No, once again science has gotten it wrong, games make people feel BAD!
That's why we like them, becuase all gamers are actually closet bondage manics.
:P

*Insert donkey imitation here*

@Daniel & Thaliak:

There's nothing wrong with making your preferences known, but in cyberspace we don't have the luxury of knowing each other for years, reading each other's facial expressions or hearing tone of voice. Anybody can log onto and read our posts and it's our responsibility to give as little ammo as possible to the critics. I posted a semi-threatening e-mail to Jack Thompson on Joystiq a few months ago after too many drinks, and Dennis rightly chastised me. Be careful how you word things is all I'm saying.

@hayabusa75
While I agree that people's perceptions of someone often matter more than their real personality, I disagree that gamers who enjoy gore should keep their preference to themselves. If game critics point to it as proof that gamers obsess over violence, such gamers or their peers should explain the reason increasing gore makes games more enjoyable: In-game actions yield a greater effect. For the same reason, I enjoy role-playing games where the player saves the world more than role-playing games with mundane goals. The same rule applies in real life; people prefer mowing to trimming because they cut more grass with equal effort.

Of course, game critics could argue that some gamers’ preference for violent games reflects violent beliefs. Here gamers should demonstrate that people recognize the difference between fantasy and reality. For example, studies of movies, video games, and children’s play indicate that people consider violent entertainment unappealing unless they know the violence is fake because of background music, predictable plots, the feel of the controller, or other clues. Anecdotes support this; James Paul Gee wrote that he enjoyed playing a thief in games despite his real-world morals.

Finally, gamers should point out that people can play violent games even if they dislike violence in the real world or in entertainment. For example, I played first-person shooters a few years ago to emulate my brother and I play mildly violent games, such as Final Fantasy or Tactics Ogre, because I enjoy the story or the challenge. People who play particularly violent games might enjoy them because they offer more excitement and a chance to show their manliness to peers.

(Most of my information comes from Why We Watch: The Attractions of Violent Entertainment by Jeffrey H. Goldstein. I can e-mail you my notes on the last chapter if you’re interested.)

@ hayabusa75

I realize that it's how games make you feel good, but almost every game I've ever played has been violent, so that's why I say how violent games make me feel good. I totally agree with the last thing that you said that how a person is perceived is as important as how one actually is. However, somehow violent games are the most fun to play and that's probably why there are so many of them.

I'm obviously not the only one who has ever played them, or the companies wouldn't make them. A lot of other gamers play violent video games and I'm sure it makes them feel good too. Nonviolent games simply aren't as fun. Why would you want to follow the rules in a virtual world where there are no consequences to your actions? That's another thing I like about games like Scarface. I can do things in the video game world that I can't do in real life, so why would I want to be nice to virtual characters on a screen? They're not real and they don't feel pain.

I'm a history major and I don't condone the gladiator games, held by the ancient Romans, because, in those games, real people were getting killed. I think that was 100% wrong. As for my appearance, let me tell you that I usually don't talk about how much I like violent content in the media to people I know personally. They know I like violent games and films, but they don't know everything I've said on this web site. That's the beauty of it. I can say what's on my mind and no one, that I know personally, will know how I truly feel.

I can say what my real views are on the issue without destroying my image and how the people, who know me personally, see me. You all know how I truly feel about media violence and you, and the others on this site, know more about me than people who know me personally. They also don't know that I totally reject the idea that violent images on a screen are dangerous. I see it all as innocent entertainment. Liking and condoning violent content in games and films doesn't mean I condone it in real life. I absolutely don't. Isn't that the whole point of watching violent films and playing violent games to have a good time?

I don't mean to sound like I'm totally obsessed with media violence, but I usually only watch violent films and play violent games in my free time, so that's what makes me feel good when things aren't going well. It's exhilerating and awesome, but I would never do it in real life. It says that video games make people feel good about themselves and I've known that for a long time, so I said that, personally, it does that for me and I very rarely play a game that isn't violent because it's not fun.

At the end of my post, I would like to say one final thing. You, and others, probably want to know why I'm so obsessed with defending violent games. I'll tell you why. I've been into it for a long time and I'm not crazy and violent in the real world. I know the theory, that these games make people violent, is wrong. A few weeks ago, there was an entry where a guy said that he didn't want to be seen as a defender of crazy and violent games. If I could be known for one thing, that's what I would want to be known for because they're 100% innocent, and I know it. I want, in the worst way, to help the thing that has given me a lot of good times, and the only thing that helped my pain go away at times. Also, other than the Atlanta Braves, violent video games are one of the few things that I ever gave a crap about.

