GWJ Conference Call Episode 595

Into The Breach, Moss, One Hour One Life, Golf Story, When Is It Fair to Compare Movies to Games, Your Emails and More!

Click here to download!

This week Shawn, Cory and Julian look at whether it makes sense to compare movies and games anymore.

To contact us, email [email protected]! Send us your thoughts on the show, pressing issues you want to talk about or whatever else is on your mind.

  • Subscribe with iTunes
  • Subscribe with RSS
  • Subscribe with Yahoo!
Download the official apps
  • Download the GWJ Conference Call app for Android
  • Download the GWJ Conference Call app for Android

Show credits

Music credits: 

B-3 - BoxCat Games - http://box-cat.com/ - 32:31

Battle End - BoxCat Games - http://box-cat.com/ - 47:27

Comments

What genre did FDL create?

00:01:30 Into The Breach
00:15:30 Moss
00:21:14 One Hour One Life
00:27:56 Golf Story
00:32:42 Comparing Movies to Games
00:47:38 Your Emails

You should go watch citizen Kane. It holds up better than any single film in the 1940s

I'm not 100% sure, but "sh*t" may have been the first word said to me.

Edit: And wasn't it Buffalo Bill?

The game/movie comparison that sticks in my mind is THE LORD OF THE RINGS versus MORROWIND, which essentially came out around the same time. I enjoyed the first movie when it came out, but by the release of the second film, I found myself just squirming in the theater seat impatient to get back to the crypts and caverns of Tamriel.

By the way. I’m still holding strong and not buying any games this year, although into the breach is really really tempting

I have mixed feeling about subtext. I think it can enrich a story. I remember reading an article about one of Frank Miller's early issues of Daredevil and the amount of symbolism in the visuals and colour choices, that had completely passed me by, was astonishing. I suspect that that much attention to detail can add narrative power to a story.

I do tend to focus mainly on the story in a book film or game rather than delighting in analysing subtext. To me working out what a story signifies or doesn't signify feels like picking apart a piece of entertainment rather than enhancing it.

There's also an inherent danger that the author is so focused on their impressively elaborate subtext that their actual 'text' becomes distorted and unclear.

"20 or 30 games in a Backlog." Oh Andrich, you sweet, sweet, summer child.
I love my Backlog. I've throttle back the game shopping, but there's no way I'd impose a complete ban on buying games. Like ever. I'll try and restrict myself to Steam sales (during which I'll still get 10-20-30 games), but there's no way I'll ever completely stop buying and playing games.

Feel better, Sands!

jrralls wrote:

What genre did FDL create?

I'm guessing that they were saying FTL spawned the "roguelike" genre, but I thought it wasn't the first of its kind. It sure make it popular, though. I'm no expert, however, so don't quote me on that.

Oh and Citizen Kane? Saw it for the first time a year or two ago. I wasn't all that impressed, personally. Bring your torches and pitchforks, I'm ready.

I'l admit I find the idea of a game backlog as shameful rather odd.

If the purchase and ownership of the game gives one pleasure without having to actually play it, then it may very well be worth the (likely very little) that you paid to buy it.

I don't see why purchasing games can't bring as much joy to some as purchasing stamp collecting or beanie babies does for others or various aspirational purchases, where imagining the activity is more fulfilling than the actual activity itself.

As for comparing games and movies, I *really* don't understand the movie envy. If you have a golf club and a baseball bat, they may both hit balls and thus seem superficially similar, but they are both constructed to optimize different things.

If what you are trying to engineer is evaluated solely on its emotional impact, then surely a medium where you control every possible aspect of the impact is going to be superior.

Instead of asking how little game can we have in our game in order to give them the same emotional impact that moves have, why not ask what do games do that movies cannot (namely introduce agency, promote skill mastery, teach teamwork, challenge problem solving skills, etc), and evaluate games based on how well they perform on a combined metric.

I think we all agree that it would be ludicrous to talk about "waiting for the day that movies are mature enough that they can give me the sense of skill mastery that games give me".

I'd claim the same about "waiting for the day that games are mature enough to have the same emotional impact as movies".

Also wanted to add that it's been too long since we've had the alternate crew do a podcast. Time to put the pressure on Amanda, Karla, et al.

west wrote:

Also wanted to add that it's been too long since we've had the alternate crew do a podcast. Time to put the pressure on Amanda, Karla, et al.

I can half deliver on this promise

Eleima wrote:

Oh and Citizen Kane? Saw it for the first time a year or two ago. I wasn't all that impressed, personally. Bring your torches and pitchforks, I'm ready. :)

I think I've only ever seen clips and snippets from it now and again and nothing about what I've seen makes it look like something I'd ever want to subject myself to for it's full run time, either!