I am what some call a gamer. I love games of all varieties - card, board, mind - but my favorite games are video games.It started with the Atari system in the early 80's. I have been hooked ever since. I have wasted untold hours staring at a T.V. trying to kill bad guys, collecting coins, solving problems, racing cars etc...
I am now in my mid-thirties and feel that perhaps I am too old for video games.
The thing is that the games keep getting cooler. I just bought the new game, Gears of War, for my Xbox 360 this past week and I made a startling discovery. I am the target market for many of these video games.
This insight into my position as a primary target of the video game industry oddly came as I was playing through the Gears of War game. The game is rated M (mature). It contains some pretty graphic violence and (a first for me) some pretty graphic language.
I oddly appreciated the use of this coarser language. It fit with the overall theme of the game, a dark sci-fi kill the aliens thing, and the mature language fit with the action on the screen.
When you're about to be blown to smithereens by a 10-foot tall drooling alien the last thing you would likely say is oh golly, or help, or ahhhhh... more than likely a steady stream of foul language would spew forth.
Marketing by vulgarity and violence - a sad statement on the current state of the world - but one I appreciate nonetheless.
1 comment:
What do you mean "sad commentary"? It's freakin' awesome.
Virtually speaking of course.
Since I can't seem to find my Halo 2 disk, we'll have to play GoW I guess. I'll try not to shoot you in the back.
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