Playing It Old School: How Steven Spielberg created the war-shooter genre

Steven Spielberg is one of the most influential directors in cinema history. In a long career; his films have touched a verity of elements while setting new standards in the cinematic arts. Like James Cameron or Stanley Kubrick; everyone has at least one Spielberg film on their top ten lists.

However for all the praises he has received for this contribution to the cinematic arts; his contribution to electronic gaming has barely been recognized. This is an embarrassment for gaming culture because Spielberg contribution is significant on the same level as Shigeru Miyamoto, Hideo Kojima, and John Romero (minus the career death).

Besides having an admiration for cinema, Spielberg has been an avid gamer. Unfortunately his video game contribution has been very limited (with the most recent titles being puzzle games). Yet when he first dabbled into electronic gaming, he not only started a successful series but created a new genre.

It all started during the filming of Saving Private Ryan; during which Spielberg was inspired to create a WWII-themed videogame. After the success of Saving Private Ryan, Spielberg gathered the same creative team together for the WWII-themed game, Medal of Honor.

Set during the final years of WWII, gamers take on the role of Lt. Jimmy Patterson who has been recruited by the OSS (the forerunner to the CIA) to participate in covert operations against Nazi Germany.

Released exclusively for the PlayStation in 1999, Medal of Honor was well praised by critics and gamers. Joe Fiedler of Gamespot.com called it, “The closest thing you're going to get to GoldenEye 007 on the PlayStation” while GamePro called it “Saving Private Ryan: the game.” In 2002, IGN ranked Medal of Honor as #21 on its list of Top 25 PlayStation Games of All Time.

The success of Medal of Honor was followed by Medal of Honor: Underground in 2000 for the PlayStation. Than in 2002, Medal of Honor: Allied Assault was released for the PC while Jimmy Patterson returned that same year in Medal of Honor: Frontline for the PS2.

Medal of Honor: Allied Assault had officially set the standards of what has become the war-shooter genre. By creating a realistic war experience, it paved the way for games like Call of Duty, Ghost Recon and Battlefield to enter the market.

It is because of Spielberg that a lot of gamers are now playing Call of Duty: Black Ops or Medal of Honor (2010). Despite being one of the most respected artists, it’s only right to acknowledge his contribution in the development of the FPS-genre.

More Playing It Old School will be coming soon.

Tags: PlayStation, Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, Jaws

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Jason Lomberg

May 01, 2011

Stan, I'd have to disagree. It's because of Call of Duty that we're playing Call of Duty: Black Ops and the latest Medal of Honor. Medal of Honor made strides for FPS's on consoles, but it was certainly wasn't the first. That'd arguably be Goldeneye, among others.

Another thing: I think Joe Fiedler was being extremely hyperbolic when he called MoH "Saving Private Ryan: the game." In no way, shape, or form does MoH approach the visceral intensity or gritty realism of Saving Private Ryan. The Normandy scene in "Ryan" bests anything gaming has come up with. I wish that reviewers would temper their praise a bit more often. There's a lot to admire in the original MoH, but in the end, it's a FPS, not a war drama.

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Matthew Anfuso

May 02, 2011

Actually, it's because of MoH: AA that we're playing CoD. Infinity Ward was created by the people who made Allied Assault. And, to be fair, back in '99 (when there weren't 5000 WWII FPSs), MoH really did feel like you were playing Saving Private Ryan. Sure, it's not a war drama, but the game matched the intensity of the war scenes (again, this was back in '99) by making you a part of the action. Was it perfect? No, but it offered an experience that no game before it had.

On the other hand, MoH didn't really do anything for console FPSs. It was a good game, but Allied Assault proved that FPSs worked better for PCs back then. It wasn't until Halo that FPSs really became a viable genre for consoles.

Again, I'd have to disagree. Because a title offers something that "no game before it had" or pushed the boundaries of its platform, that doesn't make it comparable to a visceral war film--it just makes it a good video game. As critics, gamers, and observers we tend to be overly generous. When we make ridiculous statements like that a PSX FPS is the Saving Private Ryan of video games, it looks particularly silly years later when the technology has improved.

I'm sure back in the day people thought Space Invaders thrust you into a Sci-Fi flick and Asteroids was like assuming the mantle of Luke Skywalker. Are either of these games remotely similar to Star Wars? No, but our imagination fills in where the technology falls short. Why can't we just enjoy games for what they are without making strained comparisons to movies?

I've said before that I don't think games (or movies) will ever recreate the terror and visceral intensity of combat. I stand by that, but Saving Private Ryan (along with Band of Brothers) probably comes closest to recreating the "experience" of war. For a dose of "modern warfare", check out Black Hawk Down. These aforementioned properties portray war as terrible, nasty, and brutal. We see the accumulated death and destruction wrought by conflict and the terror experienced by its participants. By contrast, the purpose of Medal of Honor is to entertain. Period. It doesn't even try to go any further, and that's fine, because as I've mentioned before, I doubt gamers are ready for a "realistic" war game. But neither should we compare it to a film that *does* strive for realism. MoH was a good FPS, but a pretty far cry from a good war film.