So...why DO you like video games?

krudler

Someone asked me this recently, why I still played video games. Leaving aside the whole demographic thing and never being too old to be a gamer, I came up with a bunch of reasons for them and even more in my own head as to why secondary to movies they've always been my favourite hobby. So this is a thread as to what, as a gamer, keeps you gaming.

The aesthetics.
Games can be beautiful, we all know this. From your Okamis to your Journeys to countless other titles over the years, there's something instantly appealing about the artistry that goes into making a game look how it does. When I was a kid I'd pore over gaming magazines just gawking at screenshots and there was something really intruiging about them.
Seeing how graphics have progressed from the 8bit days to something like a PS4 game has been pretty amazing, with each generation you see something and wonder if it'll ever be bettered, and yet they keep managing it, it's a constantly evolving artform and not just in the realism sense.
There have been many,many games over the years that have dropped my jaw on seeing them in motion for the first time. Mario World, Starfox, Donkey Kong Country, Killer Instinct, Mario 64, Tekken, Metal Gear Solid, FFVII, Gran Turismo, the list is endless.

The audio.
I don't want to live in a world without the Zelda chest opening sound. Or the Mario coin grab, or the Metal Gear alert, or the sound of any number of consoles starting up for the first time. And I could harp on all day about the sheer number of memorable musical tracks from games, Tetris? any level from a Mario or Sonic game. The score to FFVII, the incredible ambient atmosphere of Dead Space, engine audio from Forza or Gran Turismo, the simple sounds and effects you may not even notice that add more depth to the world you're wandering or driving around in. Also the level of voice acting quality has gone through the roof in games lately, Troy Baker's performance in The Last Of Us is nothing short of astounding.

They're exciting.
I recently finished Dark Souls, you can't tell me that games aren't exhilarating pieces of entertainment. Trying to beat a boss when down to your last bit of health. That round winning combo or special movie in a fighting game. Discovering a secret area, finally beating that enemy that was holding you back, the great unknown of an open world just begging to be explored.

The older you get , the less stuff you have to get excited for, kids and marriage sure, but the little things like opening a new console or handheld for the first time, or unboxing that special edition you're sort of cursing yourself for buying because who needs a soundtrack and artbook anywa-oh god it's gorgeous!

That's why I never begrudge someone queuing at midnight for a title or console, or hoping the working day ends as quick as possible so you can get home and settle down to a newly delivered slice of gaming heaven. As adults we're told that games are for kids and sometimes sneered at for loving them, well balls to that I say. There'll never be a day I don't look forward to picking up a sword and shield in a Zelda game, we're in this together Link, and I hope you never utter a word.

The memories
I can to this day tell you about the first time I played a SNES. That warm retro fuzzy feeling thinking back bout gaming over the years is something I hope never goes away. I remember playing Street Fighter 2 and Mortal Kombat for the first time. I remember being in GAME the day the N64 came out and being incredibly envious of those walking out with new consoles. I remember cursing this stupid Steam thing then instantly forgiving it the second the intro to Half Life 2 started. A while back I was over at a friends who had dug their NES out of the parent's attic and hooked it up, we played Super Mario Bros 3. It had everything, the box, the stryofoam the console sat in that made ridiculous amounts of noise when you took it out, those little black sleeves the carts sat in that everone lost. I sniffed one and it was like being punched in the face by pure and utter nostalgia, it was glorious.


TLDR version, I likes the pretty noisy fun things. Anyone got their own reasons? Gush away.

2Mad2BeMad

keeps me entertained on a day that I'm not busy
also keeps me amazed at how fast technology has come along since I was born

FortuneChip

I'm sure "The Last Of Us" would have sufficed as a good enough answer!

krudler

FortuneChip wrote: »

I'm sure "The Last Of Us" would have sufficed as a good enough answer!

I'm not gonna lie, the (Last of Us spoiler just in case)

scene with the giraffe

got me right in the feels.

Not The Real Scarecrow

Stops me excessively masturbating while also building muscles that will help me masturbate excessively....it's a no win situation.

Sarky

They're art. They amuse and entertain (Portal, Serious Sam, Warframe), engross (Civ V, Morrowind, STALKER), evoke every emotion under the sun (Bastion, Planescape: Torment, The Witcher), tackle some very interesting issues in a variety of clever ways (Papers, Please, Game Dev Tycoon, Hotline Miami), and challenge the mind (Portal again, Spacechem, Gunpoint).

I'm not terribly interested in what's generally accepted as art. Games are a style of art I totally get, though.

Sarky

Sarky wrote: »

They're art. They amuse and entertain (Portal, Serious Sam, Warframe), engross (Civ V, Morrowind, STALKER), evoke every emotion under the sun (Bastion, Planescape: Torment, The Witcher), tackle some very interesting issues in a variety of clever ways (Papers, Please, Game Dev Tycoon, Hotline Miami), and challenge the mind (Portal again, Spacechem, Gunpoint).

High tech interactive art but art nonetheless.

This times a billion. Some games are genuinely art and are becoming more and more this way - Bioshock Infinite, The Last of Us, Beyond: Two Souls, and many more are just the tip of the iceberg.

