Video game deletes files as you go

[Kamino_Neko]

Yeah, I don’t think making ‘don’t play the game’ and ‘destroy your files’ the only options are exactly expanding the definition of what a video game should be.

This isn’t a sandbox game where violence is an option, but you suffer in-game penalties for it. It’s a top-down shooter, where you suffer real world penalties for doing the only thing the game gives you an option to do, other than shut it down.

It’s pretentious wankery at its most eyerolling, not a serious statement about…anything. Not about violence, not about ‘expanding the definition of what a video game should be’, not about what video games are.

[Kamino_Neko]

That said, a video game as UI for file deletion, if implemented properly - ie, you delete the files you want, not random documents and preference files - could be neat.

I’m thinking a puzzle game that randomly generates the puzzle based on the file you choose (size, location, file type, just to name some aspects that could be used).

[Kobal2]

@Tengu

That said, a video game as UI for file deletion, if implemented properly - ie, you delete the files you want, not random documents and preference files - could be neat.

I’m thinking a puzzle game that randomly generates the puzzle based on the file you choose (size, location, file type, just to name some aspects that could be used).

Wasn’t there a fighting game like that ? Or maybe an iPhone app. that would generate units stats from your music files ?

[Torpor_Beast]

@Disgruntled_Penguin

I really don’t feel that I have a narrow view of how computer games should be like but honestly, but randomly destroying system files would definitely be on the list of what computer games should not be like. Beyond that, I’m open for discussion.

The destroying files-part is certainly not the point of the game. That was probably just the easiest way to create a “real world” punishment for destroying the “enemies”.

@Tengu

This isn’t a sandbox game where violence is an option, but you suffer in-game penalties for it. It’s a top-down shooter, where you suffer real world penalties for doing the only thing the game gives you an option to do, other than shut it down.

Except of course shooting the enemies is not the only option you have, even though you can do that. It’s presumably entirely possible to dodge the enemies.
The fact that nobody seems to think of that after given the option to shoot, is part of the point of the game, methinks.

@Tengu

It’s pretentious wankery at its most eyerolling, not a serious statement about…anything. Not about violence, not about ‘expanding the definition of what a video game should be’, not about what video games are.

I’m in turn rolling my eyes at all the people who are quick to judge art that they personally don’t enjoy as “pretentious wankery”.

[Disgruntled_Penguin]

@Torpor_Beast

Except of course shooting the enemies is not the only option you have, even though you can do that. It’s presumably entirely possible to dodge the enemies.
The fact that nobody seems to think of that after given the option to shoot, is part of the point of the game, methinks.

Except it is the only option you have besides lose. Peace is not an option. You either play until all aliens are destroyed or you are. The only way to win is not to play. I’d rather watch Wargames to get this ancient message instead of destroying system files. I can’t imagine who wouldn’t.

[Torpor_Beast]

@Disgruntled_Penguin

Except it is the only option you have besides lose. Peace is not an option. You either play until all aliens are destroyed or you are.

Have you tried?

@The game's download page

Is the player supposed to be an aggressor? Or merely an observer, traversing through a dangerous land?

Seems to hint that you should be able to complete the game without shooting.

I’m actually tempted to install this on a virtual machine to test it out.

[Kamino_Neko]

@Torpor_Beast

I’m in turn rolling my eyes at all the people who are quick to judge art that they personally don’t enjoy as “pretentious wankery”.

I’m in turn rolling my eyes at people who think that pretentious wankery about a subject that clearly neither they nor the pretentious wanker know jack shit about is ‘art’, and that people who see it for the pretentious, and thoroughly ignorant bullshit that it is ‘don’t get it’.

I get the pretentious wanker’s supposed point. Everybody gets the wanker’s supposed point.

His supposed point, unfortunately for him, is complete bullshit, and anyone who’s ever played a single video game in their LIFE can see that it’s complete bullshit with a single glance. Ergo, pretentious wankery, trying to make himself look smarter than those ‘idiots’ who actually know what the hell they’re talking about.

Anyone who thinks that ‘video games don’t have to involve shooting things’ is a shocking revelation is an idiot and a pretentious wanker.

