they’re new, when the older generation in power is scared and confused by the younger generation’s unfamiliar new hobby. As time passes, the older generation will die out and the generation that grew up with games will realize that games didn’t cause them to become a generation of anti-social murderers and everyone will calm down. The key is to not let the older generation set the medium back with restrictions in the mean time.

Simon Owens: As video games become more technologically advanced, we’re seeing a division of players. On the one side we see the frat-boy types floating towards first-person shooter and sports games, while the more nerdy of video game players drifting towards role-playing or strategy games. Are there are a lot of games that bridge the gap between these two and offer both a lot of action and a lot of strategy at the same time?

Kyle Orland: This is a little simplistic division, but in general there are many splits in game preference. Western vs. Eastern. Hardcore vs. Casual. Console vs. PC. The best games can bridge the gaps between these groups, but they are few and far between. Tetris is probably the most universal, historically, but games like The Sims, the Mario and Zelda series, and even simple Windows games like Solitaire and Minesweeper all have incredibly wide reach. People who play these games might not consider themselves “gamers,” but they are. We need more games like this that expand the somewhat narrow definition of what video gaming is.

Simon Owens: Who are some of your favorite video game creators? What are some of the qualities that a good video game creator must have?

Kyle Orland: Shigeru Miyamato is my favorite game designer of all time. Almost all of his games capture this sense of child-like wonder that can appeal to all age groups and experience levels. A good game designer needs to be able to pare a game down to its most basic essence. Find what makes a concept fun, and eliminate everything that gets in the way.

Simon Owens: Are there any new video-game releases you’re particularly looking forward to?

Kyle Orland: No.

Seriously, I’m cautiously hopeful about Nintendo’s new Revolution system, and what its motion-sensing controller can do to expand the game market. Recently I’ve been most interested in my portable systems, which seem to be enjoying a rennaisance in this console transition period. Upcoming and recent games like Daxter, Tetris DS and New Super Mario Bros. have me excited.

Simon Owens: I’ve noticed a recent upsurge in going back to old-school systems like the original Nintendo system. It’s become a kind of hip thing to wear shirts depicting the original Nintendo controller and whatnot. Is there any chance that video-game makers will release new games for old-school systems? Do you think there’d be a market for such a thing?

Kyle Orland: It seems unlikely, considering that they can simply re-release the same game with updated graphics for a newer system and sell a boatload. Or release the exact original game as a small download or $20 cartridge and… also sell a boatload. The point of nostalgia is that it’s familiar… making new nostalgia just doesn’t work as well.

Simon Owens: What are the five blogs everyone should be reading (besides your own)?

Kyle Orland: Boing Boing - Never ceases to amuse me.
Andrew Sullivan - The most well-thought political commentary out there
Plastic - Not strictly a blog, but always interesting progressive discussion
Kotaku - Excellent pop-culturey video game news.
Slashdot - For everything geeky.