"A Man Out Standing In His Field"

Technology is evolving at an exponentially faster and faster rate, but because it happens over time, it’s easy to be aloof to the ways it changes our day-to-day tasks. Those of us who are of an age that we can remember when things were “different” don’t often take the time to step back and try to remember what was in fact different about our experiences a few scant years ago. Those younger than us, infuriatingly, seem to completely take for granted the things that have developed in our lifetimes, and have no appreciation for how different things are. Other than communication, the aspect that technology has had the greatest effect on is probably entertainment. And just like any other form of entertainment, the lowest common denominator is a big seller. I’m talking, of course, about the genre of games hated by those who take video games seriously, “casual games”. Here’s a rundown of the casual games that I’ve been playing recently, when and where I play them, and what it all means.

myFarm (playSocial)

“myFarm” is a farm simulation game playable on Facebook. In it, you get a 15 x 15 grid of digital land where you can plant and harvest crops for in-game credits and buy animals and trees for your homestead, or send them to your friends as gifts. Initially, myFarm was a lot of fun for my problem solving brain; I got to think about which ones would be the most profitable and how to most efficiently organize my land. I got pretty good mileage out of this for the first couple of weeks. Figuring out how to get off the ground financially, organizing everything, saving up to buy trees and houses.  It was all good, engaging fun. But after I had a halfway decent farm put together, the game became a chore; harvest, plow, plant, harvest, plow, plant. A big part of this is probably due to the limited extras available for purchase in the game. Once your fields are full and you’ve bought a couple of houses, there really is nothing else to do. With more variety people could decide which type of farm they wanted and experiment with different types of setups. But with such limited extras, the gameplay follows a pretty short, linear path.

I would play myFarm mostly when I was wasting time on the internet, after I had done all of the things I was really interested in. I had already checked my email, the big comic book news sites and my news feed on Facebook, and was looking to make that sweet Internet space-out time last just a few more minutes. After a short while it became too tedious to even occupy those brain dead intervals.

Jamdat Bowling 2, demo version (EA Mobile)
Tetris, demo version (EA Mobile)

These are the free game demos that came on my girlfriend’s phone (I have still never really owned my own cell phone). I’ve played them many, many times over, and the sting of the demo ending before I’ve even hit any kind of a stride never really fades. I spend at least as much time reloading the games as actually playing them.

“Jamdat Bowling 2″ is simple and straightforward. You set the position/ speed/ curve variables, which you have to catch while in motion to give the game some sense of action, and then you throw the ball. Within the first couple of weeks I had it pretty much down pat, able to throw a strike every time, and was playing such boredom induced game variants as “Let’s see if I can hit the pins with the ball rolling as slow as possible” or “Let’s see how much of a curve I can set and still hit the pins”. After a short amount of time, that too became old. Graphically, the designers chose not to take advantage of the visually rich world of bowling culture, which is just sad. The best thing that this game has done for me is to allow me to whip out the phone and declare that I’m going to “Jam dat”.

The Tetris game is surprisingly solid. The controls aren’t horrible, maybe even good. All I can do on it is see how many lines I can get before the timed demo runs out (five), as you’re not even allowed even enough time to see if the algorithm is intelligent or just random. If I had the full version I might even enjoy it, but I don’t have a clue if it would measure up to Jonah’s lofty standards.

I play these cell phone games when I’m in public, waiting for something. At the mechanic, the doctor, waiting outside a store. I don’t think I’ve ever taken out the phone because I had the urge to play one of the games. I would probably greatly benefit to make the modicum of effort required to find some mobile games that I would actually enjoy. Does such a thing actually exist? This looks like it could be good, or at least down my alley.

Casual games are so frowned upon, regarded with such disdain, that I almost feel ashamed to admit to playing them in this article. Why is this the case? Most of the time, I think it’s from people that are defensive about video games being perceived as silly, and feel that casual games are “bringing the form down”.

Well, show me the medium that is comprised of nothing but work of merit. It doesn’t exist. And anyway, doesn’t mindless entertainment have its place? There are times when I need nothing more than to zone out on something completely innocuous, and I know that it’s relaxing me in a way that will make my time after more focused and productive. But I think there is something evil about casual games. I don’t think they utilize your free time in the same way a hollow television show or movie does. You’re working when you play a game, even one as mindless as Bejeweled. I feel like casual games rob me of the moments when my mind should be quiet and reflective (i.e. bored), filling them with pointless busy work.

So, if it’s not possible to make a video game that’s so bad it relaxes you, is it possible to make a casual game that’s so good that it’s actually entertaining to play? Is it possible to create a small, simple game that has substance? I think good games of this nature have existed for decades in what is now referred to as “retro games”. Back when all that could be created were small, simple games, designers strived to get substance into them. It’s a reductive process, starting from the top and working down; “How can I get this big idea into this small game?” Now, it’s an additive process. I feel like casual games are built on the question “How big can I make this small idea?” I’d love to see small, simple games make a comeback, but like my quiet moments in the doctor’s office, they just don’t exist anymore.