Gaming is an experience that has grown into a popular activity by people all over the world, and the list of game participants includes both passionate fans of casual mobile games, and those whose experience is represented by the depth of the stories immersing them. Although we tend to consider gaming as an entertaining or recreational activity, the psychological reasons about why we like to play are much more complicated and intricate. It plays with inherent wants or needs, feelings and urge that human beings have borne over the centuries. Gaming psychology is such an interesting topic, whether it is stated by the sense of achievement or competitiveness. This article explores what has made gaming so attractive on a psychological level, as well as what causes us to get addicted.
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The Reward System
Brain reward system is at the center of everything that we love about gaming. Similar to any other entertainment, when a person plays a game, he or she causes the production of a chemical, a neurotransmitter dopamine, which carries a sense of pleasure and satisfaction. Whenever we win a game, be that by passing a level, winning against a virtual enemy or by achieving an unlockable, our brain will release a shot of dopamine. This forms a positive feedback loop between the game-players so that they are encouraged to continue playing with the aim of repeating that feeling of a triumph.
Games are meant to take advantage of this reward system in most ways. Growth, difficulties, and rewards, such as trophies or points, keep the players addicted. It is not the ultimate victory but small victories which make the journey thrilling and satisfactory. Another example of how effective this reward system can be is called Gamification i.e. using the concepts of gaming to other realms of life.
Social Interaction and Connection
The second psychological contributor of the popularity of gaming is social aspect. Often in most games and particularly those multiplayer games, there are other players to play with, not the game world. The feeling of belonging is provided by online communities, collusion aspects, and the possibility to be in touch with the rest of the world. This is the socializing aspect of the game which is important in the gameplay.
Studies find that human beings are naturally social beings and gaming is one of the ideal means of enabling people to relate with each other simply because they share a common interest or in most cases to compete as a group or just to share jokes. This desire to connect may be as minimal as talking during a match of Fortnite to establishing a lifetime friendships via guilds and clans in role-playing games such as World of Warcraft. To be able to communicate, co-operate, compete and fulfil such psychological needs as community and belonging, etc.
Escapism and Immersion
There is also release of pressures and stresses of life achieved by gaming. Emotional release or stress reduction is also achieved by a great number of players who resort to video games. The players in virtual worlds forget about all worries and responsibilities, forget about the problems, which they have in real life. The surrounding of immersive world, narrative-based mechanics, and interactive worlds then takes the players into alternative realities where they can become different people, conquer complex tasks, or experience fantasy worlds.
This form of escapism is not unique to gaming. It has never been a secret that human beings want to escape their surroundings, through reading books, watching movies or listening to music. The difference between gaming and stories is that the former is interactive, and this means the player can be actively involved in and contribute to its storyline. The capability to govern the destiny of a character or explore large open worlds allows them to feel strong and in authority, and this can be very fulfilling.
The Need for Challenge and Mastery
Human beings have a tendency of finding challenges and developing their abilities. This is referred to as psychological need of mastery. In a gaming environment this requirement is met by the different challenges and activities where there is a requirement of skills, strategy and endurance. It could be figuring out how to clear a difficult boss, solving some complex puzzle, or training the skills required to become one of the best players; games can give you that feeling of progress that needs to be fulfilled.
Games tend to be characterized with increasing challenges, which requires a player to change and evolve in their approaches. This development together with the feeling of mastery leads to having an unending source of motivation. The fulfillment of beating challenges and realizing improvement to oneself is one of the reasons players keep coming to their favorite games.
Competition and Achievement
For many players, gaming represents a competitive outlet. The need to win, to compete with others and reach heights keeps them in the game. This competitive side appeals to a great mental desire of being a success and being rewarded. There is the issue of having to compete with others, which occurs through PvP (player versus player) battles, and leaderboard rankings to become victorious; it provides players with the sense of purpose and fulfillment.
Players in multiplayer games and especially esports attempt to become the best in their profession. It is usually the desire to be the best that maintains these players on the top of their games. Games such as League of Legends or Call of Duty provide competitive aspects even divorced of e-sports, as people seek goals and fulfillment of ambition.
Narrative and Emotional Engagement
The other psychologically important element of the gaming feature is that it involves the player on the emotional level. Most current-day games have deep immersive experiences with stories and emotional tissue that appeal to the player. The story gets the player emotionally invested in the world and plot as well as characters. Such games as The Last of Us and Red Dead Redemption 2 draw the viewer into the story, which is as interesting and captivating as any movie or a TV show.
This emotional absorption makes one feel attached to the game and the game universe. Players learn to care about the results, establish some bonds with characters, and feel ups and downs of the story. Gaming has an emotional aspect as either we are happy, sad or victorious and this factor adds to its charm and makes people play it again and again.
Psychology of gaming is also complex and a lot of reasons lead to the phenomenon of us loving to play. Not only are we motivated through the reward system that is most evident in the gaming industry but we also need to be part of the social structure as the escapism of gaming fulfills our most primitive needs on a psychological level. It can provide everyone with an opportunity to test oneself, get to know other people and feeling strong emotions all in a reciprocal setting. As the concept of gaming keeps on developing, psychological draw has to increase as well and the future generation will surely find more and more excuses to wish to participate in this continuously expanding source of entertainment.
