Commercialization of Video Games

Commercialization is defined as, “to offer for sale; make available as a commodity” (Dictionary.com). So, through this definition, one question comes to mind: How do the media sell video games? By utilizing appealing images and streaming video, the video game industry attempts to sell a vision to the masses, but unlike television and movies, games have a system of control. A player can interact with several things within a game world, and it’s this aspect of controlling a player in a new setting that can grab a person’s attention. For example, the Nintendo Wii offers a totally different system of control that is seen as “revolutionary.” Sure, there have been other motion-sensing devices used in the past (i.e. Sony’s Eyetoy), but the games that the Wii has offer a sense of freedom of movement that no other system has offered before. When I first saw images and video of Nintendo’s new console in action, I wanted to play with a greater aspect of control. I saw other people playing and smiling and having fun, so why couldn’t I do the same? I wanted to be a part of the bandwagon. And, I believe, this is how the system caught on fire all across the globe. It is these images that shape our understanding of games and, in some cases, function as a proponent for us to buy these products; to explore a world that can be much different from our own. It is this concept that started my years as a video gamer, since my mother first gave me a Nintendo Entertainment System. And I’ve been hooked by several ideas and concepts of video games ever since. The power of images fuel our imagination and take us to places that we’ve never seen before, and it’s this power that contributes to the commercialization of video games and their entertainment.