There are times where I'd much rather play games like these than read a book or watch a movie.

Grimebox

My brain is addicted to the dopamine that gets released when I progress in a satisfactory fashion.

Retr0gamer

Because video games are the only thing that loves me back

Kiith

I get far more enjoyment out of playing games then i do out of tv and movies. Have been playing games for around 20 years, and i'm still entertained on a daily basis. Seeing the amount of quality titles being released is brilliant, and we are finally starting to see it become more mainstream and accepted.

It's a form of escapism that is unmatched imo. Nothing else draws you in as much as a good game, though a good book can come close.

Loafing Oaf

Grimebox wrote: »

My brain is addicted to the dopamine that gets released when I progress in a satisfactory fashion.

Well I'm far from addicted, and sometimes go months without turning on my wii, but this pretty much captures what I get out of games. It's equivalent to jigsaws or crosswords, setting yourself an arbitrary problem that you get a mild rush out of solving.

CrazyRabbit

Cheaper than drugs.

krudler

CrazyRabbit wrote: »

Cheaper than drugs.

Have you seen the prices new releases on PSN are? :pac:

Dravokivich

krudler wrote: »

Have you seen the prices new releases on PSN are? :pac:

Pif armature, buy'em through Amazon!

astonaidan

I wont lie, I only play games so I can act better than people when a big team gets linked to a player I heard of in Football Manager years ago :cool:

CrazyRabbit

CrazyRabbit wrote: »

Cheaper than drugs.

krudler wrote: »

Have you seen the prices new releases on PSN are? :pac:

Steam. The greatest supplier.

I don't take any of that Class C stuff!!

jenjenten

It beats watching soppy romantic comedies all the time!, and i get to spend time with my bf and snuggle on the couch...which is kinda hard when he's on a BF4 killing streak :-)

gamergurl4life!

Greyfox

Their the most addictive thing in the world, their are other things I keep meaning to do with my time but theirs just far too many great games out their, and sure other things are a bit overrated, gaming provides lots of pleasure at a cheap price..especially if like me your not all that great at games and take ages to clear them:D

I also love the fact that I can still find new experiences which are getting harder and harder to find with films and tv. The thing I love most is a good story and with games you can control how the story pans out with how you play the game...also you care more about a character when your physically in control of them

CiDeRmAn

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Because video games are the only thing that loves me back

I'm sure Sera will be bereft at this!!

CiDeRmAn

I play videogames for lots of reasons.
It's a great for of escapism, after a long day in work nothing is better to help me relax.
As a kid, I found gaming to be constantly new and inventive, some 30 years later and they are two qualities that still mark the hobby.
Coupled with the last point is the nostalgia factor, where older games and systems have the added element of taking you back to a time and place as you play.
The collecting aspect also enhances the enjoyment, with almost every Nintendo, Sony, Sega and Atari to play as well as games and other paraphernalia, it's wonderful to surround yourself with it all.

A game to define why gaming is so great might be The Last of Us some day but, for now, it's Super Mario World on the Snes, pure perfection.

Taylor365

I'd say i put in about 30 hours a week gaming (mostly LoL) but I'd call myself less of a a gamer now then ever before. Last purchase was Total War Rome 2 and I've played less than 3 hours!

I don't own a console (PC master race) as every new title i see released interests me less and less. Haven't played Call of Duty since 4, haven't played GTA 5 yet (Even though i had bought the previous games day one), never played an Assassin creed or Bioshock. I know what the games are about, just have zero interest in them.

I love the escapism, fun and crazy visuals you can experience within a game. The original Crysis had me sitting there looking over a cliff for a good 5 minutes. The game would have been a lot better without any Koreans if you ask me. Just an open world island filled with spectacular visuals. On the other end of the spectrum, FTL had me restarting over and over to try get further than my last go. Easy pick up and play style with a very charming soundtrack.

I don't know. Maybe I'm getting more cynical and judgmental, expecting too much from games these days. As I'm typing this, there's an ad for Need for speed rivals in the corner of the page. I hate need for speed.

krudler

The escapism for me too, love seeing some stunning vista, or going off on some quest I never really meant to on Skyrim, or jumping into Call of Duty for a half hour. And sometimes, just sometimes, I like mowing down police cars with a minigun in my jocks, thanks GTA!

Agricola

I think you've summed up most of our reasons in your op there Krudler. To add to that, Id say for me personally a large part of it is immersion. I was never one for gamey games which required you to master a skill through repetition. Those games can be great, but the high score was never that interesting to me. It was always about inhabiting a new world, exploration, seeing and doing things that I'll never do in real life.

One thing is fascinating to me is why some people who were big into gaming in the childhood drift away from it as they get older and some of us hold onto it for dear life. Two close friends who I went to school with are an example. We all got PS1s in school, went around to each others houses, played every weekend and spent whole summers doing little else. Now, two us are big PC gamers while one hasnt even owned a console since his PS2. He does enjoy a gaming session but its become a sort of illicit pleasure which he wouldnt really mention in "grown up" company. Aside from that age old, "im too old for games now" mentality, he would never get the nostalgia aspect of it. Despite playing metal gear to death all those years ago, the famous alert noise wouldnt even register with him now. I know this because its my mobile phone ringtone and I had to explain it to him! Sacrilege.

