Wk 11: theory of fun What is a Game? What is a good game?

Back to start: Games Many definitions, even a separate science: ludology Crucial: Aim of a game is fun many, many kinds of fun

What is a game? (Caillois) Paidia (play): free-form, expressive, improvisational, playful Ludus (game): orderly, by-the-rules, competitive, focused (does not translate well)

What is a game? (Chris Crawford)

Homo Ludens (Johan Huizinga) Play is free, is in fact freedom. Play is not “ordinary” or “real” life. Play is distinct from “ordinary” life both as to locality and duration. Play creates order. Play is connected with no material interest, and no profit can be gained from it.

Games as training (Raph Koster) “iconified representation of human experience what we can practice with and learn patterns from”

Games as mating rituals Play aimed at getting to know potential partner Solidifies into rituals Becomes part of society Earliest playful behaviour – in birds and fish – is part of mating rituals

Games as hyperstimuli (Daniel Dennett) Games, (also cakes, music and slapstick comedy) are hyper- stimulating neural circuits that have evolved to serve some other purpose Games are not imitation of life, they are the distilled essence of life

What is a game? An activity, separate in time and space and having unique rules and a defined victory condition, that people engage in in order to have fun. Next question: what makes a good game? The quality of ludic activity is defined by its hedonic properties.

What is fun? ○Victory ○Power ○Respect ○Affection ○Communication ○Self-Improvement ○…

Typologies of fun ❖ Story / Gameplay / Simulation  Heart/Mind/Body  Good: excitement; victory; belief  Bad: boredom, disconnection; disbelief Four keys to emotion without story (Nicole Lazzaro ) ➢ Hard fun ➢ Easy fun ➢ Social fun ➢ Alternative state of consciousness

Four player types (Richard Bartle)

Immersion (Ernest Adams) ❖ Cognitive / Strategic ➢ chess ❖ Emotional / Narrative ➢ feel good movie ❖ Embodied / Tactical ➢ ski A good game has a lot of at least one type But breaking one type breaks everything

M:tG player profiles (MaRo) Timmy wants a good experience. Johnny wants to express himself. Spike wants to prove something (usually by winning)

Flow (Mihály Csíkszentmihályi) ❖ Clear aims and rules ❖ Tunneled attention ❖ Concentration ❖ Loss of sense of self and time ❖ Clear feedback ❖ Constant improvement ❖ Balance between challenge and ability ❖ Feeling of control ❖ The action is the reward Ability Challenge

Fun as a cocktail...of neuromediators Bases: ❖ Dopamine ❖ Serotonin ❖ Oxytocin Mixers: ❖ Testosteron ❖ Andrenalin / Noradrenalin The exact mix defines the ‘flavour’ of fun

Dopamine Central to pleasure/reward system and reinforced learning of new behaviours Short-term reinforcement only Dopamine release is regulated by: ❖ Amphetamine: stimulates release ❖ Cocaine: inhibits reuptake ❖ Morphine: synthetic dopamine ❖ Alcohol: suppresses dopamine inhibitors

What causes dopamine release except drugs? Learning new things Creating order in chaos Success / Victory Overcoming obstacles Social dominance...games do all that, so games are fun (and addictive!)

Serotonin Appetite Food availability Satiation Social dominance Well-being Happiness Serotonin release: LSD, DMT, psylocybin, mescalin MDMA Antidepressants (SSRA, MAOI)

Oxytocin "the love molecule" Breastfeeding Maternal bonding Pair bonding Group bonding Outsider rejection

Adrenalin / noradrenaline Regulates fight or flight response Triggers post-adrenaline dopamine release Needs fine timing: rollercoaster curve Heightened perception of reality: border states of consciousness Below-threshold levels are fun; above-threshold levels are not fun anymore: perceived as real fear or aggression Has an adaptation mechanism  hence adrenaline junkies

Testosterone Testosterone is released just before victory People with higher testosterone levels are more persistent and engaged players (especially in gambling games) - and therefore win more often Games are often a part of mating rituals; Actually, the earliest game-like behaviour (in birds and fishes) is mating rituals