Why Do You Play Video Games?

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Axxar

I do it for fun.

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Scorchien

  I actually really got into them alot , when i had quit drinking and doing drugs , i needed something to occupy my time and keep me out of the bars/streets.. And PC gaming did that , so going on 26 years now clean .... Not only that , but it got my interest so much and because i wasnt drinking/drugs i had excess cash , And started investing in Devs , many of them very early on , Blizzard, Funcom, Origin..EA.. etc.. and have made a LOT of money with it .. a real belssing in disguise PC gaming turned out to be for me ...

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Amathe

I find that most hobbies, say, planting a shrub or walking around the block, don't occupy my thoughts sufficiently that I can de-stress effectively after work. There is still plenty of room left over for me to dwell on stressful topics.

Playing mmorpgs occupies me visually, auditorily, tactilely (the keyboard), vocally (Teamspeak) and presents sufficiently engaging challenges and things to do that my mind is more fully occupied. That is why it is more relaxing for me as an activity than most other things.

Also, I am at an age where my running and jumping days are over. But those are things I can still do in a game.  

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SEANMCAD

this guy gives lectures on questions such as these. the link doesnt seem to suggest it but if you type his name in youtube some very compelling 'why do we play' kind of videos

http://bogost.com/

rojoArcueid

Overall i do it for fun. I also rely on them when i just want to have a little while for myself and forget about life outside. Then i get up and life catches up with me in a second  O.o

Also it helps cope with those moments when for whatever reason i feel down or discouraged. Video games can be quite helpful, as long as global chat is turned off if its an mmo.

Phaserlight

"To experience another reality" pretty much sums it up for me, even if that reality is brief, 8-bit, and 2D.  As such, I am generally pretty careful about what I play, although I am comfortable ranging far and wide off the beaten trail.  It's funny, because I will delve into games like Amnesia: The Dark Descent, but I have more trouble with First Person Shooters like GoldenEye 64.  Those realistic death sequences really disturbed me as a high school student back in the day.  It was such a great game for its time, though, that I played it to the extent I was eventually anesthetized.

'To be affected in an interactive manner' might be another way of putting it, as in any form of art.

Edit: not all FPS games can be painted with the same brush, obviously. Marathon had a huge impact on me, and I think it really brought something to the table in a subtle and atmospheric way; I found it to be one of the more philosophical games I've played.

SEANMCAD

one time I read an article that suggested the reason people play video games is because they have low status in life and as a result they play a game in which they can 'be a hero' which of course is the silliest thing I have ever heard of and doesnt really explain EuroTruck Simulator or Farming Simulator.

for too long people who dont play games are studying us 

GladDog

My wife is very ill, and has been for most of our 30+ year marriage.  I work in a field that requires my top game all of the time, and often long hours.  That leaves me about 15 hours a week where I can do what I would like to do.

Because of a bout with cancer, a 20"/ 50cm scar on my belly, and a minor organ failure that makes it nearly impossible to lose weight, I have had to give up on physical things for entertainment.  And there is little on television that captivates me.

So when the world of pixelated adventure showed me what was out there, I dove in with both feet!  I can get into a virtual world and enjoy new experiences that are very challenging.  I can meet others that are looking for the same thing, and build long standing friendships (I have one friend that I have been computer gaming with for 23 years).

This world has captivated me.  Of course I do it for fun, and when I stop I put my feet firmly on the ground of reality.  But for a precious 15 hours a week... I'm free of the shackles and in terrific worlds with lovely graphics (which of course have changed over the years; take a look at Half Life sometime if you want to see how far things have come in the last 20 years) and great ways to interact with others.  I play games for the social interactions, for the comradery, and for the fun.  If any of these fail, I move on to the next game.

And there has always been another game to fill the void... currently it is ESO.  I just started playing FF XIV as well, and I may end up switching to that game.

And honestly, I can't wait for the next game to fill my 15 hours!  Right now I'm mostly waiting for Heroes and Villains, but until that (and that game will probably be released in 2019 or 2020) I'm very much anticipating City of Titans and Pantheon, both of which should at least be in beta by the end of 2017.

Panther2103

I play games because I enjoy them more than most other hobbies. I need something to occupy time and still be able to socialize with people, it's hard for me to socialize since I work graveyards, I also tend to not enjoy the same things as most people who go out all the time. I also really enjoy competition but I hate sports, so gaming allows me to be competitive and still have fun. Also with your being transported into another world statement, that holds true with me too. I really like being able to go into a world, get lost, and have fun doing even menial tasks that I wouldn't enjoy in real life like gardening or harvesting trees to make money. It's enjoyable for me. 

flguy147

For Fun, its that simple

Sovrath

blueturtle13 said:

Why Do You Play Video Games?

