WEBVTT 00:00:03.770 --> 00:00:06.840 (Computer): "Program complete. You may enter when ready." 00:00:06.840 --> 00:00:10.540 This video series primarily focuses on film and television. 00:00:10.976 --> 00:00:15.242 But every once in a while, I like to check in on the world of video games. 00:00:16.077 --> 00:00:19.539 And there's no better place to get a sense of what's happening in gaming 00:00:19.539 --> 00:00:23.848 than the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3 for short. 00:00:24.388 --> 00:00:29.674 Every summer, the entire video game industry descends on the convention center in downtown 00:00:29.674 --> 00:00:34.697 Los Angeles for an extravagant week of video game announcements and demonstrations. 00:00:36.202 --> 00:00:39.998 The highlight of the expo are the press conferences, which are put on by each 00:00:39.998 --> 00:00:45.563 of the major video game publishers, during which they showcase all their latest and greatest titles. 00:00:54.090 --> 00:00:58.761 Dozens of fantastically rendered, breathtaking worlds are on display. 00:01:01.415 --> 00:01:07.961 And yet somehow, I always walk away from E3 with a profound sense of disappointment. 00:01:08.842 --> 00:01:14.896 And that's because for all the talented developers, all the hardware innovation, all the technological 00:01:14.896 --> 00:01:22.865 advancements, and all the new games, E3 can still feel remarkably uncreative. 00:01:24.228 --> 00:01:30.447 Year after year, the gaming industry seems to fall back on one underlying theme: 00:01:31.935 --> 00:01:33.955 kill or be killed. 00:01:42.521 --> 00:01:48.021 After a few dozen trailers that all seem to feature essentially the same style of game play, 00:01:48.021 --> 00:01:55.303 the whole event can turn into a blur of flying bullets, swinging swords, and fiery explosions. 00:01:56.506 --> 00:02:00.933 And that makes it hard not to feel a little like Captain Picard on the holodeck. 00:02:02.698 --> 00:02:07.466 (Picard): "What are you here to do. Ask for a refund?" (Slade): "Nah, I'm here to kill you!" 00:02:07.466 --> 00:02:13.511 (Picard): "Computer, freeze program. Computer, this isn't what I wanted at all." 00:02:15.105 --> 00:02:19.911 (Picard): "It's much too violent. I'm here to relax, not to dodge bullets. Reconfigure." 00:02:21.697 --> 00:02:27.624 Gaming is now a 100 billion dollar a year industry. And that's billion with a B. 00:02:28.620 --> 00:02:33.723 And in many ways, E3 represents the face that industry shows to the public. 00:02:34.407 --> 00:02:40.988 As such, the event provides an ideal setting to analyze overarching patterns in the gaming world. 00:02:42.752 --> 00:02:46.654 So this year, I did a quick statistical breakdown of all the games featured at 00:02:46.654 --> 00:02:48.878 the major E3 press conferences. 00:02:49.309 --> 00:02:51.589 "Let's see what we've got." 00:02:52.539 --> 00:02:55.999 A total of 133 games were shown during these events. 00:02:56.688 --> 00:03:00.458 Only 20 of those games didn't include combat mechanics. 00:03:00.979 --> 00:03:03.837 And 10 of those were sports or racing games. 00:03:04.619 --> 00:03:11.923 A detailed breakdown looks like this: 82% combat, 3% minimal or incidental combat, 00:03:11.923 --> 00:03:22.754 5% sports, 3% racing, 1% for dancing, with just 7% left over for all other non-combat games. 00:03:24.773 --> 00:03:30.502 The fact that 82% of the games featured at E3 are combat-focused illustrates a 00:03:30.502 --> 00:03:32.965 pretty serious lack of imagination. 00:03:34.370 --> 00:03:39.803 To see if that ratio holds up over time, I went back and compared these stats to the numbers from 00:03:39.803 --> 00:03:44.105 previous E3 events, and I found similar results. 00:03:47.741 --> 00:03:53.453 Initially, I had intended to include separate stats for narrative games, adventure games, 00:03:53.453 --> 00:03:58.133 puzzle games, city building games, and exploration games. 00:03:59.333 --> 00:04:04.763 But there just weren't enough titles in any of these genres to justify their own category. 00:04:05.640 --> 00:04:08.024 A couple quick notes about these numbers. 00:04:08.024 --> 00:04:12.915 For these calculations, I focused on combat rather than on the presence of violence. 00:04:12.915 --> 00:04:17.703 So games in the non-combat category aren't necessarily non-violent. 00:04:18.684 --> 00:04:24.384 In fact, three of the ten games in that category are rather violent survival horror experiences. 00:04:27.971 --> 00:04:31.991 I make the distinction between combat and violence because with combat, 00:04:32.001 --> 00:04:35.772 the player is the one doing the violence. 00:04:37.734 --> 00:04:41.963 Violence is unfortunately part of our shared human history. 