Gameplay Journal Entry #4
In looking through the various projects that have brought upon modifications in games the one that stood out to me was the one based on photography and photo mode in games. Photo mode is I’d say one of the most favored features included in videogames in modern day. More than ever games, majority triple A, include photo modes and when they don’t it becomes a highly requested feature. Essentially this allows the player to stop the game at any given moment and take a video or image of whatever is on screen. All three main console companies have directly integrated the taking of pictures and videos into their controllers. They even took a step further by giving players the ability to quickly upload and share to their media platforms of choice. I find this fascinating as generations ago this was all relatively unheard of.
I feel the modification of a game to include a photo mode very much encapsulates what Alexander Galloway described as counter-gaming. This idea that “the game loses its rule set completely and ceases to be a game after all” (pg. 107) is reflected in photo mode. When a player engages with photo mode the original game simply becomes a background; a canvas. In its place an editor appears, where images can be tinkered to the liking of the player. Filters, borders, labels, and other visual options give the players multiple avenues to create. No longer is the game about aiming, crafting, etc. It’s this idea that in my opinion doesn't equate to a critique but rather a conduit in mainstream videogames to be respected as an art from, and not just a piece of entertainment.
Galloway, Alexander. “Gaming Essays On Algorithmic Culture”. University of Minnesota Press, 2006. Print.
