This article gives an insight into the plot of the upcoming Assassins Creed video game, past games in the series, as well as commends the video game on its impressive graphics and cultural immersion.
The cover photo for this instance reminded me greatly of an instance from God of War I, when Kratos dives off of Mount Olympus into the Aegean Sea, a game and series that I am a major fan of. I can honestly say I have never been disappointed by a game in the God of War series; the plot development was honestly as impressive as the graphics and gameplay that are associated with these games.
As someone who is generally accustomed to the role-playing game style of console video games, it feels strange to see a video game that is Open World. Concepts like Open World games are better suited, at least in my opinion, for Massive Multiplayer Role Playing Games, where players can interact with a large number of other players and engage in activities such as raids, questing or player versus player instances. A Role-Playing game with the implementation of a storyline that can be skipped feels very strange with respect especially to the name of the category that these games are associated with.
Exploration of well-designed and very realistic landscapes is very interesting but also something that gamers around the world are expecting with the release of such heavily funded and hyped games, anything besides extraordinary would not be worth buying. The Assassin’s Creed series has always been great at implementing new content, as well as representing a great range of different violent time periods. If past editions of this series are any indicator, Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag will not disappoint.
Hack and slash games and series such God of War and Assassins Creed further the concept of how much violence plays in the entertainment of the masses as well as its general reception amongst the masses. This highlights primitive and violent human instincts and makes me wonder about why so many people enjoy blood and gore; not only in video games but in other mediums of entertainment such as television and movies. If our current mediums of entertainment are so consumed by blood and gore, what does that say about us as a society if these instances are categorized as the art we use to represent ourselves with?
Article link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/30/arts/video-games/assassins-creed-iv-black-flag-delves-into-pirate-lore.html?ref=arts&_r=0
I found it ironic and kind of indicative of the whole field when you said that the Assassins Creed cover looks something like the God of War cover. It goes to show you how similar many of the video games are. I don’t understand how you can make the same game so many times and spin it off as something new. Your article also reminded me of an article I read about the video game industry focusing from many small scale video games to far fewer but more complex games. Great Post!
It is undeniable the masses enjoy fake violence that is removed from reality. Video games and reality television shows are perfect examples of this. We know the violence portrayed in these games are fake and that is why we are able to enjoy it so much. If a violent act occurred right outside our homes, we would be horrified by it. As people we don’t enjoy violence.
There are those who support violence in the market and claim it helps release our innate violence, preventing further violence. Those against this, claim it increases violence by exposing people to it. I don’t believe violence will be banned from the public domain. There are people who committed violent acts and placed the blame on the video game industry, but these people are part of a small group. Aside from the minuscule amount of crimes related to violence in games, there is a profit to be made in this industry. Money is largely to blame for the circulation of violence in the marketplace. I don’t think people enjoy real violence, rather they enjoy entertainment. Fake violence is considered a form of entertainment. Though I’m not sure why we enjoy fake violence. We might enjoy it because it makes us feel excited, but at the same time we are safe and removed from it.
First I have to agree with you that the Assassin’s Creeds series has not yet let down its fans in term of being extraordinary. On the other hand I can’t agree with you in how you draw an equal sign between traits of a video game and traits of our society. While it is true that the games developed by our society these days are filled with violence, we cannot only see the negative side of the issue. It is true that violence in video games has a chance of transmitting such violence to the player, but on the other hand many more players get to express their frustration in their day life by violent actions in the game world. There will always be argument in video game violence but I would like to believe in the better side of the issue.
I like to believe that after years and years of human progress and development of rational thought, we all come to know that violence is bad and that we shouldn’t do it. That being said, I think that just because there is an abundance of violence in the media, it doesn’t mean that humans celebrate their primitive and violence instincts. Rather, I think violence in the media provides more of an escape from reality. No matter who you are, there is probably a little sense of wonder inside of us that asks what it would feel like to do something like chopping off zombie heads and such. As human beings, we all want to fulfill our curiosity, meaning that violence in video games is something that lets us “relax” and reach satisfaction, even if it’s all coming from a computer or television screen.
games out in the market already. Recently, we can see that many games are striving for improvement in the realistic aspect because that is something that can be improved with increasing technology. Also, games in a series such as Call of Duty, Final Fantasy, Assassin’s Creed, and God of War sells significantly better than games not part of a series (this same phenomenon goes for movies). This is because people often get hooked onto a game so much that they will keep purchasing the new games that come out in that series, hoping that it will be even better than the previous one. Few people stop to realize how repetitive these games actually are.
Although portraying violence in video games certainly does not benefit the society, video game designers often find that people are more likely to play video games containing violence. You can’t really blame the video game industry for trying to make profits. Violence sells because it is something people can’t do in real life. It is human nature to have a desire to perform the impossible, to explore beyond the boundaries of reality. Although many people may enjoy seeing violence in video games and movies, I think it’s safe to say that few people would enjoy watching an act of violence on the streets. This shows that people don’t really enjoy violence; people just enjoy the escape from reality.
Ignore this post, I made a copy and paste error.
With the gaming market getting more and more competitive, many games are trying to bring in unique graphics and ideas which can often be hard because of the vast amount of games out in the market already. Recently, we can see that many games are striving for improvement in the realistic aspect because that is something that can be improved with increasing technology. Also, games in a series such as Call of Duty, Final Fantasy, Assassin’s Creed, and God of War sells significantly better than games not part of a series (this same phenomenon goes for movies). This is because people often get hooked onto a game so much that they will keep purchasing the new games that come out in that series, hoping that it will be even better than the previous one. Few people stop to realize how repetitive these games actually are.
Although portraying violence in video games certainly does not benefit the society, video game designers often find that people are more likely to play video games containing violence. You can’t really blame the video game industry for trying to make profits. Violence sells because it is something people can’t do in real life. It is human nature to have a desire to perform the impossible, to explore beyond the boundaries of reality. Although many people may enjoy seeing violence in video games and movies, I think it’s safe to say that few people would enjoy watching an act of violence on the streets. This shows that people don’t really enjoy violence; people just enjoy the escape from reality.
I think the question you posed about violence in video games and what it suggests about our society is very thought provoking. Although assault and bloodshed are definitely huge issues in America, I don’t think they are accurately reflected in our entertainment. Assassin’s Creed and similar games may contain lots of violence, but this element is purposely included to amuse the players and to offer them a means of escape from reality. People who enjoy these video games generally do not exhibit abusive behaviors outside of the virtual world. I think that while brutality is a serious problem in society, video games do not promote it by incorporating graphic content.