00:04:41.963 --> 00:04:44.593 And so it makes sense that some games would include it. 00:04:45.253 --> 00:04:52.066 However, when combat is the game's central focus, it tends to celebrate that violence 00:04:52.066 --> 00:04:55.845 rather than frame it as a tragic last resort. 00:04:56.358 --> 00:05:03.408 (Narrator): "One such perk will award the player with a tactical nuke following a 25 player kill streak." 00:05:05.328 --> 00:05:08.028 (Narrator): "This match will get red-hot. It's on!" 00:05:10.455 --> 00:05:13.170 Of course, not all forms of combat are equal. 00:05:13.197 --> 00:05:17.777 So just out of curiosity, I further broke the stats down by type. 00:05:17.861 --> 00:05:26.490 Of the 108 games focusing on combat in 2017, 20 of them could be classified as cartoon violence. 00:05:27.470 --> 00:05:33.179 For these titles, it's less 'kill or be killed' and more 'squish or be squashed.' 00:05:34.081 --> 00:05:39.572 The violence may be cute, sometimes downright adorable, but the focus on combat mechanics 00:05:39.622 --> 00:05:45.340 still sets up a hostile game environment in which players are forced into an antagonistic 00:05:45.340 --> 00:05:47.492 relationship with the game world. 00:05:47.734 --> 00:05:53.096 The interactions may be a lot less bloody, but the gameplay is still largely restricted 00:05:53.096 --> 00:05:57.202 to some form of 'get them before they get you.' 00:05:58.262 --> 00:06:01.921 In many ways, the gaming industry has backed itself into this corner. 00:06:02.114 --> 00:06:07.145 For decades, game studios have focused on combat to such a degree that for many gamers, 00:06:07.145 --> 00:06:13.179 developers, and even publishers, combat has now become synonymous with game play itself. 00:06:13.819 --> 00:06:18.449 The president of Nintendo of America echoed this sentiment at E3 this year. 00:06:20.083 --> 00:06:25.351 (Reggie Fils-Aime): "The game is fun. The game is a battle." 00:06:25.351 --> 00:06:30.581 (Reggie Fils-Aime): "If it's not fun, why bother. If it's not a battle, where's the fun?" 00:06:31.501 --> 00:06:35.953 That's an extremely narrow definition of what constitutes a game and frankly, 00:06:35.953 --> 00:06:38.913 an even narrower definition of fun. 00:06:40.037 --> 00:06:45.348 I'd argue that this obsession with violent combat mechanics is holding the gaming industry back. 00:06:46.014 --> 00:06:48.431 Let me quickly explain why I say that. 00:06:49.352 --> 00:06:55.098 Game play mechanics are the underlying rules and methods for engagement within a game. 00:06:55.578 --> 00:07:00.232 Think of mechanics as a set of tools that players are given with which to interact 00:07:00.232 --> 00:07:03.930 with the game world, its characters, and other players. 00:07:06.310 --> 00:07:11.122 In many of the games we've been talking about, combat is the only way to solve problems, 00:07:11.122 --> 00:07:14.880 to resolve conflict, or to overcome obstacles. 00:07:15.938 --> 00:07:21.458 That old saying that 'If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail' is apropos. 00:07:23.003 --> 00:07:27.724 Except video games are made so that nearly everything in your path is specifically 00:07:27.724 --> 00:07:30.588 designed to actually BE a nail. 00:07:31.694 --> 00:07:36.645 And if you're given a machine gun as your primary tool for engagement, that's going 00:07:36.645 --> 00:07:39.771 to determine how you approach the world and practically everything in it. 00:07:42.354 --> 00:07:46.569 (Cayde-6) This one dude is all "Rah!" so I shot him PEW and then I shot this other one PEW. 00:07:46.739 --> 00:07:49.998 (Cayde-6) Shot a couple extra guys just to be safe. PEW DUSH DUSH. 00:07:50.038 --> 00:07:54.150 (Cayde-6) I did a lot of shooting if I'm being totally honest. 00:07:55.418 --> 00:07:59.574 When games focus so heavily on combat mechanics, it severely restricts the 00:07:59.574 --> 00:08:04.140 options for both emotional interaction and creative conflict resolution. 00:08:07.029 --> 00:08:11.392 Don't get me wrong, conflict is, of course, an important part of story telling. 00:08:12.192 --> 00:08:16.922 But there are many forms of conflict, from the interpersonal to the intergalactic. 00:08:17.667 --> 00:08:20.967 Likewise, there are many forms of conflict resolution. 00:08:21.047 --> 00:08:24.643 And most of them don't leave behind a pile of bodies. 00:08:27.188 --> 00:08:32.887 I should mention that there do exist a small handful of games that include diplomatic tactics. 00:08:33.469 --> 00:08:38.179 Players can talk their way out of every situation in the retro-indie game Undertale. 00:08:38.217 --> 00:08:41.017 But that's a rare exception to the rule. 00:08:43.507 --> 00:08:48.141 Some genres like role playing games have players doing more than just fighting. 