Puffed Up Jackassery

The game industry is a relatively young industry that has always, and probably will always, try to crawl out from under the shadow of the century old film industry. At least, that is the perception, though I don't think it's one we need to hold.

Valve has written the book on tight, interactive fiction with Half Life and Portal. Bioware and Bethesda give you fantastic worlds and choices to make in them. The Sims and Minecraft don't give you story at all, but a plethora of tools to make your own, which millions do quite happily.

But, it's not just the film industry with whom we contend. You'll always have your Roger Ebert's who take their reactionary stance that games cannot be art. You'll have your politicians like California's Leeland Yee (terrible name bud) who attack games with legislation because of the irrevocable damage games deal to our youth. Games are a truly evil sign of the times, much like the rap musics and the internets of the 90s, comic books in the 40s, movies in the oughts (the last round), and a long time ago, the wheel and stick game.