Video games, narratives, presence, and enjoyment

Quite obviously, playing video games is a lot of fun for those who regularly do so. But what exactly is the nature of this enjoyment? Is it comparable to the fun that results from watching a movie or TV show, or from reading a book? Is interactive entertainment through games different from traditional entertainment? Clearly, the interactivity that playing video games provides, changes the situation of the user. Instead of only responding emotionally to what happens on the screen (as is the case with movies and TV), in interactive entertainment the enjoyment is related to the fact that the users create their own narratives. This activity is often challenging, and players frequently explain their interest in games by referring exactly to this challenge. What do player efforts mean for their sense of ”being there” (experiencing “presence”), i.e., for their sense of being part of the narrative? Is presence a condition of interactive entertainment? Or is it instead a consequence?

We see video games as a tool for entertainment, and we aim to describe the experience, explain why people are so interested in this activity, and clarify the ways in which playing games is psychologically different from using traditional entertainment.

Readings

  1. Hartmann, T., Boecking, S., Schramm, H., Wirth, W., Klimmt, C., & Vorderer, P. (2005). Raeumliche Praesenz als Rezeptionsmodalitaet: Ein theoretisches Modell zur Entstehung von Praesenzerleben [Spatial presence as reception modality: A theoretical model on the emergence of presence experience]. In V. Gehrau, H. Bilandzic, & J. Woelke (Eds.), Rezeptionsstrategien und Rezeptionsmodalitaeten [Reception strategies and reception modalities] (pp. 21-37). Munich: R. Fischer.

  2. Klimmt, C., Hartmann, T., & Vorderer, P. (n.d.). Macht der Neuen Medien? 'Überwältigung' und kritische Rezeptionshaltung in virtuellen Medienumgebungen [The power of the new media? Being 'overwhelmed' and critical reception behavior in virutal media environments].

  3. Lee, K. M. (2004). Presence, Explicated. Communication Theory, 14, 27-50.

  4. Lee, K. M. (2004). Why presence occurs: Evolutionary psychology, media equation, and presence. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 13, 494-505.

  5. Lee, K. M., & Jung, Y. (2005). Evolutionary nature of virtual experience. Journal of Cultural and Evolutionary Psychology, 3, 159-178.

  6. Lee, K. M., Jin, S. A., & Park, N. (in press). The role of narrative. In P. Vorderer, & J. Bryant (Eds.), Playing computer games – Motives, responses, and consequences. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

  7. Lee, K. M., Jin, S. A., Park, N., & Kang, S. (in press). Effects of narrative on feelings of presence in computer-game playing. Communication Research.

  8. Vorderer, P., Bryant, J., Pieper, K., & Weber, R. (in press). Playing computer games as entertainment. In P. Vorderer, & J. Bryant (Eds.), Playing computer games – motives, responses, and consequences. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

  9. Vorderer, P., Klimmt, C., & Ritterfeld, U. (2004). Enjoyment: At the heart of media entertainment. Communication Theory, 14 (4), 388-408.

  10. Vorderer, P., Steen, F., & Chan, E. (in press). Motivation. In J. Bryant, & P. Vorderer (Eds.). Psychology of entertainment. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

  11. Wirth, W., Hartmann, T., Böcking, S., Vorderer, P., Klimmt, C., Schramm, H., Saari, T., Laarni, J., Ravaja, N., Ribeiro Gouveia, F., Biocca, F., Sacau, A., Jäncke, L., Baumgartner, T., & Jäncke, P. (n.d.). Constructing presence: A two-level model of the formation of spatial presence experiences.