VIDEO GAMES
BY EVAN BOBEN
SOURCE
• Title: Why we play: how our desire for games shapes our world
• Author: Ben Reeves
• Date: November 2012
• Type: Magazine Article: Game informer issue 235
SUMMARY
• Not only played for enjoyment or escapism
• People return to video games to satisfy three invisible needs
• Competence-the desire to seek out control or to feel master over a situation
• Autonomy-the desire to feel independent or have a certain amount of control over our actions
• Relatedness-the desire to feel significant
RESEARCH
• Offered an in depth explanation from a scientific perspective on why people play video games.
• Video gaming has more to do with psychology than one may expect
• Helped confirm thesis by providing specific examples