泥中蟠龍's Game愛歌 [A love song for games of the dragon waiting for an opportunity] After attending G-Star 2015

泥中蟠龍's Game愛歌

[A love song for games of the dragon waiting for an opportunity]

 

After attending G-Star 2015

 

I go to Busan two times every autumn to attend to Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) and G-Star which are annually held in October and November, respectively. Both are the most significant content-related festival in South Korea. In the two events, similarly, there is the announcement of all important affairs of the year in the industry, sales of already-unveiled contents, release of new contents to the public, funding for currently-developing contents, etc.

 

All that aside, there are big differences between the two. BIFF receives numerous media attention during the period before and after the event and not only celebrities but also many people from across the nation go to the metropolitan city to take part in the festival. During the international festival, taxi drivers show visitors into related sites throughout the city and the participants are well supported by hundreds of volunteers. But, on the contrary, G-Star, an over ten-year-old international game show, lacks popularity in Korea. During the show, only areas near Haeundae and Bexco are packed with visitors. G-Star cannot be compared with BIFF in terms of the number of participants -- except game industry experts -- and articles. I'm very uncomfortable because even some people who think of film-festival visitors as those enjoying their hobbies look at game-show participants very pathetic.

 

People in the gaming industry have tried to make good games and create profit. Of course, video game developers are commercial companies which seek profit. I don't mean to cast any aspersion on people making money through the games. Only fifty years ago, the movies also were blamed for spoiling children while considering restrictions on films not to keep the youth from concentrating on. It took dozens of years off a lot of people to improve the image of the films.

 

When I was in elementary school about thirty years before, -- it was called "Kookmin-hakgyo" in the '80s before it changed to "Chodeung-hakgyo" -- most parents unnecessarily showed an attitude of hatred toward children who go to an amusement arcade. I used to go to the video arcade without my teachers' knowledge. But thirty years later, video games are still treated as "harmful to youths". One of the taxi drivers in Busan told me that he cannot understand why people go to the game show. For the last few decades, video games haven't gone much further from the beginning.

 

However, we need to actively face the difficult situation not suffering from much frustration. It's not too late. Video-game industry hasn't have a history as long as the film industry. It still has many chances to be changed. But the perception of the game would not be altered unless workers in the industry don't constantly keep at it. Now, it's time for us to change positively in the perception of video game like the movie industry.

 

 

※ This is from Kyunghyang Games column by 泥中蟠龍 since September 2013.

(http://www.khgames.co.kr)

 

Translation by Kim Ki-hui