Jonathon Blow (Braid) & His Thoughts on Gaming (And His New Game)

The Atlantic published an article this month on Jon Blow, the creator of Braid, in which he discusses all manner of things related to Gaming. It seems very much in tune with the ideas of gaming as art that we've been discussing throughout the semester:

“If the video game is going to be used for art purposes, then it has to take advantage of its form in some way particular to that medium, right?” he told me. “A film and a novel can both do linear storytelling, but novels are very strong at internal mental machinations—which movies suck at—and movies are great at doing certain visual things. So the question is: Where are games on that same map?”

Albeit he does seem a tad pretentious, but Braid is one of my favorite games of all time, and I think Blow has some insight to offer:

Ever since modern technology first made sophisticated video games possible, developers have assumed that the artistic fate of the video game is to become “film with interactivity”—game-play interwoven with scenes based on the vernacular of movies. And not just any movies. “The de facto reference for a video game is a shitty action movie,” Blow said during a conversation in Chris Hecker’s dining room one sunny afternoon. “You’re not trying to make a game like Citizen Kane; you’re trying to make Bad Boys 2.”

Anyway, it may be a little long, but definitely worth a read. Plus it reveals a lot about his new game The Witness, which I hope proves to be every bit as interesting as it's made out

Via The Atlantic