As a game fan, when I first learned about "Ready Player One", I could say that I didn't have any fluctuations in my heart. It wasn't that I didn't believe in Spielberg's ability, but I didn't believe that game movies could have a high level. Later, the movie poster was released. As shown in the picture above, there is a strong cottage flavor, and the last bit of expectation is completely gone.
Like me, the first audience who walked into the movie theater with suspicion and apprehension gave a wave of high scores like a navy swiping the screen.
Recall how bad the recent game movies are, and you can probably understand why the audience watched "Ready Player One" so much. It has been a long time since the film industry has made a game movie with such care, and perhaps it has never been willing to try it seriously. Game movies have always been the battlefield of third-rate directors, and big directors will hardly get involved in such subjects. Perhaps only Spielberg, the old man with the heart of a big boy, is willing to try.
The success of Spielberg, the big boy, is rooted in the fact that it really gave the audience (players) the kind of game movie that the audience (players) needed -immersive experience, countless memes and correct game ethics. , and basically focus on these three points.
The film's game entry route is the recent new direction of the game industry - VR technology.
In fact, when I saw VR appearing in the film, I had a hunch that the purpose of this film was to try to provide the audience with familiar things rather than pure imagination. Although VR was very popular in the first two years, it has recently fallen into silence due to high prices, difficult promotion, lack of game support, and imperfect technology. But relatively immature AR, obviously using VR as the game entry device is a more understandable way. It is precisely because of the emergence of VR that the game is no longer limited to the screen. The audience can enter the virtual world together with the protagonist wearing VR glasses, without any presets. The "Jumanji: Battle of the Jungle", which was just released before, required a preset condition to put real characters into the game world.
The speeding scene at the beginning of the film ignited the first fire. This isn't a traditional movie in a game shell, it's really an imaginative adventure created to satisfy game fans. Racing is one of the most suitable game modes for immersive experience. It is exciting, and collapses while walking. It is also a must for the most tense and thrilling sections in many games. Simply put, the more surreal, the more exciting. I still remember the galloping scene of the original Warthog in Halo 1, and the train chase in Uncharted 4 is the most memorable. Starting a movie with a passionate racing car may be the best choice for players' psychology. At this time, no one will say that it is exaggerated like "Fast and Furious", because the game is meant to be exaggerated. And racing games are also an enduring classic game type, racing games never go out of style. As soon as it came up, all the audiences found a familiar feeling, and the sense of substitution was greatly enhanced.
Immersive experience is not only these visual and sensory experiences, but also shows the dream-making ability of the game . For many players, the world in the game is as precious and dreamy as a second home. In the peak era of online games, World of Warcraft has truly become a paradise separated from the real world. Players met each other in the world, fought side by side, and established real friendships through the virtual world. When the "Warcraft" movie was released in 2016, the offline players might be more lively than the movie. Although the movie is only about the story of Warcraft, the old players who bought tickets and walked into the movie theater were more likely to miss those who lived together in the past. Days of fighting in the game world. After World of Warcraft, no other game can inherit its mantle. The game world we miss and look forward to has been restored by "Ready Player One" in the form of an "oasis". The protagonists meet and know each other and love each other in it, which is our best memory of the era of online games.
It's not enough to be immersed in Spielberg's game world. The number of memes is an indispensable part of game movies. Even in other films, because the quality of the film itself is mediocre, we can only rely on memes to support word of mouth. It is said (I said it myself) that inserting memes in game movies can effectively improve the viewing experience. A "Halo" fan can orgasm for three days when he sees the Master Chief showing his face in the movie. "Tomb Raider: Battle of the Origin" released a few days ago is undoubtedly a mediocre work. Our Lara doesn't have to use a bow and arrow with a gun, purely because Lara in the game is inseparable from the bow and arrow , and the rationality of the plot is far less important than creating easter eggs for fans. In "Assassin's Creed" starring Michael Fassbender, no matter how unreasonable or embarrassing it is, there must be a leap of faith.