00:08:48.645 --> 00:08:54.081 But most of the other forms of interaction exist to support the combat. 00:08:54.976 --> 00:09:01.386 You might talk to other characters who will give you quests: quests which inevitably involve killing stuff. 00:09:02.454 --> 00:09:08.459 You might buy, sell, or craft new items: items that will help you in killing stuff. 00:09:08.916 --> 00:09:13.196 (Narrator): "A few days out in the wasteland, and it's time to kick back at home. My home." 00:09:14.224 --> 00:09:18.379 You might even be able to build a house: a house which you'll have to defend 00:09:18.379 --> 00:09:21.219 by killing even more stuff. 00:09:21.496 --> 00:09:27.586 (Todd Howard): "Cuz you do want to build defenses, uh, because your settlements can and will get attacked, uh, by raiders." 00:09:28.314 --> 00:09:31.214 All the other options available to players still 00:09:31.214 --> 00:09:35.214 ultimately revolve around that core combat mechanic. 00:09:36.834 --> 00:09:41.846 This topic is of special concern to me because my work primarily focuses on the representations 00:09:41.846 --> 00:09:44.566 of men and masculinity in entertainment. 00:09:45.079 --> 00:09:49.278 Everywhere we look in pop culture, we see models of manhood that are linked to 00:09:49.278 --> 00:09:52.238 confrontation, aggression, and violence. 00:09:52.747 --> 00:09:58.393 And that's especially true in video games where male characters are rarely depicted 00:09:58.394 --> 00:10:01.547 solving problems based on deescalation or compassion. 00:10:03.950 --> 00:10:08.230 (Kratos): "To be effective in combat, a warrior must not feel for his enemy." 00:10:08.262 --> 00:10:15.653 Things like diplomacy, deescalation, negotiation, and compromise all take a back seat to blunt force trauma. 00:10:17.323 --> 00:10:23.460 And that in turn dramatically limits the kinds of stories that can be told. 00:10:24.323 --> 00:10:27.598 Now whenever I make these kinds of observations on social media, someone 00:10:27.598 --> 00:10:32.186 will inevitably respond with a snarky quip about defeating monsters with hugs 00:10:32.186 --> 00:10:35.311 or dancing or by serving tea and cupcakes. 00:10:35.689 --> 00:10:40.799 They no doubt think these are devastating burns, but actually those are pretty good 00:10:40.799 --> 00:10:42.877 ideas for innovative mechanics. 00:10:43.385 --> 00:10:48.044 I'd play those games. And I'm willing to bet that a whole hell of a lot of other people would too. 00:10:49.903 --> 00:10:56.314 Interactive media has an incredible, almost unlimited, potential to deliver a wide range 00:10:56.314 --> 00:11:02.684 of emotional, deeply human experiences that deal with love and connection and empathy. 00:11:04.169 --> 00:11:09.539 Imagine an open world game where you take on the role of an EMT, or a firefighter, 00:11:09.539 --> 00:11:14.801 or a field medic, or a climate activist, or an intergalactic veterinarian. 00:11:15.073 --> 00:11:19.386 Or how about a farmer who grows food on an intergenerational space ship. 00:11:19.729 --> 00:11:22.514 Or imagine a game in a post-apocalyptic future... 00:11:22.514 --> 00:11:27.375 (because every other game I saw at E3 was set in a post-apocalyptic future) 00:11:27.375 --> 00:11:33.775 ...but instead of fighting over the scraps, players cooperate to rebuild a better society. 00:11:37.222 --> 00:11:42.297 Imagine all the stories we're missing out on because game developers insist on building 00:11:42.297 --> 00:11:48.574 virtual worlds that we experience from behind the barrel of a gun or the blade of a sword. 00:11:49.915 --> 00:11:53.136 Remember that 7% of non-combat focused games? 00:11:53.625 --> 00:11:58.945 Well, every year E3 does play host to a few small games that break the mold and 00:11:58.945 --> 00:12:01.738 give us a glimpse into the medium's potential. 00:12:02.907 --> 00:12:08.866 TACOMA is one such example. You play as an investigator using augmented reality to solve 00:12:08.866 --> 00:12:11.974 a mystery of a missing crew aboard a space station. 00:12:13.723 --> 00:12:19.386 It's these small innovative titles that are blazing a path forward for interactive storytelling. 00:12:20.417 --> 00:12:23.877 We just need a whole lot more of them. 00:12:25.587 --> 00:12:30.679 If you'd like to see more of these long-form video essays about the intersections of manhood, 00:12:30.679 --> 00:12:36.179 politics, and entertainment, then please go over to Patreon and help fund this project. 00:12:36.193 --> 00:12:39.052 Every little bit helps me keep making more videos. 00:12:39.373 --> 00:12:44.031 Next month's video will be about geeky sexism and The Big Bang Theory.