Similar to many products in entertainment, video games solve problems you didn't know you have. Whereas a car helps you get somewhere faster than walking there is no direct solution for one's entertainment. A major obstacle faced by the video game industry in the beginning is that many people did not even think of it as a stand-a-lone industry. Companies like Magnavox thought that their product Magnavox Odyssey was just a gimmick to sell more of their televisions. Many other early video games were used to showcase the power of computers and get the public interested and invested in their computing capabilities. It took visionaries like Baer and Bushnell to convince corporations that these entertainment consoles had a viable market. There was also a debate whether these games were better suited for arcades or for home set up. This is a common problem with a new industry is that the marketing strategy as well as the demand is unknown.
Another problem for early developers was access to resources. Before the personal computer boom of the 80's computers took up whole rooms and cost thousands or even millions of dollars. This meant that developers had to have access to either corporate capital or research university resources to mess around with these behemoths. Spacewar was a fun game to play but it couldn't be given to the public because the materials were too expensive for mass production. What launched games into the public sphere were connecting them to the household item that had taken hold of the country, the television. These games just manipulated the the vacuum tubes in the TVs and they put simple covers over the screen to create a realistic game environment like tennis. Following suit was Atari's arcade and home version of table tennis Pong. Similar to the resource constraints of the 40's with how expensive and large the parts were, the 70's saw a constraint on the number of chips being made that could support these devices. Colleco capitalized on the fact that they had purchased thousands of General Instruments chips just before the competition did and was able to slow down the production progress of other companies because General Instruments had to finish Colleco's order before others. Before an industry takes off resources are always an issue.
After overcoming resource and direction issues, the video game industry faced another obstacle. The industry became saturated. There were numerous companies creating consoles and game cartridges and many of them were sub par products. Just about the same time that the console market was being saturated personal computers were on the rise and they could both play games and perform many of the tasks we associate with computers today. The Apple II could play games and could also run complex computer programs. With the surge of computers video games retreated from the homes and into the arcade. After a few years of struggle Nintendo burst onto the scene to usher in the contemporary era of console games, which is where I hope the class is moving soon.
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Reading 00: How Psychology Draws Us to Board Games and Video Games
Skeptics of board games and video games say they are not worth our time because they do not have any bearing on the world around us. However, I would argue that the limited resources, rules, and complexity mirror what we find interesting and enjoyable about our own world. In order to justify my opinion I looked for information about what in our brain makes games fun for so many people.
After doing some googling, I was able to find an article in Scientific American by John Pavlus about why the games that provide us the most difficulty give us the most satisfaction. His article details users on Reddit exclaiming that they have screamed in frustration and thrown a fit over games like Dark Souls or even simpler ones like Flappy Bird, but they can't help but going back for more. Pavlus points to what Psychologists call intrinsic motivation. This motivation is the desire to achieve a goal without the prospect of an external reward.
Intrinsic motivation stems from three main sources: being in control of ones behavior or choices, connecting with others and belonging to a group, and controlling or influencing outcomes. One interesting example of exerting control over the environment is common in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Players will roll instead of walk or run over long distances because it feels less tedious and they have a more immediate impact over the players behavior. This last source can be challenging when trying to create a game that is hard and fun. If the game is too easy it will be boring but if its too hard you get (sometimes hilarious) rage quits. If the difficulty is just right the player can set goals for competency and plan different ways to achieve them.
Paul Schrater a computer scientist who studies Psychology at the University of Minnesota believes that human brains are "complex constraint-satisfaction machines". He says this is why humans can get satisfaction by accomplishing goals through arduous paths. For example, Schrater cites climbing a mountain. The process of climbing is physically demanding but reaching the top and satisfying the goal is the key to enjoyment.
The group dynamic of board games is also seen in modern video games. With advances in computer networks players can engage in furious gunfights with Call of Duty or race against each other in various mobile games. Board games like Risk and Ticket to Ride represent the same concepts by promoting team work and competitive advantage. It's natural to want to share experiences you enjoy with others and board games and video games allow you to do it in a setting that can be convenient for multiple people.
Board games and video games provide outlets for our internal motivation. I have great memories of my family sitting around the table and getting "heated" when certain family members would have a stroke of luck or a good move that we weren't ready for. These games represent complex issues and scenarios that we can fit into the routine of our everyday lives. Board games can be low tech but with the right amount of imagination and strategy they can be as engaging as video games with the best graphics and virtual reality.
After doing some googling, I was able to find an article in Scientific American by John Pavlus about why the games that provide us the most difficulty give us the most satisfaction. His article details users on Reddit exclaiming that they have screamed in frustration and thrown a fit over games like Dark Souls or even simpler ones like Flappy Bird, but they can't help but going back for more. Pavlus points to what Psychologists call intrinsic motivation. This motivation is the desire to achieve a goal without the prospect of an external reward.
Intrinsic motivation stems from three main sources: being in control of ones behavior or choices, connecting with others and belonging to a group, and controlling or influencing outcomes. One interesting example of exerting control over the environment is common in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Players will roll instead of walk or run over long distances because it feels less tedious and they have a more immediate impact over the players behavior. This last source can be challenging when trying to create a game that is hard and fun. If the game is too easy it will be boring but if its too hard you get (sometimes hilarious) rage quits. If the difficulty is just right the player can set goals for competency and plan different ways to achieve them.
Paul Schrater a computer scientist who studies Psychology at the University of Minnesota believes that human brains are "complex constraint-satisfaction machines". He says this is why humans can get satisfaction by accomplishing goals through arduous paths. For example, Schrater cites climbing a mountain. The process of climbing is physically demanding but reaching the top and satisfying the goal is the key to enjoyment.
The group dynamic of board games is also seen in modern video games. With advances in computer networks players can engage in furious gunfights with Call of Duty or race against each other in various mobile games. Board games like Risk and Ticket to Ride represent the same concepts by promoting team work and competitive advantage. It's natural to want to share experiences you enjoy with others and board games and video games allow you to do it in a setting that can be convenient for multiple people.
Board games and video games provide outlets for our internal motivation. I have great memories of my family sitting around the table and getting "heated" when certain family members would have a stroke of luck or a good move that we weren't ready for. These games represent complex issues and scenarios that we can fit into the routine of our everyday lives. Board games can be low tech but with the right amount of imagination and strategy they can be as engaging as video games with the best graphics and virtual reality.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)