The video game industry’s plight for a global recognition on par with Hollywood’s can do worse than receive a glowing endorsement from one of the biggest names ever to grace the movie business. As it happens, Steven Spielberg, the man behind such visual behemoths as Jurassic Park, Jaws and Duel, has been speaking to The Guardian about his love for an industry that he believes has a great future, as well as a glittering past.

“Back in the 1970s, when I was making Jaws, I played the first Pong game that was installed at a venue on Martha’s Vineyard,” he said. “I’ve been a gamer since the beginning – that’s why it’s very easy for me to switch back and forth.”

When asked to draw a correlation between growing video game sales and stuttering box office figures, Spielberg was able to quash the question with a simple retort, suggesting neither medium affects his affection for the other:

“I’d be a hypocrite if I thought the gaming business was hurting the movie business,” he said, speaking over the phone from LA. “I go out to the movies. I play games. I used to go out to play games, until they came to us [and] all the video-game parlours went the way of the dodo bird.”

As the visionary director’s work with Electronic Arts continues to flourish, it would be interesting to see whether his love for epic, action-packed cinema can be emulated on home consoles. Boom Blox is cool and everything, but anybody else want to cut to the chase and blow up some aliens and electrocute some sharks?

Source: The Guardian