By Shayna Rolon | Observer Contributor
Photo by Benjamin Richard
For the longest time, video games have been perceived on the surface as unbeneficial indulgences that promote violence and demote teaching anything moral/valuable. Most people look at popular franchises such as Call of Duty and Super Smash Bros., that center around shooting and fighting and lack story, and assume that all video games are designed the same way.
Nora Gavin, an MWCC alumni who is a video game design major, wants to refute the stigma against video games and prove that they have potential to hold just as much substance as a novel and aren’t always about fighting or battling.
Gavin, 23, has always had a passion for video games. She grew up playing rather nostalgic titles such as Pokemon and Animal Crossing, and never cared for video games that centered around violence. As more video games came out, she found herself immersed in games that were rich with culture and abundant in character development.
Gavin said, “One of my favorite titles, Hellblade, really shows the mass amount of research gamer designers do to put together a game that brings light to a darker issue and story overall. I want to make games that will not only inspire people, but give them a life lesson of sorts, to be able to understand the world from a different perspective.”
Games such as FireWatch, The Last of Us, and Life is Strange have inspired her more than anything to create video games herself. Gavin said, “Games that show the player what the real world is like, to show the world how to be more compassionate, empathetic, to stand up for one another, and be true to yourself are the types of games that truly motivate me to produce games for others.”
Her advice for current MWCC students that are also video game design majors is to, “Read as much as you can, get inspired by the stories and try to draw them out; Focus on what will set you apart from others, how can your past experiences be brought to the table. Once you find what it is, hone your skill in it, as well as a few others that you like, let them blend together beautifully.”
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