Is there any more perfect time than summer to find ones self swept up into hours of gaming? Heck yes, any time is a perfect time to do so, at least for gamers like myself who grew up during the Pong years and, instead of falling away (i.e., maturing) have instead spent many more hours playing “video games” over the last 15 years than over the previous 25. I won’t spend a lot of time on justification here. Regular readers know that on occasion I’ll bust out the video gaming review, to great throngs of crickets chirping and tumbleweeds blowing by in the wind. That’s okay, honestly. This blog is primarily about experiencing story and art and so I get just as much joy prattling on about enjoyable gaming experiences as I do book and film, and it is okay if that is not your thing.
I’ve long postulated that the very best video games, regardless of platform, allow the player to insert themselves into the story, providing an experience different to, but every bit as enjoyable as, getting lost in a good book or film. Over the course of gaming history, that immersion into story has varied, with the onus of ‘getting lost’ often falling squarely on the shoulders of the players imagination. Storytelling is catching up with advances in technology and companies like Bioware and Bethesda are releasing games that are not only beautiful to look at but offer the player a chance to truly become absorbed in the adventure as it unfolds. Even better, these companies have been working to release games where the player’s choices and relationships with other characters in the game effect the outcome of the story being told. The latest of these is a “dark heroic fantasy roleplaying game” from Bioware, Dragon Age: Origins.
Having just finished the game, I sit here with that bittersweet melancholy that accompanies the end of any good story, knowing that I cannot keep it to myself, I must share it with you!
