Why Do We Game?

By Kevin A. "Silverwolf" McKee.

I have a confession to make. I'm a gamer. Have been for years, starting off with old games like Commander Keen and Duke Nukem, continuing through current times with Age of Mythology and World of Warcraft. Even not online, I still am a gamer - board games, card games, and outdoor games such as frisbee. So I wonder, what is the attraction? Some would argue addiction - others, sheer competitiveness. But I think that it's a bit more complex than that.

For one, games provide a trial. They give us an opportunity to prove ourselves in various ways while under duress. Depending on the game, these ways can range from highly physical to highly mental, to highly personal. Those who win pass the trial, while those that fail need more work. Frequently, the problem or the reason of loss is not a gameplay factor. Most games are not that complex. Usually it ends up being some personality flaw - something showcasing a need for quicker thought or more sound judgement. In this way, games are more of a way to prepare yourself and/or keep yourself in peak shape in the desired attribute.

So, about that addictiveness...

People of all ages and backgrounds enjoy games. The type of games depend somewhat upon the person involved, but everyone games. This implies to me that there is something valuable in the act of gaming, something in our genes that drives us to play, to test ourselves. Individual games may draw more fire than some others - usually the bigger and more public the game, the more reviled it is. Why focus on how people that play WoW are addicted? Why showcase how professional football players can rarely move on? Why not instead and as a novel idea focus on how old women are "addicted" to various card games (insert stereotype of your choice here). Or, maybe, how fathers are "addicted" to playing baseball with their sons. That's why the addiction argument doesn't hold much weight with me. Games are such a universal concept that there must be more to it than just that.

Of course, the design aspect enters into the equation as well. In my experience, games with a rapid progression are more "addictive" in nature than those that are more slow-paced. Be it fast-paced in levels, fast-paced in build-up of troops, or just the speed with which the players move, quick games are more likely to be played more. Games with a lot of exploration also seems to be considered more addictive, at least for me personally. I know I love exploring both in online games and in real life, which I plan to have spill over into Sacred Chronicle. And so, in a roundabout way, I admitted it - I want my game to have addicitive elements. In my next blog entry I'll explain why, and what I hope to accomplish with Sacred Chronicle from a designer point of view, instead of a player point of view.