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"What's the joy?"

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Tue 16/04/02 at 21:26
Regular
Posts: 787
The whole matter of why many of us love games so much astounds quite a lot of people - that is people who rarely or never play computer games. There is a whole lot of reasons why many like me get so addicted to playing games, but do you really know what all those reasons are? Developers and gaming expertise work day in day out on computer games so they obviously have a passion for what can be seen as an art, and we the consumers are privileged by what they have achieved in making their final product, whether average or above average and even though we've got to pay a price.

It's great to get things out in the open so here comes some reasons why we play computer games:

1) Past Experience - The majority of people who indulge in games frequently have indefinitely had a lot of experience from right at the growing stages of the industry. We're talking retro gaming here! From the simplicity of the first ever Ping-Pong game to the extraordinary space battles of the Space Invaders (extraordinary at the time)and then to the tactical challenge of Pac-man. The earlier you begun your crave for computer games the better you'll be at tackling new ones today! It's a well-known fact. Maybe that explains why I'm so good at every game I play! Enough of the facts, the issue is that if you really started playing games since it started getting recognition the more you'll enjoy it.
Nintendo, Sega, Amiga, Commodore and all the other legends of gaming were pretty satisfying and quite fulfilling. Looking back, it seems that there was a lot more strategy and tactics in games. Everything like the basic structure of jump, shoot, roll and attack were used in nearly every game, and the storylines were getting pretty pathetic with the original "save the princess" theme. However, there was really no competition or tension between the developers so gamers played every game possible, Doom especially, not bothering about which was best!
Past experience is a vital factor for why so many enjoy playing games in the present. After all, once you pop you just can't stop!


2) Fulfilment - Agree or disagree, but it's so true! Everytime you play a game there's a certain sense of fulfilment and satisfaction with the game. You seem to lock on from the very beginning, and it may not even be such a good game, but you still feel the need to play on and explore all the limits the game has, find out what the game has to offer. In a way, you're giving the game a chance to show all it's potential, so if you think you've searched enough and not found anything fulfilling then you can let it be!
One example of a hugely decent title is Shenmue2. The predecessor to this, Shenmue, was revolutionary in the eyes of many because it had so much satisfaction. Shenmue 2 did something that is rarely seen in sequels and built on what Shenmue had achieved, producing one of the best and realistic games ever seen. You could explore many regions of hugely detailed cities on a quest of revenge. It would be a whole lot better if more games were really thought out before processing, so that we can get more detailed games like Shenmue. We like freedom, interactivity and exploration, so if all these are added into a game it makes for a better experience.
There is a lot of satisfaction that comes with gaming. Decent games receive the attention they deserve while rushed games seemed to give developers a bad reputation.


3) Admiration - I'm about to tell you a true story now, so pay attention. It was a beautiful and sunny day ... on Gran Turismo 3! Looked almost like a real horizon, beautiful and everything. Cars drove past me at speeds of over a hundred and fifty miles an hour while I was gazing deeply into the glare of the sun.
To cut a long story short, it was amazing! You often find yourself left in amazement at what the industry has come to, if you dig deep into the retro days. 2 Bit to 256 Bit machines...now that's what I call "REVOLUTIONARY". But it seems like as more companies create more and more powerful consoles offering room for excellent titles to be made, a lot of people don't appreciate what is being done. We've all had our moments where we've felt that playing games isn't all too brilliant, but soon enough we come across a game that takes gaming to a totally different level. We're talking about speed, power and performance giving opportunity for great graphics, gameplay and most importantly having fun! At the end of the day, that's all that really matters.
It seems like there are other numerous things developers take into account apart from the performance of their console. Now, everyone is trying to make their console look the best as well as have excellent capabilities, but maybe if they focused more on the capability and less on the looks they'd produce something even more spectacular than they originally intended!
I don't know about you, but I've often had spells where I'm absolutely shocked at how good a game is.


