Question Why do you play video games?

[JasmineReedTheAuthor]

I'm writing an article for my website and will include the best answers.

 

[Brian Boru]

Hi Jasmine, welcome to the forum

What is your website URL?
JasmineReedTheAuthor.com does not lead to a page.

People here may like to know what kind of site their replies might be featured on—I know I sure would.

 

[JasmineReedTheAuthor]

JasmineReedTheAuthor.weebly.com

 

[Zloth]

Why play video games? Because they are fun, of course.

I'm guessing you want more detail, but the question is as vague as 'why do you watch TV' or 'why do you read books.'

 

[Mazer]

An old gypsy placed a curse on my pregnant mother, decreeing that her youngest child be forever distracted from real accomplishments and the building of profitable and desirable skills. Also I'm not crazy about going outdoors.

 

[Brian Boru]

V games became my entertainment medium of choice once they evolved to the point where they provided me with significant control over my actions and my effect on the developing action or story.

Even games with less agency, such as puzzle games, were still preferable because I could try different things or explore different areas. Contrast with a detective book or show, where I either 'got' the delivered hint or clue, or I didn't—just too passive.

This century, games have of course developed to be able to rival other visual mediums, while still providing often considerable player agency. What show can rival the experience of Microsoft Flight Simulator, where I can fly to any destination in the world, not merely the one the show's visiting next week?

I can blow stuff up, or dabble in magic, or build an empire, or match marbles, or simulate building a PC or farm, or shred zombies, or pick out hidden objects. What's not to like, for everyone?

 

[ZedClampet]

I'm writing an article for my website and will include the best answers.

Video games just sort of replaced television for me. While the average American spends a few hours each day watching TV, I spend some time (not usually quite that much) playing video games instead and never watch television at all.

Games have a lot of advantages over other entertainment. For one thing, they aren't passive, which helps to hold your interest and increases your immersion. Many games involve using eye-hand coordination and problem solving skills, as well, which means they may actually be better for you in some small way than passively watching a show.

A non-gamer probably has an image of a "game" in their head that they think of any time someone mentions the hobby, and that may actually color their opinion of gaming, but the number of game genres is vast. The reality is that there is something for everyone, including many excellently told, nonviolent narrative games. More than a few of these contain stories that put much of Hollywood's storytelling to shame. I mention narrative games mostly because non-gamers tend to watch television, stream movies, etc. and because of these games' general accessibility, which would make them good starting points for people interested in giving gaming a shot.

Finally, just below the surface, I suppose I'm a little defensive. Implicit in these types of questions is a question of morality. Non-gamers tend to ask why you are gaming because they feel that gaming is time poorly spent. They've already made a judgement when they ask the question. You never hear the question, "Why do you watch television?" It's just accepted. The truth is that gaming is just another thing that people do to relax and have a little escape, and it's no worse than other ways of achieving that. Of course, you could always exercise, but that would be awful...

 

[Pifanjr]

It gives me that sweet, sweet dopamine.

 

[Brian Boru]

You never hear the question, "Why do you watch television?" It's just accepted

I think that's where the defensiveness resides—people 'know' they shouldn't spend so much time in front of TV, so society has made a global tacit agreement not to talk about it. So 'tolerated' rather than 'accepted'.

Non-gamers tend to ask why you are gaming because they feel that gaming is time poorly spent

No need to be defensive, people ask that kind of question about all facets of life…
Why do you work so much?
Why do you run marathons?
Why do you put on makeup?
Etc etc etc
…with the same implied criticism—that lack of awareness is on them, not the person being queried.

Ignorance about gaming should be steadily decreasing, with it well ahead of all other entertainment sources except for TV & home video. Bigger than Hollywood, bigger than music, bigger than sports… there's only so much ignorance to go around!

People can hardly have failed to notice all the benefits and skills gaming can bring to general life:
Computer assembly
Concentration
Cooperation
Coordination
Detection
Empathy
Exploration
Farm work
Immersion
Improvising
Interdependence
Investing
Job flow
Leadership
Mental flexibility
Multitasking
Orienteering
Patience
Perseverance
Planning
Probability
Manufacturing layout
Reading
Relaxation
Resource management
Socializing
Strategic choice
Strategy
Tactical flexibility
Tactics
Teamwork
Timing

 

[Colif]

I have been playing video games for almost as long as I knew about computers. Probably longer, I don't remember first arcade machine I saw, but I can tell you when i saw first computer game, 1982.

