Project Research
1. What has been found?
Of the survey: We conducted a survey for undergraduates of various majors and grades in Xi'an Jiaotong University. The results showed that among the 114 respondents, 66 believed that the current video games can be regarded as a kind of art. For the remaining 48 respondents who held the opposite opinion, we conducted face-to-face interviews with 8 of them. In this interview, 6 out of 8 respondents said that although they believe that video games are not yet an art form, video games already have the characteristics of art and can bring aesthetic experience. The remaining 2 people said that video games are just electronic industrial products for profit, and have nothing to do with art.
In further questions, 81% of the respondents said that the story of the game plays a vital role in the artistry, and the story is second only to aesthetic elements such as pictures and music in terms of importance. We also asked participants to share the games with high artistic value. Among the games that are mentioned 3 times and above by the participants, 4 out of 8 have outstanding story, including To the moon and Titanfall.
Of existing documents: The concept of video games as a form of art is a commonly debated topic within the entertainment industry. While some would debate that video games are just a mindless distraction, many would argue that it is indeed art. The Supreme Court of the United States has afforded legal protection to video games as creative works. The National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) also classified video games as art in 2011, and in 2012, the New York Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) purchased 14 video games including "Elf" and "Tetris" into its collection.
2. How are your findings related to your research questions?
The findings provide a possible answer to our reaseach questions, including 'what people think about the artistry of video games' and 'what role does story(plot) play in video game artistry'.
3. What do the findings suggest?
We can draw the following conclusions from the survey results:
- Most students agree that video games can be called an art form, or they think games are at least artistic.
- Many official bodies have also gradually recognized video games as an art form in recent years.
- Story plays an important role in the success of video games, and many outstanding works are supported by excellent plots.