presentation:Is Sims an art work?

Case study: Sims


















Sims details:

•The initial version starts at 1989, called “Micropolis”
•Designed by Will Wright
•Creating maps
•Developed different versions-Home Computer, Online, Phone Game, etc.
•The most updated version: The SIMS 3-Expansion packs: World Adventures, University, Nighlife, Open For Business, etc

How To Play Sims

• Create a “sim” (CAS, the character represent the player
• Control the action of the “sim” - working, building house, entertainment, etc
• Create a world (CAW, control the neighbors and town around the “sim”)

Videogame like Sims is a art from?
Is it videogame like film to be a art form?

Compare with film,

• According to Ernest W. Adams
  Films has established a cult of personality around the director
  Games may need to do the same around the game designer
  
  Reference: Ernest W. Adams, “Will Computer Games Ever Be a Legitimate Art Form”. In Clarke and Mitchell (eds), Videogames and Art,255-264
  ž“Fact Sheet: Video Games”, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Documentary Zone, http://www.cbc.ca/doczone/gamerrevolution_factsheet.html [accessed 12/9/2007]
  


• Video games like Sims also have narrative and personality around the maker.
  Like Sims, created by designer Will Wrigh
  
• A game of ‘Digital dollhouse’
• Create a reality that you can change
• Who you want to be(outlook, character, career) and live the way you want to live Create your story in the games
  In this radio, we can watch that we can be a creater in the Sims. We can create your own life in Sims.
  

Sims - create your own experience:

When you start the game, you can choose to be a young people or adult.
In the game, you will become old.
If you don’t want to be old, you can drink the magic medicine to become younger.












Fall in love







Interact with others
•as Sims 3 is a online
Videogame.


Unexpected accident











fire accident










Die in the swimming pool
No exit


Everyone play Sims that they can create their different life.
build and design own city without any required goalsThey can create their art work

ARTS created in SIMS

Sim (Character) Designing





Male or Female
Age
Facefacial features
hair style
hair color

Clothes types(eg:colour,pattern,texture)

for example, it is a Christmas wearing

Town Planning










Different style of planning
House Designing






Virtual sculpture, mold Design with creativity
Represent different style
Art works of the player


This radio say that a girl's mother and father is divored. Although her father go away,she miss her father. She affarid to love anyone. She can't have boy friend because she worry that she will look like her mother and father relationship.

Tt is a interesting radio that people are possible to use the Sims character to create their art work!

Conclude:
Sims is a tool for creating art.
Everyone is designer!

Cory Arcangel: Super-Mario Clouds, 2002

Cory Arcangel: Super-Mario Clouds, 2002

Features of the game

• an old Mario Brothers cartridge
• the image of the clouds
• use the Super-Mario Clouds

Art or not? Why?

• According to Baumgartel “art that deals with computer games has quickly moved beyond the often-formal boundaries within which much Internet and software art is situated. These explorations are frequently done in a fashion that is critical and ironic, disrespectful and deconstructivist/…these artists do not take technological dispositives for granted, but rather manipulate and abuse, circumvent and modify original games/data in order to generate new visual and behavioural forms that intervene in an emerging cultural and social phenomenon.”
• It means that Super-Mario Clouds can be a art, because it is a generate new visual forms to represent the Super-Mario clouds. Cory arcangel uses the Super-Mario Clouds to modify orginal games.

Digital Games- But are they art?

Discussion: Is it reasonable to consider computer games as art?

•a) How does Adams define art?Do you agree with his definition?

• Adams find that there is a grey area of art. Many different types can be art. Literary art like writing and drama, fine art like sculpture, painting, dance and music can be a art.
• Adams mention that art should have narrative aspect. Although there are many computer games belong in the category of literary arts with movies and contain narrative, most computer games do not have narrative aspect.
• Art should have message and a purpose.
• I agree that it is difficult to define the type of art.

b) According to Adams, what is needed for videogames to be considered as art?

• Art is a form of communication from artists to viewers.

Online Playing -The Ethics of Digital Games

Discussion:
According to the film, what are some pros and cons of playing videogames for individuals and societies?
Pros of playing videogames for individuals and society

• People especially young people who play videogames can have entertainment. They can enjoy the games to express the emotion and action on the games. For example, in the Sims, we can create a new character to represent myself.
• The youth may love the video games because they think the games are realism like 3D images. Like Counter-Strike -Schleiner, we can free to killing the people on the games.
• Young people enjoy it because we can't do it in the real life.Videogames seems the real society and life. For example, In Counter-Strike -Schleiner is a game about war. we can learn and train to use the guns.

Cons of playing videogames for individuals and society

• “Personally I would like to see computer games move towards fantasy, away from military fantasy which pretends to ‘realistic’ … “Japanese games for children and adults are engaged in this undertaking, filled with curious animal Pokemon creatures, Robo-cats, transformers, Anime people, monsters, demons and fairies, of all genders. I identify more with these characters than with counter-terrorist or terrorist soldiers and they are what I want to be my reality. Reality is up for grabs. The real needs to be remade by us” (Copyleft 03.02.02 Anne-Marie Schleiner)
• it seems that videogames aim at realism. Many teenager may addit to the game and follow the game character situation. For example, in Counter-Strike -Schleiner, the character uses the guns to killing people. Some young people may want to do this in the reality and become more violence.