Shadows on the Screen: Play First, or What We Should Mean By “Auteur” In Games Critique
Theory says that directorial auteurs own the films they make. Each frame is the synthesis of visual, aural, and narrative ideas. If there are game auteurs, what is it that they own? Read more
Shadows On the Screen: The Man Who Told Everything
On a site like ours, where news coverage is the (high-quality) buffer between the feature articles that are our heart and soul, how do we manage the issue of the “I” creeping into our journalism? Read more
Shadows on the Screen: Why Write High Critique
Last week friend of OLC and SpawnKill.com co-founder and Editor-in-Chief Stephanie Palermo told me that she didn’t understand the appeal in “Games as Art” topics. I simultaneously felt defensive, and well, guilty.
Shadows on the Screen: What does it take to be culturally relevant?
I write about all sorts of Ivory Tower topics. Games as art, protected expression, or taboo breakers. It is particularly interesting (and debilitating) to me when one of these issues holds practical value. So, let’s ask: are all games culturally relevant?
Shadows on the Screen: What Game Demos Could Learn From Mixtapes
Maybe if Grin had spent a few hours listening to The Mixtape About Nothing or A Rhyming Ape the Bionic Commando demo wouldn’t have been so damned awful. What is Austin even talking about at all? Read on to find out. Read more
Shadows on the Screen: The One I Wrote For Myself
Over a week ago I sat down across from a brunch table with my good friend Art Tebbel and I said “Why am I writing about video games?” And he answered “Write about what you want to write about.”
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Shadows on the Screen: The Cost of Mainstreaming
Just in time for E3, the Entertainment Software Association announced that sixty-eight percent of US households play computer or video games. What does that mean to you and me? And how do Cylons, Asher Roth, and stickball figure in?
Shadows On The Screen: The Safety of Maintaining Taboo and the Importance of Social Deviance
Konami dropped Six Days in Fallujah was because of a vocal minority. Bully’s name was changed overseas despite being the gaming equivalent of a teen summer comedy. Why do even courageous creators back away from taboo? Read more
Shadows on the Screen: A Gaming Canon. Do We Need to Play Zelda to be Gamers?
If we should stop fretting about what game will be the Citizen Kane of game design, can we still worry about which games hold a similar must-play status? Read more
Shadows on the Screen: What Do We Mean When We Say “Game”?
What is a game? To be honest, I’m a little afraid to weigh in on the this topic. It’s bigger than me, and voicing my opinion on it will betray some classified core belief behind all of my critique. But here I am, anyway. Read more
