Blog Post 2

Lo Siu Cheung, Matthew (10582992)


Question 1: The allure of social games

With the advancement of technology, people can easily get access from their mobile phone to the Internet. However, this breeds another social phenomenon (the allure of social games).

 

The author argues that games are a part of social life and social games contribute to these two ideas. A researcher in the article finds that almost 90 percent of respondents disagreed that online relationships can fulfill offline ones. They said that social networking is less about making new friends and more about communicating more effectively with established friends and acquaintances. The article argues there is a social interaction in the game, multiplayer games and some systems like Nintendo Wii encourage ample social interaction. Also, he argues that social interaction with others is a key component of gaming experience; Games function as a ‘social connector, both a ‘social lubricant’ and a ‘social glue’.

 

The reason why gamers are addicted to spending numerous hours on their game is that they are trying to escape their lives, and hence playing games can give them a break from the real world. For instance, when we are working or students are engaging in their study and our needs always exist, games ultimately target our several needs.

 

There are a total of 3 needs, and I will explain them one by one below.

 

1)      Competence: A desire to feel relieved or to find out control over some situations. A majority of people like the feeling of success in completion and knowledge, it needs to present in real life when their study or job isn’t challenging or rewarding.  When you level up or defeat the boss in games, they are actually fulfilling our wants to feel delighted. As a result, it is not difficult for us to see how games make us carefree.

 

2)     Autonomy: A desire to control our actions or feel independent. Some games provide players a bank of free choices. People want to control their own destiny and move during game only.

 

 

3)      Relatedness: We want to make a contribution to the society or we can affect others. This desire can be fulfilled by playing games with others online, and it can be met too even players are interacting with virtual ones. For example, if I play the same game as friends, we can exchange some useful game information through different ways, or even invite others to join us, and this is definitely Social Glue.

 

The time you spend on games, the lower chance you can have to get connected with the real world, especially: students. Apart from engaging in games or the Internet, people can still have countless and valuable chances which can make them feel related, autonomous, and more competent. Working, studying and playing sports with friends are some best illustrations of what we can do to fulfill our own desire rather than just sitting in front of a computer playing games all day.

 

Our precious life cannot only be filled with games and fun, and lots of efforts are needed to make our work accomplish sometimes. On the other hand, when used appropriately, games can show us the true world through certain views, and sharpen our skills with cognitive mind to become a successful individual.