Are Video Games Culturally Dominant Essay

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In Patrick Jagoda’s (2017) essay “Videogame Criticism and Games in the 21st Century,” the author makes a number of claims about the nature of videogames and the meaning that can be inferred from them. Jagoda’s main arguments are that 1) videogames today have varied functions (exhibited by the various genres proliferated in the platform) and cannot be seen as representing the same elements that characterized them in their infancy many decades ago; and that 2) they represent a complex and highly nuanced form of life that is beyond the means of any simple critique or analysis. As Jagoda (2017) states, videogames “manifest a form of sociopolitical intervention, an element of everyday life, a form of personal expression, and a medium for artistic production” (p. 9). In other words, videogames are a dynamic form that cannot easily be boxed or labeled as representing a specific set of values, ideals, tools, outcomes, or meaning. This paper will explore Jagoda’s arguments and also address another of the major issues, which he analyzes—the question videogames’ cultural dominance.

Videogames have varied functions, as Jagoda points out when he discusses the many different genres that have emerged over the years. For instance, there “serious games,” “art games,” action games, and so on: there is virtually a type of game for just about every taste, which means that the people who engage with these games are typically diverse as well. Some will play only a certain type of game while others might play a variety of games. For some the function will be entertainment, others to hone a skill, others to socialize with friends, and for others it may even serve as a means of employment (gaming has in fact become an industry, as is evident on popular social media platform YouTube where gamers earn celebrity by posting routine videos of their playing accompanied by commentary: PewDiePie is one example of a gamer who has millions of followers—but there are many others as well).

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Thus, videogames are not the same things they were when Atari hit the stands in the 1980s. Those 8-bit videogames were very basic and consisted of elementary, arcade-style applications. They did not command they same level of skill, attention, engagement, study, practice, scrutiny, or social interaction that many of today’s games command. The evolution of gaming has altered drastically as a result of advancements in computer technology, maturation of themes, and the development of the overall genres. They are as varied as genres in literature or genres in music or genres in film. They exist across a range of platforms, from PC-based games to online games to console games (Playstation or Xbox or Nintendo, for example). They are no long part of a niche market, as Jagoda (2017) observes: they have grown from their humble origins to reach a broader market and to appeal to a wider demographic of all ages and genders. One might find a grandfather playing Minesweeper on a PC and a teenage girl playing Halo on Xbox in the same house. The utility and proliferation of computers have assisted in this expansion of gaming to include such a wider demographic.

As Jagoda (2017) argues, videogames also represent a complex and highly nuanced form of life that includes sociopolitical manifestations, everyday life experiences, personal expression and artistic expression. Games can combine art with technology and narrative just as they can still offer up basic, time-passing utility for audiences who prefer a simple form of recreation like computer-based solitaire. Thus, games have embraced popular and counter-cultural themes; they have embraced design and art to attract players; they have embraced music and other forms of media. This has allowed the make-up….....

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