I never thought about why I play them, its just something I have done for most of my life and I never stopped to ask why. I just do. I guess its a hobby as early on we would collect games for computers we didn't own. PC wasn't really a games machine in early 80's, so the games were for all sorts of machines. It was more about having the games more than being able to play them. I then swapped to consoles until 1999 when I got a PC finally.

 

[Frindis]

• Playing with my nephews
• Dopamine
• Earning money
• Exploring the unknown
• Boosting my IQ/EQ to unfathomable levels🎒
• Audio/Visual effects
• Cinematography techniques
• Inadequately clothed female characters
• Building and destroying stuff, often in that order
• Lore/Characters
• Shooting stuff
• Blood&Gore
• Guns
• Hoarding
• Clever use of game mechanics
• Dyes
• Simulations
• Surviving
• Best a foe
• Manipulating the market
• Winning/Loosing
• Flipping
• Customizing
• Theorycrafting
• Mods
• Nostalgia
• Progress/Achievements
• Cyber/Punk/Gothic
• Dystopia
• Mobs
• Treasure
• Loot beams/explosions
• and so much more.....

 

[McStabStab]

I'm married, have two kids under 3 years old, and during the pandemic I've been working way more than the normal amount of hours. Gaming is the place I can go to completely remove my mind from the endless string of thoughts required to keep my family and business healthy and growing. I turn my brain off to the real world and fully commit it to something that requires an entirely different skill set and thinking pattern. It's my oasis.

 

[IndecentLouie]

Funnily I ask myself that question often, mostly when I'm playing a game I find absolutely boring yet still continue playing.
Recently playing Bobmber Crew for a few hours "Why am I playing this? it's boring, repetative and unpolished" Closes game down
Opens it back up 30 minutes later "One more chance"
Rinse and repeat

 

[Colif]

Funnily I ask myself that question often, mostly when I'm playing a game I find absolutely boring yet still continue playing.
Recently playing Bobmber Crew for a few hours "Why am I playing this? it's boring, repetative and unpolished" Closes game down
Opens it back up 30 minutes later "One more chance"
Rinse and repeat

I do that with Youtube videos. Get stuck in a rut.

 

[IndecentLouie]

Right?
I started feeling that exact way when watching Let's Players or channels like Cinemassacre, eventually you realise you aren't enjoying them but for some reason just stick around, might be a comfort thing

 

[Colif]

eventually I block the channels or click not interested just to stop myself or the flood.

But anyway, we went off topic

 

[Hassanetarik]

I play video games because it is very entertaining and it makes me feel good when I play

 

[SBan83]

Video games just sort of replaced television for me.

This, in a nutshell. Games allow me to actually do the things I would otherwise merely watch unfold on screen in TV shows or movies. Granted, this statement would not apply 20 or so years ago when games were rough pixels cobbled together to form a semblance of a picture. However, today, thanks to tech advancements, it's almost hard to tell the difference in many cases. While I still watch media, they rank far lower than games in my things-to-do-in-my-free-time list.

 

[Frindis]

@SBan83 Not to mention that most stuff on TV nowadays is utter garbage. I have not owned a TV for over a decade. I despise the majority of the stuff on the bloody shitbox.

 

[Kaamos_Llama]

@Frindis that reminds me of this timeless piece I saw one day. Possible its an early Banksy, as it wasn't too far from Bristol where he's from originally.

To the question, well video games are fun. I like all forms of media that tell stories, but video games have always been my favourite

 

[IndecentLouie]

This is once again off topic but @Kaamos_Llama where in this good green earth did your man pumpkin icon come from?

 

[Colif]

i only have a TV so I could play PS3 games in 1080p. its been unplugged facing a wall in my room for a few years now. I stopped watching it at least 10 years ago. I prefer YouTube, might get the truth there.

 

[Brian Boru]

where in this good green earth did your man pumpkin icon come from

Wanna one-up Kaamos'?

http://thepumpkingeek.com/

 

[IndecentLouie]

@Brian Boru Those are as awesome as they are nerdy, Oprah Winfrey has no right to be mixed in with the lot
@Colif Very much agreed, i'd imagine in the next one maybe two decades all of TV media will either die out or simply be replaces with two channels
News
"Reality" shows

 

[Colif]

I wouldn't trust the news if only one channel could show it, I would just see it as another reality show that some people choose to believe is real. That is how I see it already