Why do you really play?

Sure, games can teach us a few things, but I've been reading a few articles today that suggest that we don't game just for fun and learning. In brief, these wiseacres have decided that what gamers really like is derived senses of freedom, accomplishment, and community that games can give.

I can see these as being true, but I thought I'd provide counter-examples, just because I'm a jerk.

- Freedom: The amount of freedom in the most open-ended games (e.g., Elder Scrolls) can get to be too much. In fact, I tend to wander off in most RPGs that will let me, and seldom finish. I guess they're fun for a while, until I realize I'm lost. I guess my favorite games (KQ5, for example) tend to find a sort of mediated freedom. I can wander around and maybe do things in different orders, but I don't get lost or have to spend hours retracing my steps to sell meaningless items I've stolen. (:wink:)

- Accomplishment: I guess I'd agree if I beat more than 5% of the games I've played.

- Community: I guess most of this has been said before. I tend to play solo. When I play with friends, it's with them in the room, generally. Otherwise, it's because my dad is better than the cheap AI in most war games.

I might add what I think are the reasons I play. Avoiding the word "fun," I would boil it down to learning and escape. I get home from work and, beautiful city that Chicago is, generally want to be somewhere else for a while. Walk through a Moongate, if you will. Besides that, I like putting myself in other people's shoes and experiencing things that I wouldn't otherwise. I don't often get attacked by daemons on Mars or ...bake bread instead of saving the world. I certainly don't hack at dark elves with broadswords or chainsaw aliens' faces as regularly as I'd like. I'm not sure I'd call many of those things "accomplishments," though.

So what do you think? Am I a statistical outlier? An oddly feminine (in gender theory terms, thanks) anomaly? Do you play games because it's easier than hanging out with analog friends? Am I completely misrepresenting the articles?

I use games to release the seething cauldron of hatred I tend to develop each day with the human race.

Other than that, I'm a pretty easy going guy.

I play to have fun, be immersed and escape. Something that requires my interaction to be entertainment, as opposed to watching television.

The alternative is to interact with my family. f*ck that.

Without venturing too far into the "gaming as catharsis" argument, I should note that I'll probably be sitting here psychoanalyzing all responses. I have a feeling that the games people play (and thus the wants they seek to sate via games) have a strong correlation to the players themselves.

For example: I solo because I spend all day hiding and keeping my head down. I am not really looking for more real, human interaction or any sense of community.

My Neighbor on the news, in the future wrote:

"He was always such a quiet man. Something of a loner -- kept to himself, mostly, but never caused any problems. We never saw it coming...."

I couldn't really tell you how I became a gamer. I have different reasons. Something about games just clicked with me ever since I first played an Atari 2600. I'll take a guess and say that it's because I'm a tomboy. I never liked dolls or anything "girly" when I was young.

I had a rough childhood. At the end of the day, all I had were the games. They were my escape from the world around me. They were comforting. I suppose I still play them for this reason.

But mostly, I'm bored. I have no idea what other women do in their spare time. Games are fun. Problem solved.

I've mostly been a solo player. I used to co-op with my brother with games like Contra but we stopped doing that when we got older. Now we play together over Xbox Live. The problem is finding a friend that plays games. I've only succeeded once and he's my husband now.

I play for fun, freedom, accomplishments and anger management.

Why I game is highly dependent on the game I'm playing.

If I want to escape, I'll play WoW solo.
If I want to work out frustrations, I'll FPS.
If I want to solve puzzles, I fire up Grim Fandango (or go program).
If I want to drink and half ass socialize, I'll play WoW in a group or BF2142.

But ultimately I play games because other forms of passive entertainment bore me quickly.

My dads were going through divorce or something, so I kinda used it to escape.

Then life became good again, and now I play for entertainment, but much, much less. Guitar Hero and the Wii are great games for me, I can share them with someone else.

After working all day, it's a really good stress release, especially when bughunting has gotten me irritated enough to seriously consider putting my fist through my display.

Besides, I love stories.

My dads were going through divorce or something, so I kinda used it to escape.

Typo, or were you raised by two dudes? If so, that explain SO MUCH

wordsmythe wrote:

- Community: I guess most of this has been said before. I tend to play solo. When I play with friends, it's with them in the room, generally. Otherwise, it's because my dad is better than the cheap AI in most war games.

I agree with a lot of what you said, but wanted to touch on this one point. I think your view on community is too focused on in-game interaction when perhaps the most enjoyment can be derived from sharing experiences in forums like this one. Sure, Dead Rising was single-player only but the community here posted pages on their love for the game.

Chum wrote:
wordsmythe wrote:

- Community: I guess most of this has been said before. I tend to play solo. When I play with friends, it's with them in the room, generally. Otherwise, it's because my dad is better than the cheap AI in most war games.

I agree with a lot of what you said, but wanted to touch on this one point. I think your view on community is too focused on in-game interaction when perhaps the most enjoyment can be derived from sharing experiences in forums like this one. Sure, Dead Rising was single-player only but the community here posted pages on their love for the game.

Very true. Also this same community helps keep games like 2142 fun by weiner bombing and teabagging better than any sober 12 year old.

Chum wrote:

I agree with a lot of what you said, but wanted to touch on this one point. I think your view on community is too focused on in-game interaction when perhaps the most enjoyment can be derived from sharing experiences in forums like this one. Sure, Dead Rising was single-player only but the community here posted pages on their love for the game.

I agree with you on that. To be clear, I wasn't saying that the article was wrong. I was just providing counter-examples of gamers who don't fit the same mold. I, personally, never really dug the online friends scene. GWJ is helping me come out of that shell.

