I have vaguely discussed the Video games, MMORPGs in particular, and their contributions to social lives and identity formation. I will now touch upon the psychological concept of immediate gratification and how it applys to video games. Gratification refers to the psychological reward system built into all people. When you eat food to fill your stomach to stop it from hurting. Your brain sends a few neurochemicals to "reward" you for doing the right thing by eating. It reinforces the behavior of eating, which is necessary for survival. And I think most people would agree that such gratifying feelings are even more intense with the act of reproduction. But I digress.... Essentially, in life we do hundreds of little things every day that bring happiness into our lives at varying degrees.
How are video games and gratification related? Most video games instill a goal oriented quest system that rewards you with virtual points or items that contribute to the completion of the game. In most console games there is an end to the quest you have to complete the game. But in the online MMORPG most games are endless. There are always new quests to fulfill, that will make you stronger within the game. Most players feel a small sense of accomplishment with each quest or monster they kill because their efforts are always rewarded. Even though the rewards are virtual, the sense of happiness acquired through these accomplishments, is very real. Players are able to find immediate gratification through the playing of this games. They are able to see the results of their hard work slowly build up through time.
Gamemakers understand this concept very well. They build their games to give their players the satisfaction of become stronger within the game. MMORPGs also build their games to be an endless quest to become the strongest players in the game. So, in a way, you could say that games, even thought they are virtual and have no impact on the real world, can give us happiness and fulfill some deep set needs built into our psychological makeup. This is one factor that can keep players coming back to the game.
Random Thoughts
13 years ago
1 comment:
Your posts really remind me of my undergrad days as a psych major. Gratification, I can't believe I remember things about that.
You know, thinking about what it takes to create websites from scratch, I cannot comprehend how much must go into a regular video game, let alone an excellent game. You say that designers have to structure their games to appeal to players in specific ways, I can't imagine how much work goes into it, being just a player and not seeing what happens behind the scenes.
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