Anyone who’s seen Steven Spielberg’s 2002 sci-fi movie Minority Report surely walked away from the theatre with his or her heads spinning. Not only for the fantastic action sequences or mind bending story that yours truly is still reeling from. But also the amazing glimpse into the future that Spielberg masterfully weaves into so many of his films with Minority Report being right at the top of that list.

The first time Tom Cruise donned those special gloves to interact with that amazing super information interface, reaching in grabbing windows and tossing them around the screen, had many of us holding our crotches in geeky giddiness and a few in future shock I’m sure. Either way, it was a tantalizing look into what could be with regards to the way we might interact with machines, in particular graphical interfaces. That movie was set in 2054, I surely didn’t want to wait that long to have my own super computer that I could slap around and make neat things happen. But here we are just 7 years later and much of that ‘far fetched’ technology is already here and not much different then what was depicted way back in 2002.

For better or worse, there is little doubt that we are rapidly moving towards a more natural way of interacting with digital solutions via gestural based interfaces (GUI). As an interface developer myself, I see unbelievable potential in this way of interaction. It seems that many companies are also progressing rapidly to be potential leaders in this space. Microsoft has MS Surface and Natal for the XBOX 360 on the horizon. Apple, although they deny it, could have a touch sensitive Netbook by the end of the year to go along with their current entry, a little known device called the iPhone. (Apple has also apparently recently filed many patents to rapidly progress in this space.) But a surprise entry and arguably the current market leader in GUI’s is Nintendo’s Wii and it’s beautiful user experience.

As we move towards gesture-based computing and gaming, creative’s and software developers have to think about completely new interaction models. And as more and more vendors continue to roll out more advanced gesture based devices (anyone search for a book at Indigo or Chapters lately or been to the Royal Ontario Museum?) a complete paradigm shift is on the horizon for the general public. Just as developers will have to think in a new way, so too will the everyday person when doing previously simple things as checking out at the grocery store or taking money out of an ATM.

Human nature drives us to bond with everything around us: we want to feel connected. Even when current user interfaces hit the nail right on the head with regards to usability, the connection to the device running the application can be immediately lost with a simple CNTL-C or a click on the ENTER button. As intuitive and natural as we make our current interfaces (see some amazing examples here), the unnatural way that we interact with them via soon to be archaic devices such as keyboards, mice or game controllers/joysticks holds us back from the much more intimate experiences that GUI’s promise to deliver.

Watching a child playing a video game is a good example that can illustrate our innate yearning for more natural digital interactions. Children find it much easier to suspend their disbelief then adults do. This allows them to feel more connected to a video game for instance, regardless of the graphical complexity. For example, when my daughter plays a driving game with a standard controller, although she has taught herself to use the thumb sticks and buttons to manipulate the digital avatar, she has a natural tendency to turn the controller in the direction that she wants the car to move. We’ve all done this while playing Super Mario Bros. on the NES when making Mario jump with the press of a button usually constituted the gamepad jerking upwards. (In many instances right out of the hands of the user, strictly speaking from experience of course.) Companies have been aware of these tendencies for years but due to hardware limitations have not been able to properly harness this until recently. Nintendo dabbled with mixed results in the eighties with their Power Glove that was based off of NASA technology at the time. It promised to allow players to literally reach into the game and manipulate objects on screen with nothing more then a gesture of the users hand inside the glove. Other companies have released peripherals for gaming systems over the years that allowed players to partake in games based on fly fishing, golf, playing maracas and many other types of experiences. However, it wasn’t until Nintendo released the Wii that gesture based games, and technology for that matter, moved into the mainstream.

Gestures allow us to be more human: they facilitate natural interactions, which provide a more emotional connection between the user and the gestural application. The ability to temper the experience with the size or speed of gesture is also key to driving a much deeper connection then what is currently possible on most of the devices we use today. A gesture-based application should react in different ways, depending how the user is interacting. This is far removed from the current click or don’t click set up we are all used to. It allows users to experiment, and as they do, they are brought closer to what it is they are interacting with. An almost transcendence experience should be possible.

