Wolfenstein II director says gaming is currently the highest form of art

Video games have often been seen as a nerdy hobby with no value. In recent years, some games like The Last of Us, Gone Home, The Witcher 3 and many others have begun to change that perspective with their incredible, innovative storytelling. Games like Grand Theft Auto V have pushed the envelope with innovative gameplay, so much so GTA V has sold over 80 million copies to consumers.

Gaming is larger than it has ever been but is it still just a nerdy hobby? Is there value in it? Could it be considered an art form? This question has been widely debated for years and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus' Creative Director Jens Matthies weighed in on the subject when speaking with Metro.

I don’t know, I sometimes think about: is this a meaningful way to be spending my time? But that is the bigger question of is it meaningful to be an artist? And of course, you would be hard pressed to say that art isn’t meaningful. But then, of course, we have this art form that is considered the lowest of the low.

I consider it [gaming] the highest of the high. Because it encompasses all other art forms. To me, it is the pinnacle art form at this point in time.

And yes, I think there is meaning in that. At least as much meaning as anything else that humans make. Yeah, there’s a tremendous amount of potential that is yet to be unlocked, within the video game medium.

Matthies went on to talk about the wide cast of rich characters in The New Colossus and how they develop over time, creating unique arcs. Since games are much longer than movies, Matthies believes it requires a bit more care and time to tell a really good story with great characters.

Like I said, we had near complete creative freedom… but I think part of it is that the cast of characters grew during the first game. By the end of it we had a lot of characters, and of course, they all roll over and then they grow even more in this game. So just dealing with all those characters and making sure they have their own proper character arc and moments that are interesting…

I think that just naturally leads to us having to cover more material. And then, you know, as you start writing more scenes you get really attached to them, and you want to realize them fully.

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus is out on October 27th, 2017 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.