Source: [http://ca.ign.com/articles/2012/08/28/playing-games-for-all-the-wrong-reasons]
By: Danielle Merrithew
As an individual who was born with a game controller in her hand, the thought has never came across to me and the answer is certainly different for each person, but why do we game? What makes us so attached to the virtual world that is different from the one we live in? No, I'm not talking about what concepts in a game make us love them. That would be too easy. I mean, an underlying reason, deeper than "because we get to kill things" or "because explosions are sweet". Games may fill a void for something we cannot attain in the real world. Maybe we find we find we are under appreciated at work or school, so we grind achievements in games and feel appreciated. For some this could be that in the real world, we are lacking social skills, so we play games to interact with people we would never meet in the real world. The problems we are facing could be delved even deeper into, what if we play games for self discovery? Underneath the glitz and glamour that attracts us to videogames, an insecurity of oneself is what keeps us playing.
It has been evident to game companies over the years, that individuals who play games for achievements will continually play to constantly get more achievements. Game companies know for a fact, that achievements give a player self gratitude and push the individual to go further. This is a marketing tactic that has been around for awhile now, and game companies understand how effective it is. To the individuals that are playing the game, these achievements are fulfilling something they are very much lacking in the real world; appreciation! Everyone loves to be appreciated and respected in some way or another, and that is why people who feel this way turn to MMORPGs ( Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games) like WoW (World of Warcraft). MMOs give out an abundance of different achievements, some for easily attainable things such as getting your first mount, to more difficult things such as killing the final raid boss. These levels of achievements give the player that little push to accomplish more.
Another concept that game companies have implemented into games such as MMO's and even any online game, is the social aspect. This allows players to interact with other players. This wasn't put it just to interact with people, it was put it to interact with friends in real life and friends met online. This concept has helped people who are dealing with the lack of social skills, its a lot easier to type to someone or talk via headset than talking face to face. Even games like the Sims simulate interaction between your avatar and other people, thus creating a world where people may enjoy your company.
Games that allow us to be creative and be in a world where we are able to show off our self-expression without being ridiculed, allow us to have a sense of our self discovery. This is evident in the game Minecraft. You create your world however you want. That creativeness can inspire individuals to find our selves and help us become passionate about our interests. Its genuinely amazing the things our generation has done just from simply discovering who we are and what impact we plan to make on the earth. Minecraft gives us a world where we can express ourselves in a way that we can appreciate our creations without people making a mockery of what we have created. That is what people escape to in these open sandbox games, the ability to find oneself and be inspired by the endless limits of what they can create.
To think that video games, something most of us play for enjoyment can have an underlying coping mechanism that fill the void of what we can not attain the in the real world. The insecurities we face in the real world, that can be achieved in our game are not always a fake satisfaction, rather a push in the right direction. Friends who we meet online, may help us feel more confident about talking to people in real life. Our creativeness and passions may be released to us in games, but can be apply them in real life. Whether that being that we feel we are under appreciated, just need a friend or would like to try something new and create a new world, video games got your back!
By: Danielle Merrithew
As an individual who was born with a game controller in her hand, the thought has never came across to me and the answer is certainly different for each person, but why do we game? What makes us so attached to the virtual world that is different from the one we live in? No, I'm not talking about what concepts in a game make us love them. That would be too easy. I mean, an underlying reason, deeper than "because we get to kill things" or "because explosions are sweet". Games may fill a void for something we cannot attain in the real world. Maybe we find we find we are under appreciated at work or school, so we grind achievements in games and feel appreciated. For some this could be that in the real world, we are lacking social skills, so we play games to interact with people we would never meet in the real world. The problems we are facing could be delved even deeper into, what if we play games for self discovery? Underneath the glitz and glamour that attracts us to videogames, an insecurity of oneself is what keeps us playing.
It has been evident to game companies over the years, that individuals who play games for achievements will continually play to constantly get more achievements. Game companies know for a fact, that achievements give a player self gratitude and push the individual to go further. This is a marketing tactic that has been around for awhile now, and game companies understand how effective it is. To the individuals that are playing the game, these achievements are fulfilling something they are very much lacking in the real world; appreciation! Everyone loves to be appreciated and respected in some way or another, and that is why people who feel this way turn to MMORPGs ( Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games) like WoW (World of Warcraft). MMOs give out an abundance of different achievements, some for easily attainable things such as getting your first mount, to more difficult things such as killing the final raid boss. These levels of achievements give the player that little push to accomplish more.
Another concept that game companies have implemented into games such as MMO's and even any online game, is the social aspect. This allows players to interact with other players. This wasn't put it just to interact with people, it was put it to interact with friends in real life and friends met online. This concept has helped people who are dealing with the lack of social skills, its a lot easier to type to someone or talk via headset than talking face to face. Even games like the Sims simulate interaction between your avatar and other people, thus creating a world where people may enjoy your company.
Games that allow us to be creative and be in a world where we are able to show off our self-expression without being ridiculed, allow us to have a sense of our self discovery. This is evident in the game Minecraft. You create your world however you want. That creativeness can inspire individuals to find our selves and help us become passionate about our interests. Its genuinely amazing the things our generation has done just from simply discovering who we are and what impact we plan to make on the earth. Minecraft gives us a world where we can express ourselves in a way that we can appreciate our creations without people making a mockery of what we have created. That is what people escape to in these open sandbox games, the ability to find oneself and be inspired by the endless limits of what they can create.
To think that video games, something most of us play for enjoyment can have an underlying coping mechanism that fill the void of what we can not attain the in the real world. The insecurities we face in the real world, that can be achieved in our game are not always a fake satisfaction, rather a push in the right direction. Friends who we meet online, may help us feel more confident about talking to people in real life. Our creativeness and passions may be released to us in games, but can be apply them in real life. Whether that being that we feel we are under appreciated, just need a friend or would like to try something new and create a new world, video games got your back!
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