[General Discussion] Can video games be considered art?

Originally Posted by avanent

I wouldn't call every game a 'piece of art'.

Right - all photographs represent something, but not all photographs can be considered "art." Art stems from intention in my mind.

I don't think we have to limit ourselves to deciding whether or not an entire game is "art." For example, I felt that portions of F.E.A.R. were very artistic, even though the game overall isn't something I would consider art. By the same token, I thought that the overall "mood" of a post-apocalyptic "Big Brother" setting in HL2, as created by diverse elements including the setting, graphics (including posters on the concrete walls and the video screens), the audio (especially the pre-recorded messages), and a thousand tiny details, was very artistic, even though the overall game was focused on shooting and action.

On consoles, when I truly want to be wowed by atmosphere and design (everything, from environments to characters to water to enemies) I turn on Rayman 2 for DC.

Jam it back in, in the dark.