Marketing and Award Shows (Score 1)

Well said. I'm not sure if this has been pointed out yet or not, but all award shows exist to be advertisement. They exist to create a buzz about whatever it is they're awarding. I don't think the academy awards are around to elevate the level of film discourse in the country, I think they're around so people can see the stars come out, know what to see and feel good about it, and think they're on top of this (self established) major cultural event. Taken as marketing, though, I think there's a lot of value in looking at the VGAs. I have to say, if I strung all the game ad's I've seen together, it would pretty much turn out like that show. So if we take the VGAs as a reflection of how the industry presents itself, than yes, it's pretty immature and repulsive. I don't really blame the VGA's for dumbing things down. It'd be great if it was a highbrow show, but I see a few problems with that. First, the people who really should be presenting and receiving the awards aren't really that famous or attractive, on the whole. People watch most award shows because there's a boat load of celebrities there, doing their celebrity thing. Second, I think any game award show would have a hard market to please. Most gamers agree on the nominees and the winners of the last VGA's, but seem divided over the presentation. Why do we take the academy awards so seriously? Because the show takes itself seriously. And what's its demographic? I would say middle aged people whose programing generally doesn't include half naked women and rock guitar riffs cutting in every 10 seconds. And the winners? Adult dramas. But look at the teen choice awards, or the MTV awards. Totally different presentation, different demographic and different winners. But I think the people who watch those shows are generally pretty happy with them. So in the mind of the network, who's playing these games, 13 year olds, or 30 year olds. (Obviously, a network as hyper-misogynistic as Spike is going to aim low.) Maybe the easy answer here is that, from the get go, we need more than one type of show. Third, I think the games themselves should be held partly accountable for the overall level of maturity of the show. While brilliant formally, the scatologically obsessed content of San Andreas couldn't play well at at buttoned up affair. On gaming's ever advancing march toward an art form, the VGA's are sure to be an interesting and illuminating artifact.