Gesture applications also allow us to be much more social. Nintendo has captured this perfectly with the game Wii Sports that is bundled together with every Wii video game system. Because users don’t have to learn complicated control schematics to pick up and play the games contained in Wii Sports: they feel more inclined to interact in a social setting. Brands will be able to capitalize on this movement by making a normally solo experience – such as browsing the latest and coolest online Flash campaign – into an experience that you can and must do with friends and family. Brands will also be able to offer much more useful solutions to the consumer over the net or special kiosks set up in sporting goods stores for instance. A great way to build brand loyalty could be to allow users to log on to Nike’s newest tennis gear site, select a racket, and then interact with it the way you would in the real world. Sound farfetched? Believe it or not, this type of technology already exists and promises to be a part of the mainstream public within the next 12 months.

Project Natal Demo

Arguably the biggest player entering the GUI space is Microsoft, who revealed to the world at the latest Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angles this year, a new add on device to their popular XBOX 360 video game system currently named Project Natal. The demonstration that followed their announcement during the press briefing, which was introduced by Steven Spielberg himself, was to say the least, jaw dropping. The demo was the closest thing to what was seen in Minority Report then any other real world consumer technology that has come before it. What sets it above and beyond other similar devices is the total absence of a controller of any sorts. The user themselves become the controller. A sway of a hand to the left could cause a tower of interactive blocks to tumble over. Or kicking a virtual soccer ball just as you would in real life is a reality Natal promises to deliver. Interaction without the use of a controller is actually beyond what was conveyed in Minority Report, where Tom Cruise in that movie still needed a glove to interact with the super information system. During further demonstrations of Natal in action, users could scan in real world objects such as skateboards for instance and Natal would recognize this and implement a digital version that could be interacted with, all in real-time. Famed UK game designer Peter Molyneux also demonstrated an interactive avatar named Milo that could recognize users facial expressions and respond accordingly to them. This particular demo was a tad unnerving because of how well it worked. I can see at one end of the spectrum a generation of children isolating themselves with realistic virtual avatars that seem to understand them better then their real world friends or family for that matter. At the other end, however, the unbelievable potential for learning interactions cannot be overlooked. Imagine software that could enhance education where students could have their assignments checked by the avatar by simply holding up the written copy to the screen. Or imagine learning to dance the salsa with a virtual dance instructor. Current advances in home 3D technology coming via companies such as Next 3D, Real D and others, promise to make these experiences even more immersive. If harnessed correctly, Natal and other similar technologies have the potential to completely revolutionize and breath new life into a multitude of industries and mainstay institutions such as education.

As a culture, we should embrace these potential new ways of interacting and thinking. Many who may be afraid of computers (yours truly if I’m not computing or developing on a Mac) may find interaction with GUI’s to be more intuitive and natural then today’s experiences. New ideas from previously unattainable demographics may finally have a voice. New concepts in teaching and learning interaction will be possible. The potential is limitless and that has to be the most exciting thing since, well since Spielberg gave of a glimpse of the future we’re now living in.

Video Games take us to places and worlds beyond our mundane lives. Places where we can have extreme experiences and there is no doubt that there is a tremendous potential to expand our consciousnesses. Many people, however, have suggested that we keep a number of questions in our minds as we journey to these new and fantastic worlds. Who will be our guides? Whose eyes will we see the world through? Whose fears and nightmares will we experience, and ultimately, whose imaginations will we be trapped inside?

