great interview Kotaku/Crecente! and thanks Richard Castaldo for sharing your thoughts on this game. It sounds like the contrast between cartoonish videogame violence and the real life counterpart is one of the more powerful themes of this game. I can't stop thinking of what Hideo Kojima said about videogames being art: "The thing is, art is something that radiates the artist, the person who creates that piece of art. If 100 people walk by and a single person is captivated by whatever that piece radiates, it's art. But videogames aren't trying to capture one person. A videogame should make sure that all 100 people that play that game should enjoy the service provided by that videogame. It's something of a service. It's not art. But I guess the way of providing service with that videogame is an artistic style, a form of art." This game is obviously not created to be enjoyed, but instead to convey the artists' thoughts on this tragedy. I think this game shows some of the vast potential that videogames have as an artististic medium.

I have been fascinated by this game, but unwilling to play it. In some ways the concept of it is exactly what difficult strong art can do. They chose two topics so tightly connected and the choice of making it a 16-bit-era styled RPG is a much stronger choice than doing a FPS. But at the same time there is no way to make it tasteful. Bu art isn't always tasteful. I say all this not in defense of the actual game or to cal the game actually art, just that the concept of it has merit. Castaldo opinions are exactly the type of opinions we should get on this sort of thing. He seems incredibly open minded and thoughtful.

Haha, oh yea. I can't wait for weatherman to read this. Here's a kid who got shot up in the actual thing playing the game (and who was able to present quite a balanced 'review' of it)... and Mr. "I don't have the ... stomach to play it" weatherman can't even download the title.

Umm. Interesting piece, but it's still hard for me to pick this game up. I didn't play this game, and I will not play it. I don't want to encourage people who try to justify his making of new colombine mod for the latest FPS. The one who is capable of assumpt aggressor side of this event must be able to realize the motivations this game creator had. He would be happy to pick other horrible events to make his next work as con as possible. What if one violent game happened to point at you, and here I thought, judging from Kotaku posts, gamers lack this kind of thinking. I'm still not sure where is the line you hate or love.

a very excellent in depth look at this young persons thoughs on the videogame. I think it takes great courage for a person like him to be able to look at this objectively after the suffering he went through. I applaud him and Kotaku for this interview.

Oh well. I've pressed "Post A Comment" button before i finish editting. Again I posted an unreadable one. I am so careless. X( Well. I don't played the game but I thought somthing about the game. That's what I wanted to write...

Great interview... Nice to read an opinion from the "inside." Richard- Amazing courage and a great outlook on life. Good luck on breaking into the industry!

Leave it to Galvon to miss the point completely and take this as an opportunity for another personal attack. That's right - I have no interest in playing games in which I take the role of a real-life psychopathic murderer, and I still find the concept of creating a video game with that perspective off-putting, especially when the event happened so recently. I think regardless of the creator's intent, any game done with that perspective is going to be inevitably exploitive and offensive on some level, and that's just not what I want to play. I think Richard's analysis is insightful and interesting, but honestly I'm much happier reading his analysis of it than playing it myself. He's a much braver man than I for having confronted this directly. I agree completely with Richar'd first statement: "I didn't think it was necessarily bad, if i was done the right way, which at least part of it seemed to be." As a concept for art, the idea has merit and certainly evolves the platform of videogaming in some way. As for the reality of playing the game, it's still something I'll take a pass on. I don't go see exhibits of Andres Serrano, not because I think they should be banned or that others shouldn't see the, but because it's not what I want to spend a great deal of time with. It's enough for me to get the idea but explore the issues in a different context.

Great interview (minus the terrible spelling). Here is a similar event that happened at my school. The student was obsessed with Columbine and really makes you think and I hope anyone that ever hears of any problems however how small/big has the guts to inform their school because you could save many lives.

Really good interview, but I still want to know what Richard Castaldo's view is on how much of an influence that videogames might have had on the Columbine shooters and kids in general.

Great interview, Kotaku is becoming the "no spin" of gaming news and opinion...nice job!

Wow, amazing interview, very sensible, no spin or anything like that. If only the news outlets would get this kind of coverage, maybe the view on games and gamers would change, especially with an interview on this subject matter.

Wow, this was a solid, simple and clean interview, Crecente! Good job. It's always amazing to me that people who have suffered greatly through traumatic experiences, as Richard did, can still keep their heads grounded and remain balanced enough to take a look at something like this RPG with an objective view. Kudo's to Castaldo for that!

I'm impressed, too. I just thought I'd add my voice to the list praising both the good interview and especially the insightful responses by Richard.

