E3 Day Two: Leigh Alexander's spiel on MGS4 and Hideo Kojima.
Why I got brain cancer from the Bombcast.
E3 Day Two: Leigh Alexander's spiel on MGS4 and Hideo Kojima.
Alright, let's get something clear: Leigh Alexander is NOT from a developer, NOT from a publisher, and therefore, she didn't have any games to push and what not. In turn, she jabbered just like the guys do on the Bombcast on a weekly basis. Did she continue on forever and ever? Yes, for about an hour it seemed. She even apologized on her blog for being so crazy and rambling on it. She's a journalist that had some things to say, and she got to say them.
I totally get what you're saying about games being "game from that guy." A lot of movies work the same way. I mean, we should recognize the people behind these projects, but I the names attached sway many people's opinions. Someone like David Lynch can make a movie that's completely horrible, but will get praised by some just because it's David Lynch.
Same with game designers. Kojima could make a game about him taking a shit and there is a group of people who would love it. "The turd falling into the water is symbolic of Snake falling down in MGS4."
Jakob took the words right out of my mouth. The girl runs a blog where the point is to talk about her opinion. This is where she stands in the video game industry, to voice her opinion on what she likes, give an explanation and try to relay it to others. I had no problem with her doing this.
As for the constant comments she gave, that was mostly due to her being drunk. I can't really blame her for that...
God not this thread again. I thought some of her comments on MGS4 were quite well reasoned. I thought it was well understood that MGS games are a bit of a commentary on his opinions of the fans and the industry, and I barely even play them.
PS everyone shut up about Leigh. She knows she did wrong, we've had at least two massive threads on this already.
I suggest people go through and read the OP's post again and continue to do so until they realise this topic is simply using Leigh Alexander's comments on the Day2 E309 Bombcast as a starting point for him to break into a topic of discussion based around his own views on how we perceive video games.
Essentially this is not a place for everyone to come together and bash on Leigh. Do so at your own risk. You've all been warned.
As for the OP's point. I have to agree that not being a fan of the MGS series at all I still instantly think of Kojima the moment someone mentions a Metal Gear game. And with that always comes the issue of whether specific person X managed to live up to the heavy expectations people have for games they are associated with. For me personally I find the sheer amount of hype and interest over Kojima and the MGS series to be overrated and blown way out of proportion. I see the games as generic and poorly written to be honest. And that is sort of why I think some people have a jaded view when it comes to certain games. They look at it as "oh person X is associated to the game, clearly it WILL be a masterpiece!" and don't view the game for its own merits but rather for the merits of the person associated too it.
The less 'hero' worship the better I think.
The only thing I particularly enjoyed about the Day 2 podcast was Leigh's view on Hideo Kojima and the MGS franchise because she seemed spot on about all of that stuff, particularly on how badly Kojima's work is interpreted.
Hmmm, I think having a big name on a project generally ensures that the game will at least meet a minimum standard. These guys aren't going to let a really poor game see the light of day, because maintaining their reputation is too important (personally and financially) - they'll delay or start over until they get it right. Take away that name or brand and a publisher is more likely to just put it out as it is.
(Considering the thrust of this thread really has nothing to do with Leigh or the Bombcast, wouldn't Gen Disc be more appropriate? Edit: and really the title doesn't represent the purpose of the thread either...)
"The less 'hero' worship the better I think. "
Judge a game based on what it itself has achieved, not what the developer has.
I actually think that the development of an "auteur" mystique around gaming is a good thing. Despite what your opinions of each individual game is, Hideo Kojima definitely has a style in and to himself: overly intricate plots, social and political commentary (if a touch heavy-handed), extended cut scenes, unexpected shifts in gameplay demands, etc. He is someone who really has made a name for himself. I think the same can be said for people like Suda 51, Hideki Kamiya, Sid Meiers and Wil Wright. I would posit that if each of these creators created a single game that was original IP, but put it out there without their name on it, we'd be able to tell which is which. The name isn't attached to the project as merely marketing; the name is attached to the project because it is fundamental to the way the game will be made. If someone says that a new Tarrentino movie is in production, I can get a good idea of what sort of elements will appear in that film. He has a definable style. David Lynch, who you mention, is another great example; there is a throughline of creativity to his films that make them authentically his.
The reason why I think this shift of perspective towards lauding creators of games is important is because it shows a maturing of the art form into a point where we can distinguish and identify the goal of the creators. A lot of Leigh Alexander's analysis of MGS4 is informed by her knowledge of Kojima's history and work, so his attachment is relevant in that way. Furthmore, it also informs in what kind of game we're discussing. Bioware and Kojima Productions don't make the same game. Valve and Double Fine don't make the same game. And that isn't to say that those auteurs are above the need for criticism. But the distinguishing characteristics of those singular creators or creative teams I think creates an elevated conversation. When I say "This is a Kojima/Schafer/Dyack game," I mean more than merely the level of quality the title provides. That name because an short-hand for a broad group of adjectives that describe the game. In my opinion, it informs the conversation, rather than stifles it.