The number one player is not an adaptation of a certain game, so it is not limited by the needs of fans, so you can freely plant memes, so that more memes will increase the richness of the movie and the friendliness of passers-by - you can always find one A character you are familiar with. In fact, as a game movie, it does not absorb too many game stalks, and it is not particularly representative. The characters of Nintendo and Sony are not included, and Atari is the choice for the emotional game console. There are basically no mainstream game characters. These may be It's all due to copyright issues, but the basic effect is achieved. Of course, if a large number of characters such as Mario, Link, Geralt, and Kratos appear in large numbers, it will cause a situation of overwhelming guests. In addition to game easter eggs, there are also a lot of anime easter eggs and movie easter eggs in the film. And selected materials such as Gundam and Shining, which have high status and recognition in their respective fields, and made great use of them.
Through the presentation of classic materials one by one, the audience is very excited to follow the protagonist back to those classic scenes again. Although this approach lacks originality and is opportunistic, it works very well. Spielberg did not deliberately withhold important information without these characters and scenes being widely known. In fact, even if you don't understand any memes, it will not affect your viewing experience. The game is the process of dream-making. If you must set a threshold for entering the dream, the standard given in the film is: understanding, respect and willingness to accept popular culture.
The setting of the villain in the film is quite interesting. He is not the vicious bad guy boss that often appears in the game. The villain, Nolan, is a refined and egoistic businessman who does not understand or respect popular culture and has no knowledge of the spirit of the game, but from the position of a businessman, he wants to invade and destroy the utopian dream of the game world. Nolan's character undoubtedly points to many capitalists in the gaming world. Coincidentally, the notorious Vivendi has just announced that it has abandoned its plan to acquire Ubisoft, and the actual "Save Ubisoft" action is also in line with the scene in the movie. A company that doesn't care about the value of the game at all occupies an excellent manufacturer for the sake of profit, and then drains it and destroys it. This is the most disgusting capital act in the game circle. In addition, there has recently been a controversy over the game's out-of-box and in-app purchases in the European and American game industry. Many game companies represented by EA continue to add in-app purchase items, which has caused a strong rebound from players. In the end, EA also made a compromise. . Of course, when Chinese players saw Nolan's description of the Krypton Gold plan, they laughed at the capitalists in the Chinese game industry.
The resistance to the excessive kryptonite of the game may be the only thing that global players can reach a high degree of consensus. The creation of a villain like Nolan also shows that the main creators have worked hard to grasp the players' psychology, and they really understand the game. Instead of sticking to the idea of film creation.
In the last level of the film, the casual game concept of "just play" hits the hearts of all players. There will always be more casual players than hardcore players in this world, and even hardcore players will still be casual players sometimes. In today's game world, competitive games are very popular, and utilitarianism is getting stronger and stronger. If the game only aims to win and clear the level, then you will definitely miss the scenery of the process. Therefore, I also regret that Nintendo did not appear in the film. After the collapse of Atari, Nintendo has survived for a long time. It is precisely because it takes "fun" as its game design concept and does not create a threshold for game entertainment. Have fun with Nintendo games. However, considering the important positions of Nintendo and Sony in today's game industry, not including the roles of these two companies just shows that this film is not supported by fans' word-of-mouth and box office, it just fulfills a common dream of all game fans. .
Game movies often do not do well, I think maybe because although games and movies are entertainment products, the circles and mindsets of game makers and the movie industry are not the same. The game CGs produced by many excellent game producers can be called works of art. For example, the long CG at the beginning of "Metal Gear V: The Phantom Pain" is enough to prove that Hideo Kojima is capable of filming. Even the CG of a lower-cost game like "Like Dragon" is much better than the existing game movies. It feels like the gap between DC animated films and live-action films. Game makers don't really expect to make money from movies, and game companies, as independent large companies, also have a strong say in movie content, leaving little room for movie creators to play. Making game movies is more like playing for IP. Advertising is obviously not enough.
Thanks for editing: Ah Ting
This article was first published on the "21st Century Racer" public account
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