I was sent “Settlers Online dev: ‘Monetize all weakness“ recently, but the cat’s been out of the bag for awhile. Anyone who thinks that video game makers haven’t already been utilizing psychological tactics to keep players playing the games is really missing the boat. There’s even a term for this: “stickiness.” The level of stickiness is how much you’re thinking about the World of Warcraft when you’re out, say, mowing the lawn, or picking up your nephew at daycare. The more sticky the game is, the more it’s an integral part of you. When you read postings at a site like www.wowdetox.com, you hear people say things like “Wow steals your soul.” That’s super-stickiness.
There are plenty enough polarizing issues already. Abortion. Legalizing marijuana. God’s existence. Human cloning. Well, it seems we might have to add one more to the list. Video games. Are they good or bad?
For every book that hollers “Video games are a problem!” (examples include Playstation Nation, Video Games & Your Kids: How Parents Can Stay in Control, and Stop Teaching Our Kids to Kill), there are books and articles that just as fervently claim “Video games don’t harm anyone!” (examples include Marc Prensky’s book “Don’t Bother Me Mom–I’m Learning!” and the articles “Video Games Help Children Learn Time Management Skills” (Henry Jenkins), “The Addictive Qualities of Video Games Are Not a Problem” (Steven Johnson), and “Video Games Can Teach Social Tolerance” (Gonzalo Frasca)). For every expert claiming that video game are the bane of our existence, there’s just as many strong voices saying they’re about as harmful as breathing. (Okay, okay–let’s not get into the air pollution, global warming, smog, greenhouse effect discussion that quickly turns into yet another polarizing issue–we all know the point being made here is that video games are harmless, period).
I just got back from BEA (Book Expo America) where I did a few signings for UNPLUGGED and chatted with a number of audio and foreign rights people. Perhaps my best sales pitch would’ve been to show them the type of response UNPLUGGED is getting from regular people, such as this blog entry from warcrackwidow.blogspot.com.
“May 25, 2010- What I hope God provides
Dear God, if I have dreamed of anything, it would be to hear these words from my husband:
PG 96 (End of Chapter 5)
“The thing about addiction is that those who suffer most aren’t the addicts, it’s the people who love them. I will never be able to apologize enough to my family for all the crap I’ve put them through.”
Sorry for the second post today, but I wanted to make sure this was in my archive. I found the biggest dream of my life in these words. God, I can only hope these are words I will hear soon, words from EVIL that are in your plan. Words that are RIGHT and MEANINGFUL and NECESSARY.
Please, God, Please.”