The classic mode for video games was stage-> boss battle. It then became more complicated with barriers such as stage-> mini-boss-> boss battle. Then from this mode video games exploded into a million different directions, with some focusing on stages and others focusing on boss battles and others going to new horizons. But no matter what, many of us hold dear the old method of fighting several bosses to get to the final resolution. This is what drives the plot of Scott Pilgrim. Each ex boyfriend was a boss and with the defeat of each one Scott got closer to the resolution. When watching this movie as a gamer, every single classic game experience you ever had is activated and suddenly the movie becomes the interactive space where you used to dwell as a kid. It's great for gamers and gaming culture to be used in this light. This kind of inter-textual conversation is exactly what video games need.
Scott Pilgrim is the beginning of a rich conversation about what role video games play in our lives. Clearly, with the success of the movie, video games play a huge role in many people's lives. The boss battle paradigm was adopted as a key plot driving mechanism. The movie wasn't in the business of throwing around random video game references, but instead linking these references to how people feel about particular game mechanics. The coin mechanism which always let us know we were making progress. The lives mechanism, which at times could be unforgiving or a savior. And the continue screen that always begged the question of "what is to come next". These things don't just hold nostalgic value, but intrinsic value to us. This intrinsic value comes in the form of personal anecdotes and experiences about people's favorite classic game. Scott Pilgrim brought these stories back to life.
Now, I know that one might read this and think I'm bias. Of course the video game blog and video game blogger is going to have a video game centered viewing of the movie. To this criticism I have no retort. This is one lens that is hardly ever used and it makes me happy that I have found a movie that allows me to use it. I hope more movies look to video games for context in the future.
Scott Pilgrim is the beginning of a rich conversation about what role video games play in our lives. Clearly, with the success of the movie, video games play a huge role in many people's lives. The boss battle paradigm was adopted as a key plot driving mechanism. The movie wasn't in the business of throwing around random video game references, but instead linking these references to how people feel about particular game mechanics. The coin mechanism which always let us know we were making progress. The lives mechanism, which at times could be unforgiving or a savior. And the continue screen that always begged the question of "what is to come next". These things don't just hold nostalgic value, but intrinsic value to us. This intrinsic value comes in the form of personal anecdotes and experiences about people's favorite classic game. Scott Pilgrim brought these stories back to life.
Now, I know that one might read this and think I'm bias. Of course the video game blog and video game blogger is going to have a video game centered viewing of the movie. To this criticism I have no retort. This is one lens that is hardly ever used and it makes me happy that I have found a movie that allows me to use it. I hope more movies look to video games for context in the future.
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