Gaming in the Media Blog

Gamasutra - The Art of Games

I’ve heard countless calls over the years, often with good and pure intentions, that “Games are games, and we should keep them that way.”

While I fully understand and support that games are a wonderful play pastime, and that gameplay and fun are the beating heart of our business, I find these assertions to keep everything the same as a set of false boundaries that foster cynical limitations by those in power to assure the status quo is comfortable and predictable.

The real truth is, games have always pushed the boundaries and evolved on their own, right from the beginning. First they were a simply a “Novelty.” Then Time Magazine proudly labeled them a passing “Fad.” Then they were a “Quaint Pastime.” Then a “Cultural Phenomenon.” And now a “Mainstream Entertainment” medium.

In truth, video games have always grown beyond the bounds we try to impose on them.

GamePolitics- Comcast Packs Net Neutrality Hearings with Paid Ringers

Is Net Neutrality an important issue for gamers?

You bet.

If you’re not sure why, check out Every Time You Vote Against Net Neutrality, Your ISP Kills a Night Elf, which explains how online gaming will suffer if the big telecommunications firms win and Net Neutrality loses.

That’s why the Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) has joined with the SaveTheInternet coalition and is backing Net Neutrality legislation proposed by Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA).

For gamers, the stakes are indeed high. So high, apparently, that Comcast, which opposes Net Neutrality, hired people off the street to fill seats (see pic) at a recent FCC hearing on the issue. The tactic prevented some opposition voices from gaining access.