One of the most obvious points in the article was geared towards the argument against photorealism and in favor of abstraction. Abstraction, as seen in Pong, may have been used as an artistic expression, but I believe it was convenient, simple and the only available display method. Games have evolved along with technology, and this is absolutely necessary in the gaming industry.
The niche of high-resolution, high-quality yet visually abstract games is one I don't think has many customers.
After viewing some interesting-looking Mac games, I realized that I could not tell from the cover (marketing) the objective of the game or the target market group. I gave up and went back to looking for PC games because I knew they would give me the balance of escapism/fantasy and real-world challenge for which my soul longed.
A favorite game of mine, Quake 4, which I will be playing for the semester, has this crucial balance of fantasy and realism. In it, I am part of a military team. I fight bad guys and save good guys. I risk my life for my team members. I am a hero.
Conversely and perhaps, perversely, in the game I become one of the bad guys. I become a Strogg, a cyborg. Part human, part mechanical, I become hideous, alien even.
The realistic qualities of the game provide a connection, something of which I understand, while the fantastic qualities of the game provide a past time, entertainment if you will. If I wanted only realism, I would play The Sims.
Which brings me to my first point:
I disagree with Will Wright's comment on abstraction in The Sims. He says it is a key design element, although I find The Sims as boring as, if not more boring than, my normal life! Why play a real-time, reality game, when I have one called life chasing me down every morning? There is nothing "more difficult" (pg. 64) than starting the game from whence I last saved it after my mansion burned down as a result of stacking too many electrical appliances together. This game play is overly-realistic. A little abstraction would benefit the game immensely.
Which brings me to my second point:
I argue for more photorealism in all games, and propose that the only abstraction should occur in the game play, not in the representation. The more realistic the representation is, the more abstract the game can be, thus the more challenging, compelling, and successful.