Abstract
Tom Bissell’s Extra Lives is part immersion into the world of video games and part personal memoir through which the author contends that video games are a form of art. For Bissell, video games can be a vehicle for conveying experiences and ideas much like a great painting or novel—and, like great art, have the capacity to generate genuine emotion. This perspective is conveyed through chapter-long discussions of his video game play experiences in works such as Fallout 3, Resident Evil, Left 4 Dead, Gears of War, and Mass Effect, among others. Bissell’s emotional reactions to his gameplay range from the thrilling to the emotionally wrenching in his reflections on these primarily narrative-focused games (as opposed to first-person shooter-style games). The lengthy descriptions are intended to immerse the reader in the mise-en-scène of each game, conveying the sensation of playing the games ourselves—the environment, the moral compass, the narrative arc we may encounter. Through his descriptions, Bissell advocates for video games as a legitimate medium for encountering and considering our humanity.
The book also profiles a few of the people behind these video games, giving us a glimpse into those who conceive of and design these games, bringing to life their dreams or nightmares, such as Cliff Bleszinski of Epic Games and John Hight of Sony Computer Entertainment. The account becomes intensely personal at times, concluding with Bissell’s description of the time he spent endlessly playing Grand Theft Auto IV while becoming increasingly addicted to cocaine. In this final reflection, he considers what video games give the player and how his own relationship toward video games became increasingly demanding, from wanting to experience something through a new medium to craving redemption through his playing. Ultimately, he surmises, “I learned that maybe all a game can do is point at the person who is playing it, and maybe that has to be enough” (p. 182).
Extra Lives offers insight into the aesthetic realm of video game playing for those uninitiated to gaming; those familiar with Bissell’s video games may find resonance with their own experiences. This book would be most useful for those interested in popular culture and the intersections of art and technology.