This week for ART 211W as the reading discussed Digital Technologies as a medium and our class focus was aimed at how digital technology can be used as a central element in making art, one particular example came to my mind of how media can redefined and spread to engage different audiences.
First released in 2003 and completed in 2007, Red vs. Blue really has come a long way. For anyone not particularly familiar with the chronicles, Red vs. Blue is a parody of compiled footage reenacted with Halo’s gameplay and matched with a developed storyline and witty dialogue. What started out as a simple group of gamers playing Halo has evolved to an over 5 season, 100 episode DVD set, with its own spoofs from other fans.
So here we have the basis of what began as a video game that was turned into film and enhanced by the web. In this case Halo ended up appealing to not only its fans but also people like me who have never particularly had an interest in playing Halo, but enjoy watching Red vs. Blue. This example more so exhibits the business strategy of maximizing public exposure, but it also shows how easily new media can adapt to different and various forms within the array of digital media (starting with the basis of 3d modeling and development of the game, to the production of the film series).
If anyone interested, the entire series can be found to watch on Machinima.com if you search for Red vs. Blue. Or, if you’d prefer, full seasons are also posted on YouTube if you search for the user “roosterteeth” or simply for Red vs. Blue.
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I know that I never particularly got on the gaming road. You know that the only two games I own are DDR and Guitar Hero III, and I'm not even that good at those. That being said, the graphics in those games overwhelmed me as a child and that is why I never got into it. They continue to overwhelm me. You should have seen me watch Julion play God of War. I was riveted.
ReplyDeleteI've never seen Red vs. Blue, but I've seen things similar that play off of existing games/mediums that I, and others, can appreciate without partaking in the original. I think the more you can include audiences who are, forgive my phrasing, gaming retards, the more likely you are to create gaming gods. And as we all know, that funds a large part of today's economy ($50 bucks for a game? You have to be pretty captivated to not go buy Monopoly instead).
I used to watch red vs blue all the time. i never really got into Halo because personally I'm really bad at shooter games like this. I did;however, emjoy watching red vs. blue because I mainly like the stories behind the games. And even though it may not be the same story, I like the fact that I can get the benefit of watching it without having to actually play it myself. I know the whole point of video games is to play through the story but I can't help that I'm not any good at it. In a way its a way to interact with the game on a different level. They are really entertaining and I'm glad that the game evolved in this way through digital technologies.
ReplyDeleteI remember first hearing about Red Vs. Blue and being completely dumbfounded at the idea of using a videogame to make movies. The nice thing about putting your work on the Internet is that there is a larger freedom for speech and content than trying to put your work somewhere else. Red Vs. Blue’s first season definitely had a large quantity of vulgar language. This made watching the videos challenging if you were at school or at work. Thankfully the team toned down the language and concentrated more on the story.
ReplyDeleteThe Internet also helps advertise your work and allows your work to be shared by other people very quickly. Since Red Vs Blue’s main audience is a group of people who spend a lot of their time online, it only makes sense to publish their work online as well. Their cartoon has become so popular, RoosterTeeth productions now has a weekly webcomic, stories using other games (F.E.A.R., The Sims 2, etc.) and countless machinima spin offs like “This Spartan Life” and “Freeman’s Mind.”
Since I've played the "Halo" trilogy and have watched "Red vs. Blue," I can see a lot of the problems that they had to overcome when they first started up. There were problems like how the "heads-up display" (HUD) and firearm would get in the way of the perspective, so they were forced to crop a lot of the visuals in first few seasons. Eventually, things got to the point where the game comes with built in capabilities to do machinima now.
ReplyDeleteThe series also led me to pursue some other machinima as a way of enriching my internet experience. I came across this a while back, and perhaps it'd be a nice watch. It's based on "Half-life 2."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1ey8EnVSiA
Ahh, good ol' machinima. I remember RvB being the first online animation series I followed, not just because it was witty and entertaining to watch, but also for the uniqueness of it. I had never been exposed to this style of film, so to speak.
ReplyDeleteSeeing RvB had actually driven me to try to create my own video for a school project done completely ingame. Needless to say, I was completely unaware of the time and effort involved with attempting to create a polished, finished product like Rosterteeth have done.
Within the topic of the games encompassing these other purposes, it's no surprise the games themselves are having features for recording films built in now. With Halo 2, you could press down on the D-Pad and your gun would be lowered, as to show you were talking. With H3, the film-recording became a feature integrated directly into the game. That way, it would be possible to record without the HUD, weapons, and with a free-floating camera.
It's fan-made projects like this that also jumpstart the game's popularity, even to the point where Bungie, the developers of the Halo series, often feature the cast and characters of RvB for promotions, and even to the point where they have provided dialogue for their games.
These days everything you upload on youtube, has the potential of making it to the top and as a result produces fame for some people. I am quite sure the guys who produced the Halo footage had no idea it would turn into something of that great popularity. This is what makes Digital Media so appealing? Take for example, the numa numa video. The guy had no idea he was recording himself and for some reason the footage ends up online and soon after that the man is all over the media.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you. I wrote my week's blog focusing on machinima, and frankly I can also say that using video games to showcase film is a way to appeal to both audiences. People who are not very fond or familiar with video games can appreciate the comedy of the machinima. Also, the camera work and positioning is well thought out. The likelihood that anything user created based on a well known game like Halo, Fear, or The Sims, is high. Popular user-based upload sites like youtube or google video allow for mass sharing of this content. The internet is full of these and it is unlikely for people to run across these game films, like Red vs Blue created with the Halo engine.
ReplyDelete