Anyone who thinks creating a top-down shooter - where ‘shooting things’ is the only thing you can do (and, yes, it is the only thing you can do - attempting to dodge means you die, or at best, continue to dodge and make absolutely no progress, which is pretty much the same as ‘don’t play the game’) - to ‘demonstrate’ that non-point by deleting the user’s files is ‘art’ is an idiot and a pretentious wanker.

Therefor the creator of this program is an idiot, and a pretentious wanker.

Actually, no, I do take that back - to raise this to the level of pretentious wankery would be to claim that it had even a modicum of thought involved in it. (For instance, researching video games, and discovering that, hey, there are a metric shitton of genres, a significant number of which don’t involve violence in any form, and another significant number of which allow it, but give other options, many of which actually penalize you for taking the easy, violent, way out.)

It barely rises to the level of the laziest of graffiti tags - a way of saying ‘I was here’ without making an actual point, or creating anything of worth.

So he’s just an idiot.

Kobal - yes, there is an iPhone app like that. Created by SquareEnix, even. It’s a really neat idea. Strategy game, your troops are created from your music files. You level them up by playing the songs, IIRC.

[Torpor_Beast]

@Tengu

I’m in turn rolling my eyes at people who think that pretentious wankery about a subject that clearly neither they nor the pretentious wanker know jack shit about is ‘art’, and that people who see it for the pretentious, and thoroughly ignorant bullshit that it is ‘don’t get it’.

Oh, fuck you too.

BTW, nobody’s saying that you “don’t get it”. Only that the fact that you don’t see the value of the points he’s making doesn’t negate the art.

[Torpor_Beast]

@Tengu

Anyone who thinks that ‘video games don’t have to involve shooting things’ is a shocking revelation is an idiot and a pretentious wanker.

“video games don’t have to involve shooting things” is probably not his primary point. Also, I’d think it’s closer to “most people presume games have to be about shooting things”.
I’m sure you’ve noticed how even in games with no real violence, like the Sims games, many people still want to find ways to kill stuff. Since that’s still the most common way of interacting with things in games. Not to imply that ingame violence is inherently bad.

I personally find it more interesting, like I mentioned earlier, that many people seem to react emotionally and feel like this “game” is inherently dangerous, simply because it has the capability to delete files, even if you have to first download it and ignore the ample warnings. That seems to give weight to the creator’s comments about people not really understanding technology.

The 2nd point gives it more artistic value in my opinion. Just the existence of these discussions on different forums seems to prove that people finding some positive/negative value in the “game”.

@Tengu

(and, yes, it is the only thing you can do - attempting to dodge means you die, or at best, continue to dodge and make absolutely no progress, which is pretty much the same as ‘don’t play the game’)

Cite?
Admittedly I haven’t tested the game yet, but the description on the download paged doesn’t lead me to believe that.

@Tengu

many of which actually penalize you for taking the easy, violent, way out.)

I assume you’re talking about Japanese games? This seems to be pretty rare in western games from what I’ve seen.

[Disgruntled_Penguin]

@Torpor_Beast

Cite?
Admittedly I haven’t tested the game yet, but the description on the download paged doesn’t lead me to believe that.

Here’s the download page with a nice screen explaining the game and I’m not seeing any ambiguity. It says "If you manage to kill all the aliens without dying you will win the game. "

Now, it doesn’t mention any other victory conditions but that only makes it worse. I mean, you know what will win the game at a cost but who would willingly engage in a game where you are only safe navigating a poor galaga clone and you have no idea if this has any bearing on the game?

The game doesn’t have the graphical appeal to keep me trying and since no one has mentioned this paying off either no one has had the endurance or desire to bore themselves silly or there is no winning this way.

Thus is the message of the game not, the only way to win is not to play or is it actually, “life is mind numbingly boring without taking risks but at least it’s safe”? If the latter, that makes no sense as in life we rarely have our dangers so neatly spelled out nor our goals so vague that there really is an all or nothing in the risk department. One game does, though, Russian Roulette which again, I’d much rather watch in Coming Home than actually play.

To me, if the answer to “would I play this” is no, then the amount of reflection I’m going to put into the “art” is extremely minimal so aside from our discussing it, I’m not sure that it’s an effective way of conveying whatever it is the artist wants to convey.

If you could somehow determine at least what type of file you’re shooting at then I could see some of the art because trying to get a high score by taking “acceptable losses” while risking more dire consequences might be a bit more thought provoking IMHO.

http://www.stfj.net/art/2009/loselose/