Men in Gorilla Suits
Men in Gorilla Suits Ep. 65: Last Seen…Playing Video Games

If Christopher had his way, this episode would have been called "ALL HAIL GOAT SIMULATOR!!!" But that would be a bit limited in scope -- especially when the world of video games practically knows no bounds.

We live in a time when many who complain about how much time their children play Call of Duty spend just as much time on their phones playing Candy Crush and other mobile games. Lines have been blurred from the days of the Atari 2600 and arcades full of cigarette smoke and stand-up cabinet games. Today, almost everybody in America plays digital games of some sort.

We start out in the 70s and 80s, discussing the first video games we remember seeing...and asking if they were actually the first game we ever played. Then it's a hop to the future, asking what the last game we've played is. (Hint for Christopher's last game played: "BAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!")

Video games have come a long way, crushing movie box office totals and pushing well beyond what we could imagine in their infancy. We dedicate some time to discussing whether or not video games can be art.

Since we both write, we take a side road into the writing of video games, which is often secondary...but have some games hit on great writing? What's the future of writing in games? In this section we talk about:

  • The influence of video games on our writing.
  • If video games can even be as interactive (or more interactive) than a novel, evoking the same experience one gets from reading a great work of fiction.
  • Our general feelings about writing in video games.

Putting writing aside, video games get a bad rap for being the same old things. Is there truth to that, or are there original games? After that, we talk about how mobile devices have changed the way we look at video games.

Many people view video games as frantic, loud things, but...can they be a meditative experience? We also devote some time to these questions:

  • How have video games linked us socially?
  • Is there a place for video games in education?

We close this episode out listing some of our all-time favorite video games and discussing what we think the future of video games looks like.

So grab a handful of quarters and listen. If you're so inclined, share some of your thoughts about video games in the comments.

Direct download: migs65.mp3
Category:Pop Culture -- posted at: 8:48am CDT

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