[quote name='kev']I'm working on a research project exploring the use of gaming as a model for education. The basic thesis is that video games have a unique ability to hold a person's attention (particularly males where education is generally hurting) for really long periods of time and if we can tap into that for education we would see great success. Additionally, gaming is one of the few things that will cause people to willingly skip food or bathroom breaks just to keep going. While not necessarily healthy it would freaking rock if my students wanted to do that with my classroom content.
As someone who has personally spent up to 12 hours in a game session I have my own opinions but I'd like to know what others think. So, why are games fun? What qualities do they offer over books or even movies that make them so engaging? Note that I'm not asking about "educational" games but just games in general.
Thank you for any responses.[/quote]
Fun is highly subjective. That said, my own take on why games are fun are their interactivity. Unlike books or movies where you see someone else's story play out in your imagination or a big screen, games allow you to play out a story wherein the protagonist is not passively viewed but actively controlled. In that sense, although the protagonist is someone else (Niko from GTA4, Leon from Resident Evil, Ryu from Ninja Gaiden, etc.), they are really representations of ourselves (aka our avatars) and how we would react in their shoes if we had their abilities. Granted, some stories are 'guided' by rails (the beginning & ending of a story is set), but you, the player, still have a measure of control as to how you achieve that journey. This is also true for FPS... probably moreso due to the fact that you are literally seeing the story playing out from your avatar's viewpoint.
But to truly exemplify why games are fun, you've got to understand how animals work. We, the collective creatures on earth, intrinsically love to solve problems. It goes back to our most base animal survival instincts. It is literally in our nature: Where do I find my next meal? Where do I find my next hiding spot from predators? How do I convince that male/female to copulate w/ me? How will I feed my offspring? How do I raise my offspring? How do I deal w/ the changing environment? This and many other transactions are done by the hundreds, if not thousands, in our heads all throughout our evolution (hell, you could even say our biology was asking those same questions before our own concept of sentience).
As our civilization evolves into more sophisticated forms, so do the problems (as well as the questions we ask ourselves to solve them). Games were a way to solve certain problems in life and gain experience while only sometimes being life-threatening. This is why you can see adolescent animals play-fighting w/ each other. This allows them to gain a glimpse of the upcoming adult life.
Now, we, as humans, have evolved to the point where we've solved enough problems that, instead of adapting to the environment, we manipulate it (for better or worse). But we still have this innate desire to solve things. Unfortunately, since our society has become highly sophisticated, the problems that must be solved can be too overwhelming for any one being so it requires a collaborative process. This process is slow because it must consider all options given by all collaborators. This can be mentally exhausting, even for a collective of minds so they need to have an outlet that rewards them for solving comparatively simple solutions. Enter games (and not necessarily the video kind). Games of all sorts fill that void, that itch that must be scratched in humans' lives, that desire to solve some problem.
ing goddamn horrible song on Expert.
