No one denies that video games can inspire art or that they contain art within them, but are they art when taken as a whole? Roger Ebert has stated that video games can never be “high art”. I personally couldn’t give a damn what some high society windbags deem “High Art” and what they think is too low for them to consider.  High Art is and always has been simply art that the ruling social class prefers. Should gamers care that some old farts look down on the hobby we love from their high horse?

The answer is simply: No! Let’s not forget that Shakespeare’s plays were originally written for and performed to the poor masses and not High Society. It took those arrogant bastards quite a while to recognize Shakespeare’s genius. The same is true of Edgar Allan Poe who is considered one of the best writers of all time but who died penniless and unrecognized. How many brilliant painters only become famous years after their deaths?

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Being a fan of the books written by Robert E. Howard, i had to try this game out. I even got into the beta version, playing it some weeks before release and i thought it was a really nice game. I tried a few different characters, leveling them up to level 10 before moving on. They would all be deleted anyway, so i didn’t bother investing more time going beyond level 10.

Now that the game is out, i must admit I’m kind of disappointed. In Tortage, the first town you visit, every quest is given to you in spoken dialogs. There are a lot of cinematics and storyline missions, which i found interesting. Rewards almost come in non-stop as you receive new skills, points to distribute, feats to organize, everything sounds perfect right?

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