The idea of smart media is one of controversy. ----The argument presented by Tom Bissell in Why Video Games Matter elaborates more on the ideas presented by Steven Johnson in Watching TV Makes You Smarter, the idea of the complexity in modern entertainment, the cognitive ability it takes to engage in these forms of entertainment, and how the viewer benefits from these outlets of entertainment. While Bissell’s argument pertains to video games as a form of entertainment, Johnson’s essay on the other hand relates to television. But the points made by Johnson are built upon in Bissell's argument.
Since the latter part of the twentieth century popular shows have been aimed at challenging the viewer. Johnson uses Hill Street Blues as an example…show more content… In terms of television this can be considered a single thread game having one basic purpose eat as many power pellets, the dots on the maze, as one can and try to ingest as many ghost as on can. Flash Forward twenty-eight years to 2008 when Fallout3 was released. this game is a game with a complex narrative, with many tasks the user must complete. The user grows up with the charecter, learning to walk, taking an in game aptitude test (for the character), and then you go and kill everyone in the area of the game Vault 101 (Bissell 357). These are just three of the many things Bissell describes, but the message of complexity in the game in evident. Like television Games have show this progression challenging the user via the Sleeper curve, and this as evolved as time went on. This shows a trend that society is becoming more demanding and is expecting a more complex mentally challenging experience out of modern…show more content… Also people learn to make inferences during these shows while trying to think about the possible scenarios that can play out during the show or even the season. These skills can help one connect to their surrounds by using them get a better understanding of their lives or even, the world. Johnson stresses that in shows “Kids are force to thin kliek grownups: analyzing complex social networks, managing resources, tracking subtle narrative intertwinings, recognizing long term patterns (Johnson 293).” These skills are ones that will benefit the user if they learn how to apply them to real life which Johnson implicitly is trying to