QuoteWhat would happen if we, collectively, refused to make or consume any more "boring art"? If we agreed to escape the ouroboros together by opening our eyes to all the things we've refused to see until now — the stories we've been robbed of, the player types we refuse to look for, the range of non-violent experiences and mechanics games could be exploring, all the new people and perspectives we could have in the hobby if we didn't put up barriers to their entry, the critical voices that could light up the landscape if we dared to stray from the predictable and the expected?

There's a whole world of possibility out there for us. What if we've only just scratched the surface?

QuoteGamers, developers, critics, fans, creators — we're all just stuck on repeat, trapped in a rut we can't even see.

QuoteIn the games video essayist scene, one of the most common complaints you'll hear is creators saying they feel pressured to only create the same type of content lest they deviate from their channel's brand and alienate the part of their audience that wants to be fed the same type of content over and over.

Quote from: SocraTetrisI tried very hard to achieve peak relatability, to pass as just another white guy on the internet talking about games. And it worked.

QuotePart 5: This Is Not Game Maker's Toolkit

QuoteI'm not interested in telling anyone to shut up and go away, but I do think that it's on all of us to ask ourselves why the games video essay Youtube scene is so overwhelmingly white and male.

QuoteRose Brie argues that many potential gamers want soothing experiences, relief from the stress of daily life and the constant overwhelming system shock of hypercapitalism, and artistic works that engage their empathy and their humanity.

Quote"What is game design missing? I ask this question not just in terms of cultural elements. Not just in terms of diverse protagonists. Not just in terms of references beyond fantasy and science fiction and modern day warfare. I ask this question in terms of game mechanics and game systems. I ask in terms of adrenaline, dopamine, oxytocin, opioids, and other reward systems. I ask in terms of gameplay that helps a wider range of people understand themselves and their responses to stress and to the world." -Rose Brie Code (2017), "Slouching toward relevant video games"

QuoteAs pointed out by Lucy O'Brien in her piece "Are Guns in Video Games Holding the Medium Back?" [note to self: I should read this], . . . gunplay, and violence in general, are shoehorned into stories that don't support it. Even in games that dare to have a story or a setting that is wonderfully alien or weird, the gameplay layer underneath is often just the same re-used can of SPAM. And no, making a game that has you play the same meat-grinder as always, but now your character feels a bit sad about it, does not count as innovation in this space.