I’ve often wondered what it is about games that attracts me so much. Why do I spend more of my free time with a video game controller in my hand instead of a remote control? Is it the fact that modern games have plots and intriguing characters and realistic graphics that rival typical video or audio entertainment? Perhaps that’s true for some folks, but that certainly wasn’t true in the past, when video games featured truly primitive graphics and sound quality.
Yet, even when my choices were playing Pitfall! on the Atari 2600 or watching You Can’t do That on Television on Nickelodeon (I had the biggest crush on Moose!), I’d choose to take up that iconic controller with the big red button and assume the role of the intrepid adventurer, Harry, every time. The draw of the game was just that much more powerful. And I think I know why. I think I know what that one compelling characteristic is that has kept me more interested and entertained than TV, movies or music ever did. And, perhaps, why gaming has become such a strong market that it directly competes with these other entertainment industries…
Interactivity.
It’s what sets Gaming apart. It’s the Ace in the Hole. The ability to interact with your entertainment and affect your overall experience is a powerful thing that can leave the one-way experience of other media feeling a bit lacking.
Why call into the local radio station hoping to get my favorite song played when I can just download it on my XBox and simulate playing my favorite song as the guitarist or drummer in Rock Bandimmediately? Why wait for the Cowboys vs. Redskins game on Sunday when I can have my best friend over to my pad today so he can lead the Cowboys to victory against my bumbling attempt to manage the Redskins in a rousing game of Madden NFL ‘09? And, for goodness sake, you know there’s no use in yelling, “Run, Girl!” at the movie screen, so just quit it. Get yourself a copy of Resident Evil and pull down on the controller when the dogs jump through the window – make the the girl run yourself! It will make you feel better. Trust me.
And that’s the power of games. I don’t have to be the lucky guy who got his song played on the radio and I don’t have to make the stupid choices that horror movie victims ALWAYS seem to make when I take control of the action in a video game. I can be the star of my own musical performance or I can shoot that zombie in the face with the cool chrome shotgun that’s just sitting there, tantalizingly, on the chair in the corner. (“Run Girl!”)
For me, there is no competition. Games win. Sure, I’ll watch a show here and there, go to movies with my friends and, of course, I don’t know what I’d do if I couldn’t listen to music on the radio, but games have that one thing that continues to pull me in and never fails to satisfy – they let me make the choices and reap the rewards. Be it a standing ovation for finishing the guitar line to Freebird or a zombie eating my brains because I didn’t pick up the shotgun, I’m having a unique experience that I can relive, retry, or refuse – anytime I like.
Here at Engauge Digital, we intimately understand the meaning and power of interactivity. It’s at the heart of nearly everything we do. And there may be some lessons to be learned from games and how players interact with them. What works and what doesn’t? Which games have interfaces that inspire people to actually write about them in blogs (as if!) or discuss them in forums? What can an interactive agency do with that information? I’m not really sure – I’m just a thoughtful programmer that loves games. So, I pose those questions to you.
Why not leave a comment and share your thoughts on the subject, or even have a discussion with your team to explore gaming interactivity and how it might be applied to enhance the experiences of our clients? Heck, I bet there’s already a gamer in your group!
The Gamer’s Perspective: Interactivity
Interactivity: Gaming’s Ace in the Hole
I’ve often wondered what it is about games that attracts me so much. Why do I spend more of my free time with a video game controller in my hand instead of a remote control? Is it the fact that modern games have plots and intriguing characters and realistic graphics that rival typical video or audio entertainment? Perhaps that’s true for some folks, but that certainly wasn’t true in the past, when video games featured truly primitive graphics and sound quality.
Yet, even when my choices were playing Pitfall! on the Atari 2600 or watching You Can’t do That on Television on Nickelodeon (I had the biggest crush on Moose!), I’d choose to take up that iconic controller with the big red button and assume the role of the intrepid adventurer, Harry, every time. The draw of the game was just that much more powerful. And I think I know why. I think I know what that one compelling characteristic is that has kept me more interested and entertained than TV, movies or music ever did. And, perhaps, why gaming has become such a strong market that it directly competes with these other entertainment industries…
Interactivity.
It’s what sets Gaming apart. It’s the Ace in the Hole. The ability to interact with your entertainment and affect your overall experience is a powerful thing that can leave the one-way experience of other media feeling a bit lacking.
Why call into the local radio station hoping to get my favorite song played when I can just download it on my XBox and simulate playing my favorite song as the guitarist or drummer in Rock Band immediately? Why wait for the Cowboys vs. Redskins game on Sunday when I can have my best friend over to my pad today so he can lead the Cowboys to victory against my bumbling attempt to manage the Redskins in a rousing game of Madden NFL ‘09? And, for goodness sake, you know there’s no use in yelling, “Run, Girl!” at the movie screen, so just quit it. Get yourself a copy of Resident Evil and pull down on the controller when the dogs jump through the window – make the the girl run yourself! It will make you feel better. Trust me.
And that’s the power of games. I don’t have to be the lucky guy who got his song played on the radio and I don’t have to make the stupid choices that horror movie victims ALWAYS seem to make when I take control of the action in a video game. I can be the star of my own musical performance or I can shoot that zombie in the face with the cool chrome shotgun that’s just sitting there, tantalizingly, on the chair in the corner. (“Run Girl!”)
For me, there is no competition. Games win. Sure, I’ll watch a show here and there, go to movies with my friends and, of course, I don’t know what I’d do if I couldn’t listen to music on the radio, but games have that one thing that continues to pull me in and never fails to satisfy – they let me make the choices and reap the rewards. Be it a standing ovation for finishing the guitar line to Freebird or a zombie eating my brains because I didn’t pick up the shotgun, I’m having a unique experience that I can relive, retry, or refuse – anytime I like.
Here at Engauge Digital, we intimately understand the meaning and power of interactivity. It’s at the heart of nearly everything we do. And there may be some lessons to be learned from games and how players interact with them. What works and what doesn’t? Which games have interfaces that inspire people to actually write about them in blogs (as if!) or discuss them in forums? What can an interactive agency do with that information? I’m not really sure – I’m just a thoughtful programmer that loves games. So, I pose those questions to you.
Why not leave a comment and share your thoughts on the subject, or even have a discussion with your team to explore gaming interactivity and how it might be applied to enhance the experiences of our clients? Heck, I bet there’s already a gamer in your group!