NaloaC

Crikey, let's try to articulate a decent first-post...

Gaming for me is escapism, stress relief and entertainment. It gives me a chance to connect with my friends abroad and catch up with news whilst blowing things up and having solid team work. They allow me to delve into a storyline and/or world where I can put the stresses of work/life behind me for an hour or two and allow me interact in a situation where I am in control.
Some I would play for the story and involvement, others for sheet empowerment (Crackdown comes to mind) whilst some create opportunities for unscripted moments of sheer epicness with friends (solid squad work on Battlefield 4) that are unsurpassed in other titles.

I'm not spoon-fed something like I am in a movie and it's certainly more entertaining and cheaper than going out for a few pints, which invariably end up being in crappy drinking holes where you have to yell at people to be heard.

I've been playing games for the last 19 years and in the last 8 I've made an incredible amount of friends across Europe, many of whom I've met and have become great friends with them as a result. Some would say that gaming is a reclusive pastime, but if you embrace the community side of things, it can introduce you to some great people.

As some have said, they are a form of art and can allow people to create something beautiful (Bastion is a great example) and there have been such advances with the hardware behind it that it's incredible to see the evolution of gaming from those glorious days of Wolfenstein!

Very much looking forward to seeing what AMD's "Mantle" brings to the table in December.

o1s1n

Gaming for me has become less and less about escapism and more and more about gameplay and skill. I've gotten big into arcade games over the last few years and now have a couple of arcade machines and a mountain of arcade boards which I play most days.

I love the skill involved in arcade games. That feeling of elation when you get to a new section on 1 credit which had previously seemed impossible. The absolute tender hooks you're then on, trying to stay alive in this newly unexplored section of the game - only to soon meet your demise. The game throws you back to the title screen 'one more try!' you shout.

Dark Souls is a great example of a console game which captures this above arcade feel.

I do still play through standard console games, but mostly older gen ones (16 & 32 bit gens are my favorites) - modern games appeal to me less and less as they fall into the previously mentioned escapism bracket which I'm losing interest in. I couldn't really give a toss how realistic a game looks.

On a side point, I'm loving the Rift and really excited about what the future brings. The immersion is amazing. May just suck me back into the whole escapism thing...

CiDeRmAn

What if someone has no skill but still loves videogames?
Are they doomed to play Lego games for eternity???
I am not bad at games but Dark Souls just hates me, and forget about 1ccing a Shmup anytime soon, that said I did surprise myself on Gleylancer the other day, getting to the third level before snuffing it for the first time.....

Retr0gamer

It's all about practice and patience. You aren't bad at games, you just don't put the time into hard games!

o1s1n

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

What if someone has no skill but still loves videogames?
Are they doomed to play Lego games for eternity???
I am not bad at games but Dark Souls just hates me, and forget about 1ccing a Shmup anytime soon, that said I did surprise myself on Gleylancer the other day, getting to the third level before snuffing it for the first time.....

Just takes practice man.

Some people seem to think arcade games are about credit feeding for 20 minutes until you see the end credits.

They're not. They're about putting 1 credit in and trying to finish the game. You died? Back to the start with you.

This can take an absolute immense amount of practice - but it's extremely enjoyable if that's your kind of thing.

Same goes for Dark Souls. Practice - you get there eventually. It's quite a slog at the start.

Fair play Re Gleylancer, I expect your 1cc video by the end of the month!

krudler

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

What if someone has no skill but still loves videogames?
Are they doomed to play Lego games for eternity???
I am not bad at games but Dark Souls just hates me, and forget about 1ccing a Shmup anytime soon, that said I did surprise myself on Gleylancer the other day, getting to the third level before snuffing it for the first time.....

I gave up on Demon's Souls initially as I hated the retracing steps after you die aspect. Then I got Dark Souls, put the time into it and now love it. It's a throwback to retro games really, no quicksaving or checkpoints every time you climb a stairs, when you die it has consequences but it's so, so rewarding overcoming a section or beating a boss. I've never been a big RPG fan but I loved all of it, even if aspects of it are really confusing or vague at first it never spoonfeeds you and you feel like you're discovering stuff instead of just following onscreen prompts and hints all the time.

Retr0gamer

I'm pretty sure I 1cc'ed GleyLancer on my first go a while ago. It's a walk in the park.

o1s1n

krudler wrote: »

It's a throwback to retro games really, no quicksaving or checkpoints every time you climb a stairs, when you die it has consequences but it's so, so rewarding overcoming a section or beating a boss. .

That's what I love about gaming and why I find so many modern games utterly boring. No challenge.

Retr0gamer wrote: »

I'm pretty sure I 1cc'ed GleyLancer on my first go a while ago. It's a walk in the park.

Just had to go and steal Ciderman's thunder, didn't you?