The Ages of Video Games

After a lot of thought and a little bit of research, I have divided video game history not by generation, but by era.  Each Age represents not only a technological step, but also a cultural one.  I am establishing this for referential purposes, so I'm not going to expand much further.  Below is the breakdown of each of the Ages.


The Discovery Age is anything that existed up until The Video Game Crash of 1977.  This covers the widest period in video game history, starting in 1947, with the Cathode Ray Tube Amusement Device.  This period is where engineers developed and experimented with the concepts of electronic entertainment.

The Golden Age is from 1977-1994.  This period is marked by the time after The Video Game Crash of 1977 up until the release of Sony's Playstation home console.  During this period, early gaming culture was being developed.  Games were mostly reserved for children, outcasts, and nerds (sometimes all three).  As the newest toy on the market, some kids used video games as a status symbol, only really delving into the most well known games.  The outcasts and the nerds of all ages developed their love affair with interactive escapism, growing the first communities both at home and over the Internet.

The Silver Age is from 1995-2003.  This period starts with the release of the Playstation up until the release of the Nintendo DS and the PSP.  Video Games were becoming commercial successes, the casual gaming market was introduced, and the expanded gaming culture was forming.  Hardcore titles like the Final Fantasy series were becoming household names.  Online gaming started becoming a mainstay in the industry, and people started paying thousands of dollars for initial release console.

The Current Age starts with the release of the Nintendo DS and the Playstation Portable (PSP) in 2004.  Social games, mobile games, fully connected platforms, and franchises that rival  movies sales mark the Current Age.  Video Games have started being accepted as legitimate forms of entertainment, and for once gaming culture is heavily influencing pop culture and the technology boom.  Facebook, Apple iOS, and Google Android OS are as much gaming platforms as Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony home and handheld consoles.



On a side note, I found this graph of Internet service providers.  If you compare this to my Ages, it has an interesting correlation.  The Internet and Video Games grew up hand and hand with each other, which is probably why they're so closely interconnected.

Romancing the Game: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Video game romance has been around for a very long time in many different forms.  They've ranged anywhere from the teenage drama of Final Fantasy VIII to Mass Effect's attempt at courtship to Catharine's complex focus of fidelity.  While adding relationships to an industry as young as electronic interactive entertainment (read: video games) is a noble pursuit in an effort to bring a mature subject so early in the development cycle, it's not being handled in a way that provides social progress.

This isn't a problem that's limited to romantic entanglements.  Video games have always been very awkward with any kind of interpersonal relationship.  The two best examples that come to mind are Dragon Age and Gears of War.

In Dragon Age, when players make decisions their companions can agree or disagree.  Making the decision that you prefer without making anyone mad at you requires you to bring the right group along.  This can be frustrating, because you may need to bring Leliana so you can pick locks, but your decisions to go against the church make her hate you.  Don't worry, though, give her a flower or  some random momento and she'll forget that you disturbed Andraste's ashes (well, not in that case, but you get the idea).  The idea that friendship can be so easily manipulated is preposterous.  Relationships are complicated.  They require time to cultivate, not just a convenience of situation and bobbles.

In Gears of War, the relationship between Marcus and Dom seem to defy the situation they're in, not to mention their relationships with anyone else in proximity.  The writers don't seem to understand the ideas that people grow, both together and apart, based on the decisions that they make.  Marcus and Dom are supposed to be brothers, but they only express any kind of connection during Bro moments.  There is no wax or wane of how they connect with each other.  The death of Dom's wife doesn't have any kind of impact on how he interacts with those around him.  I can say with all certainty that if my wife were to die, especially in such an impactful way, that it would definitely rock the foundation of every relationship I have.  Things would be tense for me, and I would test everyone with my attitude.  I would mourn for a little while but things would ultimately not change much.

These are two examples of how the video game industry can't seem to establish themselves with things as simple as friendships.  There are moments that shine, but they're even weighed down by preposterous situations.  That's why whenever romantic relationships come up, they often ring hollow.  How can an industry that can't seem to grasp friendship be ready to grasp something as complicated and intricate as intimacy.  It gets treated in a vacuum.  Romance is put in a bubble, with very little interaction, and it blossoms itself.

A prime example is in Mass Effect.  If a player goes and talks to their subject of interest, says everything they want to hear, but otherwise don't develop the relationship, they will fall deeply in love, which apparently means having sex and not acknowledging it until it randomly comes up.  This is the equivalent of the romantic comedy where the geeky guy who always listens to the girl ends up being the love of her life, and they live happily ever after (of course, that assumes that they have no real conflict other than something that can be fixed in like 3 minutes).  This is not how things work.  Romantic relationships are hard.  They require a lot of work, understanding, compromise, growth, attention, and connection.  It's all more than worth it when you found the right person, but it's either always there or it's not there at all.  You have to be apart of each other's lives, and you have to grow together, not just talk occasionally and hook up when it's convenient (that's called a booty call).

In the end, it's nice to see an attempt to see relationships become a bigger part of the gaming industry.  The only thing that needs to change is that relationships, be it romantic or platonic, need to ring throughout the narrative, not just be some random plot points that occasionally arise.