Since the creation of the first computer game Spacewar in 1962, followed by the first coin operated game Computer Space in 1971, video games have consistently reflected certain periods in world history. Just as the first games were direct contrasts to the climate of the time, games in their present iteration, with the advanced technology behind them, can vividly convey the fears, stereotypes and sexuality of our times more so then any other medium in the history of our civilization. The raw potential of this particular form of media, with its often disquieting realism, has been the topic of discussion within many peer groups. With urban violence seemingly out of control and wars still a reality in our supposedly transcended culture, it is no wonder that the games of this generation choose to vividly mimic this turbulent time in world history. The constant barrage of mediated images that penetrates our minds and every facet of our daily lives seem to grow exponentially every few years. It has become so common place, embedded within us to be so bold, that it might be classified as a living entity of its own that is now growing out of our control. This startling observation brings many questions to mind with regards to the most powerful, yet least monitored medium of our time. Do video games and other forms of media contribute to the downward spiral that our culture ostensibly seems to be caught in? Or can we liberate the technology and use it for the betterment of mankind thus eliminating all of its strife?

In the increasingly fast moving digital age we find ourselves in, it can be easy to become consumed by the ocean of pixilated entertainment that surrounds us at ever corner. Parents find it incredibly more difficult to spend time monitoring their children’s actions, and with 90% (Scharrer, 2000) of American households now owning a video game system, it seems that an entire generation is being babysat by a digital childcare worker whose morals are non-existent. Because games provide extremely vivid illustrations of cultural messages within our society, the key ideologies of a culture become absolutely unmistakable. “Media images are all representations…all manufactured mediated imagery…it all goes into the constant none stop stream of experiences that we store up about the world around us” (Morgan, 2000) The dominant figure within the gaming universe still tends to be the hyper masculine character with big imposing and aggressive bodies. Professor Eugene F. Provenzo, Jr. (2000) believes that, because games are such reflections of society, and males are portrayed as big and violent, this might be what society says that a male should be like or how we view a male.  Male players might try and live up to their onscreen persona. The enormously popular WWE wrestling games is a perfect example of males living out their fantasies within the digital universe.  Because of the high realism contained within these games, players can do many of their favorite wrestler’s signature moves and taunts while imposing physical harm to their opponents at every opportunity. This might be sending the message to male players that to be male is to be powerful and violent.  There is no doubt that power can be a good thing that can spearhead positive change. Empowerment can give one the sense that they can act, do things, be understood and change the world in good ways. However, “…the vehicles of power that we give the players are one of an aggressive masculinity.”(Provenzo, Jr., 2000)  Professor Provenzo Jr. (2000) also believes that wrestling games sends the message that control and violence are ways to get what you want. Game design is still primarily dominated by men which is why we see the images that we do. The female characters in games tend to be the damsel in distress or are features to show off the players [characters] masculinity for his edification. It becomes a twisted view of the age old adage that “A woman needs to be told that you would sacrifice anything for her. A man needs to be told he is being useful.” (Adams, 2001)

Although females have not always been represented within the game industry as the influential and clever opposites of males that they are, strides have been made in the last few years to empower the female protagonist within the digital realm. Lara Croft of the phenomenally successful Tomb Raider series changed the standard in the way that females are portrayed and viewed within video games. The major shift from the female character no longer needing rescuing, won over male and female gamers the globe over. Samus, featured in the game Metroid, by famed game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, can be said to be the grandmother of all female heroin characters. The end of the first game in the series had Samus take of his helmet, revealing that he was actually a female.  This surprise shook the game industry from its foundations of male dominated hero’s and paved the way for future heroines such as Lara Croft. There is no doubt that Tomb Raider is a positive step in the right direction, however, because the games are primarily designed by men, Lara and other female characters are portrayed with grossly unnatural proportions. The bodies of the heroines are impossible to achieve in the real world.  In fact, Eidos, the company responsible for creating the Tomb Raider series, has not been able to hire a model for various gaming events that match their characters dimensions of 34D – 24 – 35. Also, the real life models at gaming events allow the fantasy of being with characters become a reality.  Female models are essentially used as sexual objects for young men who take pictures with their arms around them. At one such event, a 16 year old model was hired to portray Lara Croft and expected to pose and allow males to take pictures with her for hours on end. In essence the sexuality of a young female was exploited which sends the wrong message to both male and female game fans. Games are primarily “sexual tantalization for young boys” (Provenzo Jr., 2000) Many games also objectify women by using them in ads even though the game may not contain a female character. The add for a virtual pool game features a female model leaning over a pool table, exposing her cleavage with the words “Nice Rack” at the top. Another ad for the game Destruction Derby, a racing simulator, has numerous mud covered females wrestling. One ad for the game Gauntlet which contains a female character of unnatural proportions reads “She’s been hanging around the arcade for years.  Think about how much fun she’ll be when you get her home” (Gamepro, 2002) The message is undeniable clear to young men that it is ok to take a girl home and have their way with her.

