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What motivates you to play games?

Hi guys, I'm doing a research and I need to know what motivates people to play games. Any type of games.

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  • dfacto
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    dfacto polycounter lvl 18
    OK, I was going to paste a link here but for some reason it doesn't work. Just google "motivation to play games" and check the files that have [pdf] next to them.
  • artofkee
    Heey, what I mean is I want people's opinion. I already have those PDFs. I need real quotes from people.
  • SuperFranky
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    SuperFranky polycounter lvl 10
    They provide entertainment on the level that nothing else can. Oh, and escapism too, i guess.
  • Torch
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    Torch interpolator
    Tittehs and guns.

    I would probably say escapism too, that and a good feeling of achievement from completing it, or working cooperatively in something like an MMO to overcome obstacles/enemies with your pals!
  • NegevPro
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    NegevPro polycounter lvl 4
    There are plenty of reasons to play games and it varies depending on the type of game you're playing. If I'm playing a competitive shooter like counter-strike, then I'm playing to beat the other team due to the competitive nature of the game. If I'm playing a game with a great story and atmosphere like Bioshock, then I'm probably playing for the unique experience. If I'm playing something like The Walking Dead, then I'm playing for the story.

    Games can offer a level of depth that can't be found in any other medium, in my opinion. I tried watching The Walking Dead show and stopped after the third episode because I simply don't give a shit about any of the characters. This was not the case in the game however, almost immediately after starting episode 1, I was attached to the characters because it felt like I was actually a part of the universe.
  • GrevSev
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    GrevSev polycounter lvl 9
    The game itself. I see something that looks cool and I play it.
    What motivates me to replay a game is where the better story lies.
  • Skamberin
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    Skamberin polycounter lvl 13
    For me games are kind of a all in one for discovering new things to like, from music, to visuals, story, designs, gameplay, themes etc.

    If I get the feeling that a game has been made with a great amount of focus on at least two great things (like visuals and mechanics) I'll play it.
  • aleksdigital
    Another question could be "what would motivate me to play games?". I rarely if ever play on my own. If I'm at someone's house and they have CoD or something I'll play with them. Its more work for me to play anything, having to buy the game or the game + system and install it then learn the game, then maybe I dont even like playing it.

    As I get older I dont have the time or patience to do this, especially as I develop 3d product for a long time every day and I already do other demanding stuff like exercise. I'm more into watching movies and tv. Really the only games I really like are online gambling like different kinds of poker but you cant even play those anymore in the US.
  • Mark Dygert
    The environments and character art, if the gameplay is there and its fun I'll keep playing but mostly it's just to explore and check out how the game was made. I have fairly limited free time and I rather make art in my spare time, rather than play games.

    There are times I play games with my daughter just for fun, but I'm still dissecting them as we go, I think its a sickness, heh.
  • MainManiac
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    MainManiac polycounter lvl 11
    Multiplayer, everything is better with a friend. I never play games alone.
  • artofkee
    Wow, thank you so much guys! ((:I really appreciate the responses you've all given (:
  • ExcessiveZero
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    ExcessiveZero polycounter lvl 6
    Deep rich multiplayer with room for Hijinks.

    but what keeps me playing a singleplayer game is usually a deep rich narrative
  • artofkee
    Deep rich multiplayer with room for Hijinks.

    but what keeps me playing a singleplayer game is usually a deep rich narrative

    Yeah, narrative is really crucial for me when playing games. Also, the visual style. Thanks for commenting. (:
  • Computron
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    Computron polycounter lvl 7
    Graphics, duh...
  • Jeff Parrott
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    Jeff Parrott polycounter lvl 19
    New experiences, compelling stories, awesome art. Not in that order necessarily.
  • RVN gorronegro
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    RVN gorronegro polycounter lvl 3
    My "everyday gaming" is trying to rank up in CS GO and dota 2, but sometimes i go for indie games that are fun, but my main motivation is the multiplayer, fighting another human can be hard or easy, but you never know until you are fighting them!
  • Bridget
    Nothing anymore. The only reason I play video games is to spend time with my lover but I'm not very interested in them anymore since probably 3 years ago. I just totally lost interest.
  • Zocky
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    Zocky greentooth
    Well, lately, it's various things. One thing i really love in games, is the atmosphere.

    I recently played game, "9.03m" or something like that. It has like maybe 15 mins of very linear gameplay,but it has amazing ambient and tells story in really awesome, touching way. This is definitely something that will make me interesting in the game right away.

