Industry Execs Weigh In On 'Games As Art' Debate

Executives from a variety of major game industry publishers and organizations, including Nintendo of America CEO Reggie Fils-Aime and Take-Two CEO Ben Feder, have voiced their thoughts on whether video games can be art, and unsurprisingly they unanimously disagree with film critic Roger Ebert's negative take on the matter. "I think every game is a piece of art," said PlayStation Network senior director Susan Panico, speaking with her industry colleagues in a FastCompany interview responding to repeated comments made by Ebert, who famously claimed "video games can never be art." Panico cited the Sony-published games Flower, LittleBigPlanet, and Gran Turismo as her supporting examples. Most of the other quoted publisher executives also mainly focused on games released by their own companies. Ubisoft North America president Laurent Detoc pointed out that not all video game notables might disagree with Ebert. "Even Hideo Kojima doesn't even consider that video games are art, if I recall correctly," he said, referring to a 2006 comment by the Metal Gear creator. Still, Detoc added, "In my opinion, I think it is art." Electronic Arts SVP Nick Earl, the only publisher exec quoted who referred exclusively to games not published by his company, lavished praise on Naughty Dog's Uncharted 2 as an artistic effort, calling the game "a beacon of hope for the industry." "You can't argue that is a wonderful experience that makes you feel so emotionally connected -- I think that's what art is all about," said Earl. "I can tell you we have such aspirations here to match that quality." Nintendo of America CEO Reggie Fils-Aime pointed to the wide breadth of content across games like Super Mario Galaxy 2 and Halo as an evidence of creative diversity, which he called "one of the core fundamentals of an artistically-driven enterprise." Take-Two CEO Ben Feder admitted that there is often a significant expressive gulf between a publisher's various offerings, but argued that, at their best, games can be "beautiful works of art." "Some of our games are really product, but some of the higher end games -- just show him one," Feder said, citing Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto IV. "These are beautifully set, cinematic games with character development, storyline development, beautiful setting." Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences president Joseph Olin summed up the futility of the ongoing "Ebert versus gamers" argument. "I believe that it is impossible to have a discussion with Mr. Ebert about how game makers continue to create artistic experiences," said Olin. "He is not interested and as such truly does not wish to engage in a serious discussion because he will not try to play.