‘Punk’s not dead’ is a sentiment usually reserved for postmodern t-shirts worn by teenagers, the implication being that Punk culture is still alive and kicking in it's Dr Marten boots. The debate over whether Punk is or isn’t dead in terms of music is not going to be addressed here but rather whether Punk can be translated into a different medium, and indeed if the tropes and affectations of any music genre can be appropriated into other media. It is nothing new to say that music genres are not merely a style of music, but my contention is that because of this they can easily be adopted by other media. In some cases it might be an aesthetic that is appropriated, but Punk has always been different. As Joey Ramone claimed ‘All Punk is attitude’, so its influence is much more than putting a safety-pin through a nose.
Let’s look at video games. Grasshopper Manufacture is a video-game developer from Japan. The head of the company and main director and producer for most of their major titles is Goichi Suda, known by his nickname Suda51. The company motto is “Punk's Not Dead,” a sentiment that they try to replicate in their diverse back catalogue, but most notably in their recent releases Shadows of the Damned and Lollipop Chainsaw. But how can video games be influenced by Punk, or any genre for that matter?
Generally, genres differ between media , for example we have action movies but not action music. The latter would describe an emotional response to the music not a style of music. The same can be said for video games where the genre explains the type of game play and mechanics being used: first person shooter, hack and slash or role playing game (rpg), for instance. Many games can be a combination of genres, and it is here that other media can be called upon. Thus there are ‘movie’ type genres, such as sci-fi shooter or horror rpg. The traffic is two-way as game movies such as Wreck-it Ralph and Tron attest. Each media, therefore, has its own genre-specific identity but can be enriched by appropriating the identity of another media.
The addition of music genres into video game genres is a relatively new concept, seen for example in Brütal Legend, which is heavily influenced by Heavy Metal. One look at the electric guitar on the cover and you’ll know what to expect. More than this, though, the influences of Heavy Metal are evident in the design (including fonts and colours), the soundtrack and the voice-overs by Ozzy Osbourne and Jack Black. Even the title reflects Heavy Metal conventions.
Punk, much like Heavy Metal, has built a culture around its music. When someone thinks of Punk they don’t just hear the harsh, fast music but picture its ancillary aspects: the visual such as mohawks, torn clothes and piercings; and the social in its rebellion and aggressive fans. For Punk is a counterculture as much as it is about the music. And on top of this, it is about an experience, the visceral feeling one gets when actively listening to the music. Punk music is known for its basic, raw and unpolished sound, its rejection of melody, its high amount of energy, its angry and anti-authoritarian content and determination to stand out against other genres of music. These ideas of being different, defiant and visceral are what influences Grasshopper Manufacture’s games and design philosophy.
‘At Grasshopper, we strive to create games reflecting the spirit of punk music,’ Suda51 says on his company website: http://www.grasshopper.co.jp/en/company/ Essentially, he explains that he wants games that shock, inspire, challenge the norms and are unique.
At first glance, Shadows of the Damned seems more influenced by Heavy Metal than Punk Rock. The game is a third-person shooter about a demon hunter named Garcia Hotspur going to hell to rescue his girlfriend. Such delights as demons and hell are tropes often associated with Heavy Metal. Garcia's character design is very ‘Metal’: he dons a leather jacket, has tattoos and a facial scar. He has an over-the-top, violent and abrasive personality. The game combines its dark atmosphere with bizarre moments and ideas, with a tongue-in-cheek humour. The soundtrack swings from softer ambient melodies to harder guitar-laden riffs, but are all unmistakably Heavy Metal tracks, the composer Akira Yamaoka stating his influences to be Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and Metallica. A sample of it can be found on: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsjWLFeZSMw The aesthetic of the game is clearly derived from the cover art of various Heavy Metal albums. So where is the Punk, you may well ask? It’s all in the game design. It is unpolished, immature and feels raw and rushed, but at the same time it’s fun and evokes strong feeling, all of which are attributes associated with Punk. 
In Lollipop Chainsaw, there are zombies, a high school, chainsaws and more zombies, and Punk is more obviously undead. Even still the game contains influences from many genres. Each zombie boss battle is influenced by a distinct style of music in look and sound: Punk, Funk, Heavy Metal, Viking Metal, Rockabilly and Psychedelic Rock. However, these are just an aesthetic channelling of those genres. Punk Rock underlies the game in how it was made: fast and cheap but passionate.
The game is buggy, glitchy, looks dated, plays simplistically, lacks polish but has an infectious energy and sense of fun. The general reaction to it is summed up by this brief review: http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/jimquisition/6632-Jimquisition-Awards-Part-Four The combination of the aesthetics and the mechanics equals the rush of adrenaline one gets from consuming Punk music. It’s a mess for sure but who said mess can’t be fun? And as Patti Smith once said, “punk rock is the freedom to create, freedom to be successful, freedom to not be successful, freedom to be who you are. It's freedom”.
These games prove that music can influence different media. Is Punk dead? Some say yes, some say no. Its influences certainly live on, though Jello Biafra reportedly said, “Punk is not dead. Punk will only die when corporations can exploit and mass produce it,” so ironically if Punk has found a new life in other media then it may well be dead. As far as Grasshopper Manufacture is concerned, however, Punk is not dead, instead it is re-animated and recycled not by being exploited but by inspiring creative freedom.
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Quotes from
"Punk Quotes." BrainyQuote. Xplore. Web. 7 June 2015. .
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/punk.html
