I like the commentary about Glados as a cruel game designer / dungeon master. The promises of cake become all the more amusing when you apply the game designer interpretation. Is this a commentary on how designers bait or promise to reward player? I definite need to replay Portal paying attention to the “game” of the experiment.

I pretty much have suspended any impulses to rationalize the legbrace on the character.

I just wonder if there’s just too much pressure on games always required to be purposeful or something. I agree that kids are not usually stupid enough to use videogames as their reason to do horrible things. I cannot imagine games are the cause for this, but perhaps a catalyst? That usually bespeaks of some other emotional problems from other sources that require looking at prior to pinning any sort of blame on video games.

I like to think they are great stress relief. Though, that’s a lot like how smokers say they smoke to relax, although nicotine is a stimulant. Go figure.

For example, sometimes I’m bothered by the intensity of concentration and focus when playing action-heavy online multiplayer games. But before I can start hypothesizing about how video games are tapping into my adrenaline supply to turn me into a psycho, I remember a prof I met once who used to be a highly competitive Go player. He told me he had to stop playing competitively because it was too hard on his heart. That surprised me, until I thought about the sort of concentration that’s involved - and how it’s very similar to what I experience playing video games. Competitive games of strategy can bring out intense emotions and unusual states of mind whether pixels or pawns are involved.

That chess thing - I was surprised, as I found myself thinking about it, how apt a metaphor it proved in building a defense of video games.

On the other hand, I’m not sure if anyone who actually asks a question like “are video games ever good for kids” is ready to respond to any metaphor, no matter how apt.

Also, I did the abstract painting too, or at least I’m starting on it.

http://thoughtlost.org/wp/media-art/computational-expressionism-experiment-1/

You didn’t. You lose. The artist wins.

Same with LitS.