September 29, 2008 - Call it art, or vandalism, or a feast for the eyes or blight on the urban landscape; graffiti is a part of society practically as ancient as the caves prehistoric man first made drawings in. Regarded by some as the unbridled expression of the public consciousness--a notion most have interpreted as anarchic--it has in many other ways been embraced by those who regard it as art at its most liberated. This idea of universality that street art has brought about hasn't escaped the attention of video game makers. While some regard it as the attempted monetization of such a freeform mode of expression, it also serves as the way that game developers and artists express themselves within the often rules-driven environment of video games. Think of the contribution of street art as the proverbial fresh coat of paint on a functional but otherwise familiar building fa?ade. Mountain Dew recently launched six new original bottle art designs for their Green Label Art series and asked us to take a look at how street art has influenced the world of video games. Suffice it to say we didn't have to spend too much time looking. Mark Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure The first and most obvious entry on our list is also one of the most literal portrayals of the underground tagging culture. Playing as the aspiring street artist Trane, you're challenged with attempting increasingly difficult tagging missions on your quest to be the best graffiti artist in the city. As it is for real-life graffiti artists, you're constantly facing trouble from both police and gangs in the game, and you have to successfully negotiate both to make it all the way to the end.

Apparently pithy clich?s are considered starter phrases for beginner taggers.
Jet Set Radio Future This sequel to the underappreciated Dreamcast title Jet Grind Radio, this cell-shaded action game set in the neon-infused streets of future Tokyo had you take on rival gangs by tagging over their graffiti. With your trusty in-line skates strapped on, you glided, grinded, and literally flew over the cityscape laying crazy art everywhere. A fantastically eclectic soundtrack accompanied this well-received but largely ignored title.
Sniffing paint cans also produces the same bendy reality effect...so we've been told. (Don't try that at home kids!)
De Blob The execution may be simpler, but de Blob's underpinnings still loudly echo the sentiment promoted by the underground graffiti culture. As the titular character, your job is to fill the monochromatic Chroma City with as much color as possible, all in the name of defeating the establishment and freeing the city's populace.
Grey is eviiiiiillllllll.
Counter-Strike: Source Yes, even Counter-Strike owes some of its more creative elements to street art, or more specifically to the emerging art of stenciling. Brought to the new forefront by groups like Obey and emerging British street artists like Banksy, stenciling is a quicker although not necessarily less work-intensive form of graffiti art that's already gained a strong following. While tagging (called "spraying" in the game) may not be the main point of Counter-Strike, it allows you to leave a calling card of sorts to opponents who've just received a harsh teabagging.
Nothing says anti-establishment like corporate logo graffiti.
Mountain Dew has a lot more bottle art available on their site greenlabelart.com. Check it out for updates on information on the series' featured artists.