Hollywood Games

April 8, 2011
Stacey Mason

photo: Jason Carlin

Hollywood’s Weinstein Company, best known for producing such films as Inglorious Bastards and this year’s Oscar-winning The King’s Speech, has decided to try their hand at video games.

Connections have been made between film and games for several years, but I must admit that I’m skeptical here. Movies tell stories by presenting them to the viewer, but games tell stories in a different way. The player must perform the story. Emotion is not elicited through spectating and empathy, but rather putting the player in a situation where she feels the same frustration, guilt, or sense of accomplishment that the protagonist does.

Until creators (and their management) realize this, we’re going to keep getting the terrible movie crossovers to which we’ve become accustomed.

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