Oh, video games! Oh, steady wedge between generations, myself representing parents and my 14-year-old representing millions of kids who spend their lives glued to controllers with their focus ensnared by the chaos on the big screen just a few feet in front of their chairs.
What ensnares these kids? Action, animation, humor, puzzles, fun, repetitive, upbeat melodies, random explosions, suggestive clothing clinging to fantasy figures — pumped guys and top-heavy girls — epic battles, clever plot turns. Well, minus a few redeeming features (like dialogue, emotional value and nourishing story lines) isn’t this exactly what captures the imagination of adults, too?
We each have our favs, as you might say (had my sister grabbed a copyright on that word in 1971, she’d be rich now). My kid is drawn to zombie attacks and what looks like inter-planetary skirmishes, while I prefer the hypnotic effects of Pong and Asteroids. (Yes, this reveals a lot: I hate progress most of the time.) Some people still revel in the days of Donkey Kong and Mario Bro’s. and some have gone to extremes for their love of a game or it’s characters.
