Casual games (and why i hate them)

OK time to have a go at the weakest branch of videogaming, casual games, games like farmville, peggle and angry birds (this intro is aimed at lewis first of all, as im sure he'll have the most to say on the subject). I PLAY casual games, i enjoy them and they fill the time i'm waiting for the kettle to boil or for the bath to fill but they are for the most part pointless and completely interchageable. You CANNOT substiturte metal gear solid for the legend of zelda, they are both masterpieces in their own right and have their own unique styles and messages, you CAN swap out plants vs zombies and doodle jump as they are designed to keep (for the most part) non-gamers occupied.

This entire blog post may seem elitist but trust me, it is well founded and stems from a deep seated profound love of videogames, i don't at all wish that casual games didnt exist or claim they do not help the industry, but i do wish they would have some more substance and depth in order to portray what videogames are capable of.

Now here goes: I have played videogames practically since birth, and regularly since the very early 90's with the amiga 500, the master system then most notably kicking off with the original sonic the hedgehog for the megadrive. Videogames have literally been the keystone to my existance and for better or worse they have always been the stable bedrock to my life. I grew up with crazy titles like vigilante 8, future cop lapd and james pond which were kinda pointless, but which look like f**king masterpieces when compared to bejewelled, which has made more money than all three of those titles combined by simply being a shiny puzzle game which requires you to like up coloured blocks in order to gain points.

Videogames are art, they are a magnificent medium for storytelling, socializing, entertainment and technological marvel that have matured and grown year on year from quaint programs designed by university students in basements to multi million dollar projects created by literally hundreds of extremely talented individuals. Anyone who denies videogames are influential, educational, culturally relevant or wholesome has clearly jumped onto the "ban videogames for society's faults" bandwagon that not too long ago was the rock and roll band wagon, the rap music bandwagon, the violent movie bandwagon or going back a bit farther, the intellectuals bandwagon. Videogames have taught me so much i can honestly say i wouldn't be the person i am without them.

So why then do i despise casual games? because they are a pathetic example of selling the medium short, of perpetuating the view that videogames cannot be art because they lack message and depth and because they just don't measure up to "real videogames". People argue that, like movies, a game doesn't HAVE to be about anything, it doesn't HAVE to have a message or require you to think to be entertained. This is such a tired, defeatist argument it seems like a get-out clause for not putting in any effort and expecting to make a profit. because some idiots out there are scared by any depth they are happy to match colours instead of being entertained by complex characters, weaving, believable storylines and gameplay that tests the player's wits and endurance. to these people i'd like nothing more than to remove their iphone priviliges (as they clearly won't know how to use the damn thing to plan a route or trade stocks if theyre so afraid of thinking) and instead give them a 90's mobile with no extra features and a colouring-in book or MAYBE one of those wooden bats with the rubber ball on a string.

OK I LOVE to use analogies, so here goes: playing casual games, settling for such simple concepts without even trying to look into the deeper world of gaming is like eating toast all your life. it's simple to make, it keeps you alive, it isnt adventurous but it gets the job done. To open your eyes to the wonder of videogames is to learn to cook with a whole library of cook books and a veritable cornucopia of ingredients, there is something in videogaming for everyone. Sweeping orchestral scores, rich and immersive plots and narratives, gameplay elements that will test every fibre of your mental being from making tough moral choices to working in tandem with other real-life players to achieve a common goal, not unlike a sports team working as one unit. The difference between casual games and real videogames is the difference between eating to survive and eating to experience.

Casual games are not the same as low-budget games. there have been a plethora of cheaply-made games that have touched audiences worldwide and brought them together in marvel of how much depth can be crammed into a tiny hour-long interactive experience. Games like Braid, Machinarium, Puzzle Agent and even Minecraft aren't hollywood equivalent big budget titles but are no less amazing and touching. Puzzle Agent scared me, Machinarium charmed me and Minecraft is played by literally MILLIONS of people and was created by a team of five people (i believe) on their home computers.

I do not hate cheap games, i hate games that settle for less because people that accept less will pay for it. Some studios have started with casual games and grown to become big-name developers while others have stuck being casual games developers and have made more money than companies like KONAMI have in their entire existence. kudos for them for making money from old rope, but don't then become an old rope manufacturer because it's convenient. Eventually people might get sick of your old rope and dismiss rope, old or new entirely as a gimmick (ok that's one drawn-out analogy)

So the reason i hate casual games is because gaming is so incredibly varied and wonderful, it sickens me to think people will settle for flinging birds at pigs to get the high-score and never know the sadness i felt for solid snake when he had to kill his mentor and mother figure at the end of metal gear solid 3.

Surely YOU have a passion? do you love wine? what if everyone you knew were content to drink nothing but lambrini all their lives? What if you loved a good novel and instead everyone around you never read anything other than NUTS magazine? Do you love movies? What if hollywood only made shit films like Twilight, Transformers and SAW? Oh, wait, they do that.

My point is, if you have a passion, chances are you can associate with where i'm coming from. By all means enjoy playing casual games but let it be a stepping stone into the world of gaming, dont just stop there because you are missing out on some of the most amazing experiences in human history.