Reading Response
I am really enjoying this book! I think it is telling that during the course of reading this chapter, I came up with a half-dozen project ideas and potential designs that I would want to work on in the future. It was also super validating of my longtime love for video games, and games/play in general, well after what my mom would consider an appropriate age limit. The observation that we are drawn to gaming/play without a distinct extrinsic benefit, even at the expense of more productive, essential behavior, was amusing and relatable. Even these days as I work tirelessly on my projects, I fit in some rounds of Apex Legends with friends. I always feel guilty for indulging in such “non-productive” activity, but according to this chapter, this is when I am truly alive!
I am not as well-versed in narrative-driven, philosophical indie games, so the walkthrough of Save the Date and That Dragon, Cancer was also very elucidating. It made me think of how a video game can be as much a work of art (or even, “literature”?) as a film, stageplay, novel, or essay. And yet, at least from what I’ve seen, society at large does not grant video games the same aesthetic value. The elements of interaction, intention, and expression inherent in games provide a unique dimension to the aesthetic experience, and this chapter really helped me understand and articulate this. It has planted seeds in my mind of doing more game design in the future, something I had never considered before in my life.
In an even more immediate, practical way, this chapter also inspired some ideas to extend or build upon some of its examples of musical gaming. I am imagining an extension of Guitar Hero/Rockband or Magic Piano/Fiddle/Guitar, but more explicitly geared towards “real” (i.e. more traditional) musical instrument practice. This tool would not necessarily provide a low skill floor (at least, not as a central objective) but potentially have a very high skill ceiling and be attractive to music educators and students. I imagine a virtual piano more literal than Magic Piano’s, with user input through a MIDI keyboard, and scrolling staves of conventionally notated music.
As an example, here is what I personally would want for my own practice sessions: I sit down at a MIDI-capable keyboard, and don a VR headset (or just look at a screen, I guess). I select (or upload) a piece of music, maybe a transcription of a jazz solo that I want to learn and study. I first select a “free tempo” mode that doesn’t sync with any kind of grid, in order to learn the notes and rhythms. Then, I could try to play along to the track itself with the accompanying written music scrolling across the screen. The playback speed would be adjustable, so I can start by practicing at a slow tempo and gradually increase. Ideally, there will be fun visual cues to indicate accuracy, similar to Guitar Hero. This tool would also provide diagnostic information on where to improve. The whole interface and virtual environment would also be aesthetically appealing and exciting, with non-functional animations and visuals (think abstract, fantastical, impressionistic version of Guitar Hero’s backgrounds).
Theoretically this tool could be used to practice any piece of music provided an .xml file and an audio track, so it could be extended for use at a beginner level. However, as opposed to Magic Piano, the key target audience would be musicians who want a more engaging, intrinsically fun way to practice their technique and develop skills that transfer directly to “real life”. I imagine it would be commercially viable, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some version of this exists already. But in any case, the exact mechanics and aesthetics that I have in mind probably aren’t, and at the very least I would like to build such a tool for myself, purely for my own development. This would be a perfect way to “gamify” one of the more tedious aspects of what should be a flow-inducing, freely expressive activity.