    Then there's the unique environments. LIke, fantasy, LOTR-ish worlds are nice and all, but i you kinda have a feeling like you already know too much about the world before you even started to play it. You know roughly how elfs, gnomes, humans, dwarfs, etc, look like, what is their role, what kind of character the race is, you know the knights and mages and so on.

    BUt when you play game like say, mass effect, it's completely different.
    So you say asari are race of just chicks? Cool, but how does that influence sociaty?
    How do they reproduce? OH so they have very long lifespan, like 1000 years. How does that influence their relationship, since most other live 100years or so? OH, so you have these "ardat yakshi, which is the result of ....well, don't wanna spoil too much here.

    So, there's a whole bunch of questions to be asked, you you simply don't know a single thing when you start, because there is no asari in any other game (unlike elfs).

    Then character and this is one thing i think games for the most part, still lacks.
    There are not many games where i find characters to have interesting personalities, but when you do find such game, it sucks me into it.

    Well, anyhow, hopefully that answears your questions.

    Cheers!
  • artofkee
    Zocky wrote: »

    Then character and this is one thing i think games for the most part, still lacks.
    There are not many games where i find characters to have interesting personalities, but when you do find such game, it sucks me into it.

    Well, anyhow, hopefully that answears your questions.

    Cheers!

    Yes! Thank you so much for taking your time to write this ((: My last favourite character was (and still is, actually) John Marston from Red Dead Redemption. No one is able to replace him ever since. XD

    Bridget wrote: »
    Nothing anymore. The only reason I play video games is to spend time with my lover but I'm not very interested in them anymore since probably 3 years ago. I just totally lost interest.

    Awh, I guess a lot of the games are repetitive. But for me, it still feels new because environments and characters are different. It's more fun to play with someone too.
  • Ged
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    Ged interpolator
    New worlds to explore and cool skills to master. I will never be an expert wall runner in the real world but in prince of persia I can! Im not going to be a pro sniper in the army but in battlefield I can! etc Also the binary good and evil nature of most games is appealing, the real world is hard to figure out but in games you can just shoot the bad guys and solve the worlds problems haha... so thats a kind of escapism I guess.
  • artofkee
    Ged wrote: »
    New worlds to explore and cool skills to master. I will never be an expert wall runner in the real world but in prince of persia I can! Im not going to be a pro sniper in the army but in battlefield I can! etc Also the binary good and evil nature of most games is appealing, the real world is hard to figure out but in games you can just shoot the bad guys and solve the worlds problems haha... so thats a kind of escapism I guess.

    Yeah true true! You become an amazing person who can get away with almost everything in games!
  • Francois_K
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    Francois_K interpolator
    Trying to find seams and see how they made things.

    Also to pwn n00bs
  • Paradan
    my motivation, summed up...you ever see a little movie called Swordfish?
  • artofkee
    Francois_K wrote: »
    Trying to find seams and see how they made things.

    Also to pwn n00bs

    Yeah a friend of mine does that. He speculates assets and look for the seams haha
    Paradan wrote: »
    my motivation, summed up...you ever see a little movie called Swordfish?

    I haven't heard of it actually...
  • ExcessiveZero
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    ExcessiveZero polycounter lvl 6
    Francois_K wrote: »
    Trying to find seams and see how they made things.

    Also to pwn n00bs

    Yeah ive done a bit of that mainly in skyrim and bioshock infinite, skyrim can give you some fantastic ideas for cornerstones modular design etc and the best thing is you can crack open the models and get them into max, which really gives you a look under the hood.
  • Paradan
    artofkee wrote: »
    I haven't heard of it actually...

    well then, the jokes lost. it has a infamous scene about hacking that involves guns and fellatio.
  • iniside
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    iniside polycounter lvl 6
    I'm motivated by picking apart game mechanics, and constantly thinking what I would do differently, to make it more fun. For me of course.
    But that mostly in bit older games. Most of modern games can be hardly accused of having mechanics beyond "go forward, shoot, cutscene".

    Things like story, characters, etc. are completely irrelevant for me.
    I can play little pony, on mars with blue flying elephants, as long as gameplay mechanics is interesting enough.
    Oh I'm also looking if the textures used are not derived from the same sources I have already o_0.
  • artofkee
    Paradan wrote: »
    well then, the jokes lost. it has a infamous scene about hacking that involves guns and fellatio.

    Sorry >__<
  • Broadway
  • marks
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    marks greentooth
  • tadpole3159
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    tadpole3159 polycounter lvl 12
    Francois_K wrote: »
    Trying to find seams and see how they made things.

    Also to pwn n00bs
    when I see things like that, stuff that the artist didnt want anyone to see, I tend to turn the camera to face something else. It's like seeing how a magic trick is performed.
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