4) Nothing else to do - Doesn't sound too good here, but it's probably the best time that you realise all the things mentioned above. Other times when you have got other things planned, you seem to not get a firm grip on the game, and in a way you rush it, but when you're bored you try your hardest to really play a game!
Even when you've had a hard day at work, you can come home and just chill on your computer and play. It's probably the best remedy for socialising and be broken free from depression. It works in a weird way, but it works.
When I'm bored, I like playing through as many games as I can just for the sake of boredom. But then it all sinks in and the boredom disappears. Now I'm not bored, instead I'm playing through a game that makes me think, a game that tests my hand-to-eye coordination. Playing games has to the best way to occupy yourself. Maybe not the most useful, but definitely the most satisfying!


5) You can't help it! - My parents kept on telling me that I spend too much time playing games, but what they didn't seem to realise was that I could barely help myself. It became to them my worst habit, but to me, it was my best habit.
It may sound weird, but there are some times when eye-to-eye contact with your computer lures you into playing a game. You just can't help it! You have the urge to bash on that controller and get further from where you left off that you're instantly overwhelmed with temptation. No matter what instructions you've received not to switch the computer on, you'll soon end up doing it anyway.
Addiction is the main culprit. Just like other addictions (none to be named), gaming can get out of hand where you really can't stop yourself playing a game until several hours later. But in certain cases, if you play a game for too long, too many times you often tend to get less interested in it and looke elsewhere.
Gaming can get out of hand when it reaches to the addiction stage, but those who come across it casually and tackle it one step at a time, get a lot more out of it! But still, once you pop you just can't stop!


Gaming overall is not really people's cup of tea if they've never played a game, but we really know what the fuss is about! It's very hard to explain why a lot of us like playing computer games, but it isn't that difficult to understand. It isn't really an addiction, better yet it's a privilege. There's a lot of good in games, and also a lot of bad, but nevertheless it rocks!


Thanks for reading

PS: It's been emotional
There have been no replies to this thread yet.
Tue 16/04/02 at 21:26
Regular
"Being Ignorant"
Posts: 2,574
The whole matter of why many of us love games so much astounds quite a lot of people - that is people who rarely or never play computer games. There is a whole lot of reasons why many like me get so addicted to playing games, but do you really know what all those reasons are? Developers and gaming expertise work day in day out on computer games so they obviously have a passion for what can be seen as an art, and we the consumers are privileged by what they have achieved in making their final product, whether average or above average and even though we've got to pay a price.

It's great to get things out in the open so here comes some reasons why we play computer games:

1) Past Experience - The majority of people who indulge in games frequently have indefinitely had a lot of experience from right at the growing stages of the industry. We're talking retro gaming here! From the simplicity of the first ever Ping-Pong game to the extraordinary space battles of the Space Invaders (extraordinary at the time)and then to the tactical challenge of Pac-man. The earlier you begun your crave for computer games the better you'll be at tackling new ones today! It's a well-known fact. Maybe that explains why I'm so good at every game I play! Enough of the facts, the issue is that if you really started playing games since it started getting recognition the more you'll enjoy it.
Nintendo, Sega, Amiga, Commodore and all the other legends of gaming were pretty satisfying and quite fulfilling. Looking back, it seems that there was a lot more strategy and tactics in games. Everything like the basic structure of jump, shoot, roll and attack were used in nearly every game, and the storylines were getting pretty pathetic with the original "save the princess" theme. However, there was really no competition or tension between the developers so gamers played every game possible, Doom especially, not bothering about which was best!
Past experience is a vital factor for why so many enjoy playing games in the present. After all, once you pop you just can't stop!