When Brokenscope said that I was almost the reverse of Jack Thompson, he hit the nail on the head. I am the reverse of Jack Thompson absolutely and I'm as determined to defend these games, as he is to attack them. I'm not crazy, I'm determined to poke holes in the lies of anti-game activists. I thank Brokenscope for that compliment. Although he might not have meant it as such, and I'm almost sure he didn't, that's the best compliment I've ever received.

@Daniel:

Yes, the article is about how games make people feel good. The article is NOT about how violent games make people feel good, nor did anyone else bring up the issue. My point is that you come across as irrational and obsessive when you say things like, "I like video games that make characters die in gory ways partly because it gives more satisfaction." Or, "the gorier, the better..." You're confirming the negative stereotypes about gamers and that's what I have a problem with. Remember, sometimes how one is perceived is just as important as how one actually is.

@Jabrwock:

You can really do that in the Sims? Cool...I mean, I don't condone such outrageous behaviour!!!

I'm glad there are more studies being done to confirm what gamers have known for decades.

@Daniel:

I wish you'd keep that kind of talk to yourself. When you talk like that, you look like the poster child for the anti-gamers. If I was one, I'd point right at you and say, "See? SEE? This is what I'm talking about. Obsessed with violence and gore, yessir!" And they wouldn't care less that you'd never actually hurt anyone.

Each and every level of Mario makes me feel good. Theres just somethin about old platformers, you know?

@konrad_arflane

I guess these researchers have never heard of Ghost 'n Goblins, Ghouls 'n Ghosts, the Gradius series, NiGHTS, Rad Racer, or Ninja Gaiden 1-3.

-- Sakimori

Whenever I beat a hard part in a game I always feel good. :D

I can speak from personal experience, nad many frustratign Burnout 3 sessions ,this is entirely true. It feels really good to get the gold at the end, it just feels awesome, especially after restarting twenty times.

Daniel, I hate to break this to you, but you're not not the opposite of Jack Thompson. You are Jack Thompson's example.

It's understandable that being able to maim someone in the virtual world without dealing with the consequences in the real world could relieve stress and releases serotonin in the brain to give you the reward feeling. But, and I almost hate to say this, you're acting like a 13 year-old child who's parents finally let you play Halo for an hour before you had to finish your homework and get tucked into bed.

Your "YAY VIOLENCE. BLOOD IS AWESOME." approach is far from healthy, and I'm going to go ahead and assume you have a few issues.

@ Daniel

I completely agree with you on that wavelength, it was just the way you presented yourself to be a little way too gung-ho about violence.

duh

Okay. I’ll agree that people should word posts carefully as long as they can still discuss games even when those discussions would seem damning to a casual or close-minded reader. After all, the casual or the close-minded don’t need to prowl gaming forums to condemn games; they can just view a clip of Grand Theft Auto without considering the experience of playing it or its redeeming values. Such discussions might scare a few people who would otherwise not condemn games, but they also let gamers know they’re not alone, reveal the effects of games or nuances of those effects, and highlight the diversity of games and gamers.

@ hayabusa75

I am an extremist in the sense that I hate the idea that these games make people violent and I reject it entirely. I am a fan of super gory games. However, I have never condoned violence in the real world. What I was saying up there is that part of my reason for playing these games is because I don't like holier than thou type Christians, who say that everything is bad and treat people like crap. That's the kind of Christian I think Jack Thompson is and that's part of the reason why I don't like him. It's not all because of the negative ideas I have about Christians, who think everything is bad, but that is a contributing factor.

@ Yoshiko

I am not against all Christians. Only the nasty ones. I've also met many good Christians. George Bush is actually in favor of the company that makes Quake and Doom. Jack Thompson gets along better with Hillary Clinton than with George Bush. Actually, he hates George Bush. Also the fact that I'm against holier than thou type Christians is not the only reason why I play and defend gory games. I think they're tons of fun and totally innocent. Also, I don't think that Jotun is being condescending when he refers to people as sir, but I don't condone the comments that he made. In those comments, he was wrong.

@Daniel

Yeah, I know that Thompson is Hilary's lap dog and all, I was actually using my own opinions as examples.

Your point is making more sense to me now, and I thank you for clearing it for me. Jotun's crap was in another topic and I don't really want to go back and search for your post where you defended them, so I'm not even going to get into that.

@ Yoshiko

I never defended Jotun's comments. I said that you and hayabusa75 were excessively harsh with him. I think his unfounded attacks were wrong in every way and I didn't condone them or defend the things he said. What I was saying was that I think he's on the right track over all because he doesn't like Jack Thompson. If someone wants to be on the right track, that person has to realize what a dirty pig Jack Thompson is and Jotun does. I was defending him not his comments.