I looked around the plane and see 4 or 5 people just in my eye view alone playing a game on their phone or tablet. Including me. (Baldur's Gate is awesome on Tablet)
   So sure there are some amazing experiences I have had in gaming that he never played but to him he does not know what he is missing or perhaps he does and that is why he chooses to play games that just never stop. His reason to play a game is just different than mine. 

That's why when I see people say "gaming is more acceptable than ever" I pause because while more people have access to games on their mobile devices, they aren't necessarily "gamers" but people who enjoy puzzle games or short games on their mobile devices.

I bet if you asked people sitting on the subway playing something on their phone or tablet you would probably find that they never played mass effect or WoW.

Of the people I know who play games, most of them have not played full fledged video games and just play mobile games while they are on the move.

Octagon7711

I play for the adventure and the fun.  I love playing a new MMO or RPG that matches my playstyle and allows me to get lost in the matrix.  But it's always a form of entertainment and I'm always surprised at how serious some people take it.  I'm also on IMDB.com and some people take their movies and TV shows just as seriously as some gamers do here.

But just as there are people who have never played certain games there are people who never saw Star Wars or any of the Star Trek movies.  I glad I got a change to experience Mass Effect and Dragon Age series.

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Moirae

blueturtle13 said:

Why Do You Play Video Games?

I took a trip to visit the Curse.com folks in Huntsville, Alabama this week and at the end of their work day and my visit, we all went to a local establishment called Pints and Pixels. It is a bar,restaurant, arcade. Walls lined with Pinball machines, classic arcade cabinets like Gauntlet, Missile Command and Joust (which I still suck at) The place was packed. Almost wall to wall people. The lure seemed strong to hang with friends and playing Street Fighter II. Many of the people there were not even alive when some of these games were released. So I was talking to one of the Curse guys about why people play games. He said he plays games to experience another reality. He never plays a game with an ending. Ever. I said so you have never played any of the Mass Effect games? Nope.
 Wow, I thought how much he was missing out. Yet after I thought about it on the plane back today perhaps he isn't missing anything. I looked around the plane and see 4 or 5 people just in my eye view alone playing a game on their phone or tablet. Including me. (Baldur's Gate is awesome on Tablet)
   So sure there are some amazing experiences I have had in gaming that he never played but to him he does not know what he is missing or perhaps he does and that is why he chooses to play games that just never stop. His reason to play a game is just different than mine. Now I do like MMOs for that reason that they just keep going on. Yet even this genre has turned it's back on the 'goes on forever' design. The first question too many people ask now about an MMO is "Well, how is the end game?" End game. There it is again. The end. Of what? Your journey? Where the game 'actually' begins? Poorly labeled I think.

 I play video games as a form of travel. I like to be transported to another place,another time. I was playing Assassin's Creed Syndicate in the corporate apartment they let me stay in for a couple of days (they had a PS4 in the apartment) I really felt like I was transported back to1800's London. Meeting Alexander Graham Bell, Climbing up Big Ben. It was very intoxicating. I felt like I was on a vacation while on vacation. (That is almost Matrix like) The experience was great. It felt like being in London.
 So with so many people seeming to be a gamer to some degree or another, why do you game? What is it about video games that draw you in and after all these years keep you interested?  Do you find that your interest is as strong as ever? Has it waned? Why do you play video games?

I do it for escapism at its finest. We all do. 

Distopia

Games have always been inspirational to me, I find them to serve two purposes, they're great to occupy free time with (more so than movies and TV for me).. They also help my creative endeavors in art & writing. I use them as a way to disconnect from reality before a long creative session. Hence why I mostly play RPG's. 

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Shaigh

The best thing about video games is the variety.

There are games that challenge you mentally, games that forces you to develop new strategies, games that tells a good story, games with wonderful environments and games that makes your finger numbs from pressing buttons repeatedly.

All of those things have a charm and without the variety I wouldn't keep on gaming after all these years.

Theocritus

Fun and pass the time...Its nice if they make me think too

Nanfoodle

The rush and to have something to do with my wife and friends. Also make new friends. 

waynejr2

For the commercial endorsements and the hot chicks.

HellboundHeart

Playing Guitar, Being a Father, and Playing Video Games.

These are the only things im good at at all.

Gaming.Rocks2

When I was a kid there was a revolution then an ongoing war in my country. My father went to some lengths to purchase a Commodore 64. Whenever they sounded the red alert the whole family camped in the basement to avoid getting killed during an airstrike. My father turned on the power generator and the whole family gamed. Nothing could beat that experience ever again. You could say I started playing games to get away from the horrible reality. 

For some time I gamed mostly for competition and I played Quake series up to Q3 as a pro. 

I also I play video games as a medium to experience and participate in a story. Same reason I read a novel but in a more interactive but with less imagination way. Don't get me wrong, it's not just about the written story of a game. I have created, participated and enjoyed lots of stories in EVE as well. 

Why I play video games now? I guess it's the combination of the above.