I'd also like to thank you, Richard and Brian, for the interview. Quality journalism such as this is why I'm proud to be a small part of Kotaku. A digression, if you read this, Richard: If you were designing a Columbine game, how would you go about it?

Great interview!

Journalism without the sensationalism.

16 comments later, great interview. Thanks.

I commend Richard for being able to come at a topic like this with such an objective viewpoint. The way he's able to address the strengths and weaknesses of the game as "a game" and as a "message medium" is encouraging in an era of knee-jerk emotional responses. I appreciate his insight.

Honestly, if anything could have been part of the cause with the massacre at Columbine High School, it could have been the antidepressant that Eric Harris was on. Also, I think according to one time best friend of Dylan Klebold Brooks brown, I believe he said something to the effect that Dylan was a follower. Anyhow if you view these links:

http://www.ssristories.com/index.php?sort=date

And this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6aPmhb7cIk

7 out of the 12 school shootings (which includes the columbine massacre) according to this video had been on or in withdrawal from SSRI antidepressants. How come everyone was so quick to blame games and or guns when it seems after reading these incidents of people going bonkers on antidepressants nobody ever called these large pharmasudical companies to task on this?

Okay, Thank you so much castaldo for this interview. Iv actually been looking for something a survivor had to say, But im also looking for something a survivor who TEASED Them had to say. I in no way condone the act of school shooting and the act of hurting an innocent being, But this game does explain in MANY ways on the many things that could of set off these 2 boys into doing such an act, I find the reason its NOT an FPS game is to explain better, and to not make it so realistic so kids go out and do the same just playing the game shooting innocents. ( Not everyone understands the storyline or why the game was even made, What if a 14 year old came across the game played it liked it and said hey these two kids can do it for being teased why cant i, Which could happen even with this 16 bit RPG, But wouldnt and shouldnt if parents watch over their kids from time to time, I can tell you as a teenager i wasnt watched at all really around the ages 16-18 i could of pretty much done what ever i want, including construct all those bombs in my room with out my rents noticing, so there are many things to blame people about but you cant really blame games, Kids dont live alone they live with elders who watch over them and they should do so untill the age of 18 where they can make their dissisions properly and to not commit such a pittiful act, just to be remembered as somebodys.) Also in the game i notice there was no backing down option/Run away option there are in 16 bit RPGs, which explained to me really how they would shoot at an innocent with no regards to who they are and what theyve done in the passed theyve only let go 2 of their friends who they thought were worthy, 1 being some guy that didnt hurt them in any way that they knew of. From what iv seen from journal entries and other stuff writing and spoken word for word by the boys are, "they hate everyone, Litterally EVERYONE. and they made it clear that they were gonna hurt ANY one possible, and they also made it clear that they would be a successor/god who chooses who lives and dies doing natural selection or w.e They wanted to be "God" "

Now someone commented that they dont want to play the 16 bit RPG because they dont want to condone the act of video game makers going out and building a next gen FPS about the 2. Now i HIGHLY Doubt this will happen, because like movies games are rated by a certain gaming board. They have to go through a certain process where their screened or tested to see if people or the people rating it find it legit enough to make a release. NOW If someone saw a game called Columbine high school massicre @ a gaming ceremony, I HIGHLY Doubt they would even get INTO the place to get their game rated, but even if it came down to them getting in, its obvious that it will be underated by most and not be released to the public because of its graphic nature or stupid story line of going out and killing kids for nothing.

And apperently im not possitive but there was this gurilla game making contest or w.e yearly thing to make your game go public, and a bunch of game creators did make a game about the colibine massicre and was withdrawn by the contest people once they found out that the story line was real and had to do with the 2 kids. They just changed up the names and some acts in the game to make it look like it was a completly different set of guys. So once they found out that the story line had to do with columbine they withdrew the request of the game showing up for the contest, and told them that they wouldnt be able to ever get their game out the way they were heading.

And i have a question for Richard Castaldo, I was wondering if you were that guy i saw on camera that couldnt walk properly on the second floor after shot, so you had to drag your self to the window and flag a cop to come over to the second floor, I saw the guy pulling him self up to the window and flagging the cops, next thing you know is a trucks at the first floor under the guy and two swat guys on top of the truck, They grab the guy by his two hands and just pull him down causing him to fall out doing a flip and landind onto the truck with no support. Just wondering, cuz if so you did a good job pulling your self up to that window if your paralyzed waist down, and if so you could of sued those cops for being so careless dropping you from second floor onto a truck the two kids who shot up the school carried more weight on their back then those 2 swats trying to pull the guy out of the window...