By the by, excellently written blogpost.
What the hell is this? We're talking about video games here, not some elitist art bullshit. Who gives a fuck what developer it comes from. I like Mario because it's Mario, not Miyamoto. I like L4D even though I hate every other Valve game. The fact that you are even talking about this is creating more flame wars. This was never an issue to begin with. AS for Leigh Alexander, she's well-informed and has good opinions, but they are opinions that no one should give a shit about. She talked more about Second Life than anyone would ever want to know. No one gives a shit. Talk about stuf actually related to E3, which is the motherfucking point at E3. Listen to Carrie and Paul on Day 3: they actually talked about crap on E3. And I guarantee you not everyone there was sober.
Hamz, I gotta say this to counter your argument: Valve. They are NOT infallible. Yeah, they seem to consecutively make great games...even if I can point out some issues with all of them that aren't Portal. However, if they announced a new IP right now, you'd be all over it...because it's Valve. It wouldn't have to do with the merit of the game itself.
The Metal Gear Solid franchise is fantasic just like Lee feels, but where Lee rambled on about Kojima doing "this" and "that" to purposely say "fuck you!' to the consumer was a bit much. Much like a movie director, Kojima makes games to enterain people and he enjoys what he does. I mean look at all of the MGS games since the PSX. They all have tons of long cutscenes that flesh out the story and thus have made the MGS frahcise what is it today. He may have something to say in the end, but I don't think he tries to make a game where he tries to say "fuck you" to the consumer.
I didn't know that. But all Metal Gear games feel the same to me (MS1-4). I think that without Kojima at the helm as far as story is concerned it wouldn't be the same. He has a way of bringing the player into the game, much like a movie, that most developers/producers/directors wish they could do. I don't believe for a second that Kojima wishes to say "fuck you" to any of the fans of his games.
Did you know that Kojima wears a new leather jacket to protect himself from the loneliness carried on the wind?
If you said that to a doctor he'd lock you up in the mental ward so fast your head would spin.
" Leigh was drunk, she made a fool of herself, and she apologized. I think it's safe for all of us to just leave the whole episode behind. There's no need to blast her any further when she already feels the need to make an unsolicited public apology. "
yeah. Its true that she was annoying and not a good guest but the more people talk about this, the more we all look like misogynists. It makes giant bomb look like some sort of "He-Man Woman hater's club". Thats a stereotype that as gamers I think we need to avoid, that we are socially award geeks who paradoxically seem to resent women as much as we desire them. Hopefully a mod locks this thread soon.
"yeah. Its true that she was annoying and not a good guest but the more people talk about this, the more we all look like misogynists. It makes giant bomb look like some sort of "He-Man Woman hater's club". Thats a stereotype that as gamers I think we need to avoid, that we are socially award geeks who paradoxically seem to resent women as much as we desire them. Hopefully a mod locks this thread soon."
Notice how people aren't hating on the other woman who was on the Day Three Bombcast? It has nothing to do with being misogynists.
well if you read my post you would see that i agree with you about that. I don't think hardly anyone is actually being misogynist. I posted to that effect yesterday if you look at my post history. But the truth is that ppl went to her blog and called her a C***. So some hateful members of the giantbomb community are making us look bad even though indeed we arent bad. Im not saying that ppl shouldnt talk about it because what they are saying is bad, but because as this is a growing site i dont think we want ppl on the web to wrongly think the site is hostile to ladies.
It reminds me of a Doom forum i used to post/lurk on, Doomworld. If anyone, anyone brought up columbine, the columbine shooting or the doom addon levels made by Eric Harris, those thread were locked and nuked to oblivion. Not becuase the content in those posts was necessarily supportive of the shooters, but because the Doom community has been haunted by the idea that it created child killers and that its players were totally desensitized to violence. So the doom community practices self-censorship on those topics, simply so that the bad reputation in the media doesnt come back. Free speech is, of course, important to a healthy dialog, but what certain bad apples say can hurt us all, know what i mean?
If you check out Leigh Alexander's blog Sexy Videogameland, she apologizes for blathering on and on during the podcast.
As for the OP's topic, I think what he is describing is what game makers, in fact all people in their fields of endeavor strive to achieve. It's the reason why the conferences had people like Paul McCartney, Steven Spielberg and James Cameron at their presentations. Microsoft was able to bring out Kojima, have him announce a Metal Gear title and that was all they needed to get people excited. Sony just promised a Rockstar Games title and all they showed was a title screen. The consistancy in their past titles produce expectations that they can trade on when promising future creations. But the same thing can work in reverse as well. At the 2007 E3, many people were impressed by the Hannah Montana music game but were embarrassed to say so because it was a Hannah Montana game. Names are our identies, and we would all like our names to be associated with quality I believe. But fame has a price and that is high expectations. There is an old saying, "You've got all your life to write a your first novel, but only six months to write your second." And to carry the analogy further, most "books" in life are judged first by what's on the cover.
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