Females are not the only minority who are consistently being exploited in the land of the cyber champion. In the same way that games sometimes absurdly convey the climates of the times that they are mimicking, stereotypes are also grotesquely exaggerated. When characters of different persuasions are featured in games, it becomes very easy to identify if someone outside of their community is portraying them. This is primarily due to the fact that 8 out of 10 developers are Caucasian.(Morgan, 2000) The game world is seen through white male eyes which is also the reason that most video games contain white characters.  When black players are portrayed, as in other media, they are usually gangsters, or minor characters that are strictly included to elicit fear within the gamer. No game drives this stereotype more then the ridiculously thriving Grand Theft Auto series of games. The latest game in the series has the gamer take on the role of a hard-up black hoodlum in the fictional city of San Andreas. To progress in the game the character is expected to build his crime empire with the only option being through violent means. Drive bys, contract killings and burglarizing the homes of impoverished minorities is not only encouraged within the game, they are necessary elements to reach the final goal. The game has been heavily criticized by advocacy groups who say “at the least, they should be kept away from children” (Chronicle Journal, 2004) Even when characters of different persuasions are portrayed in other games, they usually have some type of supernatural element associated with them. Shadow man for example has the main character of Haitian ancestry; solve various puzzles using his mysterious voodoo powers.  The stereotype is clear that blackness is “foreign or bizarre” (Morgan, 2000) and whiteness is “normal”. (Morgan, 2000)

It is clear that we have only begun to scratch the surface of what is going to become a reality within the game industry over the next few years and decades.  Game developers will continue to find new ways to interact with their legion of users, and take them to places that movies and television can only dream of. The potential of what can be done is unquestionably so much greater, that it becomes impossible to compare with anything that has come before it. As humanity struggles to overcome this difficult period in human history, video games are poised to become the principal authority of the three major media. For this to happen, however, the industry must liberate itself from the very limited notions of masculinity and femininity it portrays. It must not continue to reinforce the sexual objectivity of women and the masculinity of men, and racial stereotyping of any race. It must not teach young boys that violence is an appropriate response to any situation. This influential media must challenge these things and make us look at ourselves so that we may change the destiny of a planet headed for certain catastrophe. It is not the technology that is holding us back, it is the values that we hold near to us that come though as we produce, design, and market and sell the technology. By acknowledging what needs to be done to liberate the technology, could possibly come the answer for liberating ourselves.

Original essay written October, 2004

References:

Jhally, S. (Producer), & Huntemann, N. (Director).  (2000). Game Over: Gender, Race and Violence in Video Games [Educational Video]. Media Education Foundation.

Nicholson, D., & Artz, S. (2003) Youthful Offending.  Relational Child and Youth Care Practice, Vol.16 #14, 74-79.

Adams, S. (2001) Gods Debris: A thought Experiment. Kansas City: Andrews McMeel.

Scene & Heard.  ( n.a.). Retrieved November 25, 2004, from www.chroniclejournal.com

ESRB Privacy Online. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2004 from  www.esrb.org/privacy

A Brief History of Video Games. (n.d.). Retrieved November 20, 2004 from www.videotopia.com