For what feels like forever, mainstream gaming has taken control of TVs and minds. The creation of games by big name developers has produced good and bad reactions from people who enjoy video games. With the advancements in technology and overall creativity and ability of people who grew up playing video games, indie game developers have created a name for themselves and are taking back what was the lost art of video games with some of the current, and new generation of consoles.

The question about gaming as an art form pops up all the time in media. The late Roger Ebert came out against games as an art form, he was criticized and praised by many for his stance on the medium, mainly criticized by overzealous video game advocates. And if you know me, I’m a big critic of those video game advocates, the current mainstream fan base feels entitled to certain aspects of games to be added or changed. Indie game developers do those changes themselves and that’s why I support them so much. They’re no talk and all show.

When Super Meat Boy was made, the designers wanted to make a game that was difficult, and so they did. That game is now talked about for its difficulty and gotcha moments that the developers wanted. They expressed themselves and what they felt was fun via video games and got recognized for it. Compare this to someone who just gripes about it online. Who is more respectable?

Anyone in the gaming community knows that the next generation is approaching; it’s about two weeks away. And all of the next generation consoles will allow people with the resources to create something without the hoops of going through a big name publisher. This is big if people still want to consider video games art. Games like Super Meat Boy, Fez, and Journey are all prime examples of a solid indie game and are considered art by the masses.

With the ability to develop on all three of the new consoles and being able to publish without a big hassle, the market is open for indie developers to produce more awesome content. It allows anyone, you or me for example, to express ourselves in the game medium and show people how we may feel about a particular topic. We don’t need to have a company stifle our creativity, or tell us what we can and cannot do in a particular project if we develop independently, it gives us freedom to do what we want with something that is considered art by many.

The creation, backing and development of the Ouya, a console pretty much based around indie development encourages it even more than the mainstream platforms do.

I’m excited about indie development coming to the three major platforms. I look forward to buying indie games, and maybe even trying to make my own someday. It’s a bright future and it’s in the hands of us.