Jonathan Blow - Philosophy and Views

Philosophy and Views

Blow has spoken many times about his views on independent video games both in interviews and in public speeches, although he has said on his blog that he has got what he wanted out of conferences from speaking at them. For his sometimes controversial views, he has received praise, notably being called “the kind of righteous rebel video games need” and “a spiritual seeker, questing after truth in an as-yet-uncharted realm.”

Blow often speaks of the potential for games to be more. He has said that he tries to make games that are more adult for people with longer attention spans and noted that games could have a "much bigger role" in culture in the future, but current game development does not address this potential, instead aiming for low-risk, high-profit titles. Additionally, formerly being a physics major, Blow has expressed that games could examine the universe in similar ways that a physicist could.

Blow has spoken out against some games for immoral game design. On World of Warcraft, he has said it causes societal problems by creating a false image of the meaning of life, calling it “unethical.” On Farmville, he has said that the design of the game reveals the developers’ goal to degrade the quality of players’ lives, ultimately calling it “inherently evil.”

Despite Braid’s success on the platform, Blow has claimed that Microsoft’s Xbox Live Arcade certification process would turn away developers because “they kind of make themselves a pain in the ass” and that they would lose mindshare to Steam as a result.