The question I pose to the wider community is, has our artform found itself now inextricably linked to the Bohemian heritage of all the arts through its indies? Or are the keyboard warriors and garage studios of today driven primarily by the pursuit of wealth?
Everyone knows Banksy. The graffitti artist known by his alias alone. Disruptive, provocative, infamous. His art is mirrored by the work of Terry Cavanagh, Jane McGonigal, Joakim Sandberg and countless others. The idea behind art-for-art's-sake is to cherish expression above all else. The question is: is art-solely-for-profit at risk of become the overwhelming consensus?
I love the indie scene. A world of emerging talent oozes out of Kickstarter and established portals like the App Store, Play Store, XBLA, PSN, Desura, HIB, Gamersgate, Steam and others.
Some indies have no marketing budget, they have no funding outside their job earnings or savings, their story is one of unwavering determination. Are we at risk of ignoring these voices as our portals become increasingly populated? Should we even take these voices into consideration at all?
The reason I pose this question is to cause discussion on wheter the artist and their struggle necessitates a new category of classification in gaming. Even within the indie scene there ought to be a means of discovering the art-for-art's sake avant garde.
Indie blogs and magazines explore this but I think this scene needs to be expanded far further to become an experience where the truly art-for-art's sake are - always - the majority.
Long have I been a believer in the power of expression through games, the eruption of the senses which unfolds as you enter a new Universe in pursuit of a goal. Players become both the conduit, the protagonist, often the subject also, simultaneously. This I feel, is essentially the most powerful element of our artform.