2) Fulfilment - Agree or disagree, but it's so true! Everytime you play a game there's a certain sense of fulfilment and satisfaction with the game. You seem to lock on from the very beginning, and it may not even be such a good game, but you still feel the need to play on and explore all the limits the game has, find out what the game has to offer. In a way, you're giving the game a chance to show all it's potential, so if you think you've searched enough and not found anything fulfilling then you can let it be!
One example of a hugely decent title is Shenmue2. The predecessor to this, Shenmue, was revolutionary in the eyes of many because it had so much satisfaction. Shenmue 2 did something that is rarely seen in sequels and built on what Shenmue had achieved, producing one of the best and realistic games ever seen. You could explore many regions of hugely detailed cities on a quest of revenge. It would be a whole lot better if more games were really thought out before processing, so that we can get more detailed games like Shenmue. We like freedom, interactivity and exploration, so if all these are added into a game it makes for a better experience.
There is a lot of satisfaction that comes with gaming. Decent games receive the attention they deserve while rushed games seemed to give developers a bad reputation.


3) Admiration - I'm about to tell you a true story now, so pay attention. It was a beautiful and sunny day ... on Gran Turismo 3! Looked almost like a real horizon, beautiful and everything. Cars drove past me at speeds of over a hundred and fifty miles an hour while I was gazing deeply into the glare of the sun.
To cut a long story short, it was amazing! You often find yourself left in amazement at what the industry has come to, if you dig deep into the retro days. 2 Bit to 256 Bit machines...now that's what I call "REVOLUTIONARY". But it seems like as more companies create more and more powerful consoles offering room for excellent titles to be made, a lot of people don't appreciate what is being done. We've all had our moments where we've felt that playing games isn't all too brilliant, but soon enough we come across a game that takes gaming to a totally different level. We're talking about speed, power and performance giving opportunity for great graphics, gameplay and most importantly having fun! At the end of the day, that's all that really matters.
It seems like there are other numerous things developers take into account apart from the performance of their console. Now, everyone is trying to make their console look the best as well as have excellent capabilities, but maybe if they focused more on the capability and less on the looks they'd produce something even more spectacular than they originally intended!
I don't know about you, but I've often had spells where I'm absolutely shocked at how good a game is.


4) Nothing else to do - Doesn't sound too good here, but it's probably the best time that you realise all the things mentioned above. Other times when you have got other things planned, you seem to not get a firm grip on the game, and in a way you rush it, but when you're bored you try your hardest to really play a game!
Even when you've had a hard day at work, you can come home and just chill on your computer and play. It's probably the best remedy for socialising and be broken free from depression. It works in a weird way, but it works.
When I'm bored, I like playing through as many games as I can just for the sake of boredom. But then it all sinks in and the boredom disappears. Now I'm not bored, instead I'm playing through a game that makes me think, a game that tests my hand-to-eye coordination. Playing games has to the best way to occupy yourself. Maybe not the most useful, but definitely the most satisfying!


5) You can't help it! - My parents kept on telling me that I spend too much time playing games, but what they didn't seem to realise was that I could barely help myself. It became to them my worst habit, but to me, it was my best habit.
It may sound weird, but there are some times when eye-to-eye contact with your computer lures you into playing a game. You just can't help it! You have the urge to bash on that controller and get further from where you left off that you're instantly overwhelmed with temptation. No matter what instructions you've received not to switch the computer on, you'll soon end up doing it anyway.
Addiction is the main culprit. Just like other addictions (none to be named), gaming can get out of hand where you really can't stop yourself playing a game until several hours later. But in certain cases, if you play a game for too long, too many times you often tend to get less interested in it and looke elsewhere.
Gaming can get out of hand when it reaches to the addiction stage, but those who come across it casually and tackle it one step at a time, get a lot more out of it! But still, once you pop you just can't stop!


Gaming overall is not really people's cup of tea if they've never played a game, but we really know what the fuss is about! It's very hard to explain why a lot of us like playing computer games, but it isn't that difficult to understand. It isn't really an addiction, better yet it's a privilege. There's a lot of good in games, and also a lot of bad, but nevertheless it rocks!


Thanks for reading

PS: It's been emotional

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