Aesthetics and the Art of being Anal for the Better Good

[Kjell]

Interesting article from the "other side of the fence" by Q-Games founder Dylan Cuthbert.

http://altdevblogaday.com/aesthetics-and-the-art-of-being-anal-for-the

Our coder brains tend not to be configured to let us create the art directly (the brain's left side vs its right side etc) but what we can do is everything in our power to appreciate it and enable it, and contrary to what some people might think, expression of aesthetics by us, the programmers, is actually much more important to the game than the art itself!

The demo scenes of the past and present are a perfect example of coders with an appreciation for aesthetics - Media Molecule's Alex Evans is a vivid example of this because he started in the demo scene and you can clearly see that his artistic side is infused throughout his work when you play LittleBigPlanet; of course he didn't design or draw the graphics directly himself but that game's aesthetics are driven by the power of its code.  Compare this with any game written using an off-the-shelf 3d engine such as Unreal and the difference in artistic expression is striking to me and it is very rare to see anyone other than artists expressing anything in games that use those kinds of 'standard' engines.

[Michaël Samyn]

If you ask me, the author of that quote is confusing craft with art. A common mistake to make in a world where craft is under-valued.

[Michaël Samyn]

If the same were true of fine artists, then only painters who mix their own paints and stretch their own canvases could be expressive. Or composers who make their own instruments...

[black snoopy]

I took from the article that even if you're not in an art-related role, to treat it as if it were. Like if you're working on a platformer, don't just make the run/jump physics 'functional' ... try to give them the same elegance that the physics in Super Mario Bros. or Knytt have. Something to that effect.

But I guess I don't see that big a gap between art and craft. Anyone can learn to compose music just as anyone can learn to be a plumber ... writing what most would consider 'good' chord progressions/melodies/harmonies/etc. can basically be boiled down to a set of formulas and rules. But knowing when to break those rules (and how) is where it changes from simple craft to art.

[Michaël Samyn]

I guess I have a kind of modernist idea of the distinction between art and craft. The artist is a sort of shaman who can share secret knowledge with the public. The craftsman is a person who can make a beautiful object of high quality. Sadly, in the previous century, the two have drifted apart. I'm hoping that games technology can bring them together again, preferably in individuals who are both artists and craftsmen.

I do agree that the programming of game engines and mechanics is improved when the the programmer has an aesthetic eye. This is very rare, I'm afraid. In my experience, most programmers only seem to understand the functional aspects of mechanics. And they care more about performance on the computer than enjoyment by the player. Which makes me conclude that they should just make interfaces that allow artists to deal with the aesthetics. It's not ideal.But hey, we can't all be superhuman renaissance creatures. Let's work together, in a way that allows each of use to optimally use their talents.