Page 2
Before Wii:Our interview started with Pramod describing what a videogame is to him. "A videogame is a computer program with graphics. [It] is a game of mind, played over a console, on a television, or a computer console." To him, a videogame isn't that different for many other kinds of games. "It is not like soccer or tennis that gives you physical exercise, it is essentially a game that gives you mental pleasure."
Pramod doesn't think of himself as a gamer, though he admits to having spent large chunks of time playing simple games like Minesweeper. "A gamer is somebody who draws pleasure from playing games," he explains. "His free time is spent on playing time. All the time he can squeeze, that he can make free. His homework may be faltering, but he can have free time."
At his home, Pramod has a GameCube that is primarily used by his daughter and kids when they visit. Both his son and his daughter have Nintendo DS Lites, along with individual copies of Brain Age and Big Brain Academy. I took an opportunity to get his thoughts on those games, since he's a prime target for them. "I played [Brain Age] briefly to see what it was about. It is a great game. If somebody has time, it's worth playing."
Pramod with his daughter
Pramod and I discussed videogames and a form of entertainment. He conceded that, given the right approach, videogames make for a good time, but either way, they aren't for him. "[Videogames are] a better form of entertainment than movies, provided that games are made knowledge-centric. But senseless entertainment? Movies are better if the game is senseless. A Senseless game is a game that is made without purpose other than entertainment. Entertainment is that when you are exhausted, your brain is not functioning, and you need time to wind down and relax. Whereas for me, I wind down while doing things. My winding down is not about relaxing – I draw enjoyment in producing something. If I have time, I would rather enjoy writing something or making something. Or I would rather make videogames. If I had the time to study them, I would rather spend my time making the game rather than playing it."
What would it take to get Pramod to play a game? "It would be for educating someone," he responds. "If I were to educate the masses being involved in that game, then I would play. Meaning, I have to produce some outcome for either society or family or somebody beyond myself."
The biggest development going from the previous generation of consoles to this one may very well be Wii's motion-sensing controls. In order to compare what Pramod thinks of them, I asked about what he thinks of the standard controller. "They have this A, B, C, D, and up and down arrows..." Pramod continued to describe the controllers with an air of pessimism. "I think if you have enough time to monkey around, and once you are trained, they are easy to learn quickly. If somebody does not have great motivation to play a game, then [controllers] are not motivators. You have to really learn. If somebody says, ‘that is the mission' to a young child, then no matter how, they will learn because otherwise their life is a standstill. My life isn't standstill; I don't bother learning this A, B, C, D to gain entertainment."