Well, I never dug friends online except for that AOL chat room phase in the '90s. That... let's just try and forget about that.

Why do I really play?

Because I'm really *really* good at it.

If I was a superhero my power would be to plop my lazy ass on a couch and play games while drinking Beer at the same time. My nemeses (nemesii?) would be powerless to stop me!

I game for the worlds that are created, I game for the stories that are woven, I game to listen to Rabbit scream as he gets chainsawed to a meaty pulp. In the end though, it's all about the people. What good is being great at something if there's no one there to enjoy it with you?

Stylez wrote:

Why do I really play?

Because I'm really *really* good at it.

If I was a superhero my power would be to plop my lazy ass on a couch and play games while drinking Beer at the same time. My nemeses (nemesii?) would be powerless to stop me!

I game for the worlds that are created, I game for the stories that are woven, I game to listen to Rabbit scream as he gets chainsawed to a meaty pulp. In the end though, it's all about the people. What good is being great at something if there's no one there to enjoy it with you?

Ah, but some of us aren't so great. We just ...really like going to every building in the game and stealing things?

We just ...really like going to every building in the game and stealing things?

There's room for them as well.

I've been thinking a lot about Gears lately. It seems that it is the perfect game to get a significant other interested in. Even if they can't aim as long as they can hold down "B" and wait around a corner they will have a good time.

There is a superhero who is so good at video games that its his power. Watch Megas XLR!

Why do I play? To hone my skills for my upcoming killing spree. At least, that's what Jack Thompson would have everyone believe.

There is a superhero who is so good at video games that its his power. Watch Megas XLR!

True dat.

although he does have an "up" on me in the form of a giant f*cking robot.

Whatever happened to that show? Thanks for the reminder!

They're fun.

Addiction.

psu_13 wrote:

Addiction.

That too.

Thin_J wrote:
psu_13 wrote:

Addiction.

That too.

If I may pry, any idea what makes the games "fun" or addicting for you?

To get my mind off of "normal" life.

The reasons behind my gaming have changed over the years.

Back when I was a youngster with the stars in my eyes and a hockey helmet under the bed, I started gaming for the same reason I was convinced I wanted to be an astronaut when I grew up. Escape. Pure and simple. Mars was probably far enough away from my family, but I'd put up with low earth orbit if that was the best anyone could do. Genetics and etc kind of put the kibosh on that, though, and I had to do something. One of my friends got a D&D set for her birthday, and another one got a Vic 20. The portal to the foot of the Bifrost Bridge opened right there.

Now a days, I mostly game for connection. Not online, but the people right around me. I married a guy in my jr. high. gaming group, and it was just natural while we were married to keep playing. Now that we're divorced, I'm trying to keep a line open to the four teenagers in my house.

Left to my own devices once they're grown, I imagine I'll be playing games for something to do once it's too dark to garden. I'll be the weird little old lady on the end of the block all the little kids in the neighborhood think is a witch. You know. The one living in an old house behind a high hedge with eerie shifting blue lights leaking out the around the window blinds at night. I'll have a contained spot with plenty of room for my terrain tables so I can keep the grandkids out of them when they visit, and enough bandwidth flowing in and out to rival SoCal Edison.

momgamer wrote:

Back when I was a youngster... I married a guy in my jr. high. gaming group

Man, you Goodjers sure are an odd lot.

wordsmythe wrote:

If I may pry, any idea what makes the games "fun" or addicting for you?

Who can say. Some people watch TV. I play the occasional video game.

"Some people play tennis, I erode the human soul." (P-A)

Edwin wrote:

The alternative is to interact with my family. f*ck that.

Quoted for truth before I went to college.

Now that I'm an undergrad, my few precious hours of gaming per week are used as a relaxant from all the working and studying I've done. I don't like getting drunk, and television bores me, so.. yeah. Not much else to do since my schedule is polar opposite to most of my social circle's.

I'll admit I started gaming mostly to avoid my family, too. I'm not sure they were so much worse than anybody else's (taking Married With Children and Roseanne to be normal), but I was always the quiet one of the 4 kids (within 5 years) growing up. Lots of reading and computers meant that I could avoid all the noise and step in when I wanted to (to throw the "oldest boy" weight around).

I guess now I'll sometimes play out of boredom -- or for accomplishments (/more Burnout cars). Mostly I think I play war games because I like the challenge of outdoing history's greats. I play RPGs and adventures because I like to be able to feel that extra bit of connection to the characters in the story.

And I play Madden when I'm watching the Bears and I want them to play differently than they are. "See? Madden says you can pull this play off! Start playing smarter!"

wordsmythe wrote:

I'll admit I started gaming mostly to avoid my family, too. I'm not sure they were so much worse than anybody else's (taking Married With Children and Roseanne to be normal), but I was always the quiet one of the 4 kids (within 5 years) growing up. Lots of reading and computers meant that I could avoid all the noise and step in when I wanted to (to throw the "oldest boy" weight around).

I guess now I'll sometimes play out of boredom -- or for accomplishments (/more Burnout cars). Mostly I think I play war games because I like the challenge of outdoing history's greats. I play RPGs and adventures because I like to be able to feel that extra bit of connection to the characters in the story.

And I play Madden when I'm watching the Bears and I want them to play differently than they are. "See? Madden says you can pull this play off! Start playing smarter!"

You'll prolly be watching replays on madden football and changing game tides. Thats prolly apart of the addiction is the escaping to control your reality.

No joke, Sku.

And I'd pay cash money for the ability to have Ditka call the game instead of the default announcers.