The Experiences We Want and the Games We Play
When you play a video game, you want to have a good time and great experience, right? Of course you do. That's why for businesses in the industry, knowing which type of game experiences are most important to you and your friends and which of them are satisfied by which game (genre) is important. That's where today's study comes in. They identify game experience types and the genres associated with them.
• Knowing which game experiences exist and which game genres satisfy them is important for players and businesses.
• After analyzing data from 1,193 players, the researchers found eight game experience types.
• Game experience types and main drivers are: challenge driven (Compelling Challenge), discovery driven (Immersive Exploring), competition driven (Energetic Rushing), creation driven (Creative Caring), combat driven (Competitive Shooting), nostalgia driven (Cheerful Bouncing), strategy driven (Strategic Management), and lifestyle driven (Daily Dwelling).
• "... players usually do not value only one type of game experience but instead from two to four types of them." [1]
• Players will significantly shy away from spending time on specific game genres when they seek a specific game experience.
Everyone playing video games is looking to have a good time and great experience. For businesses in the industry, knowing which type of game experiences are most important to players and are satisfied by which game (genre) is important. On the one hand, it helps game designers to improve their games through interpreting feedback and also craft personalised marketing strategies.
So far, game experience models have either focused on game qualities – how gameplay mechanics, aesthetics, and social features contribute to player experience – or player types and traits (how motives, preferences, and behaviour shape experiences). However, these are very different angles to look at the same phenomenon. Today's study uses data from 1,193 gamers to find overarching types of game experiences.
8️⃣ Types of Video Game Experiences
After analyzing the data, the researchers found eight game experience types. The table below shows them, including the description of each type, its main driver, and notable games. For a better overview, I have highlighted some of them.
In addition, the researchers found that players described multiple game experiences they prefer (41% of them). This was independent of the number of games the players mentioned.
"... players usually do not value only one type of game experience but instead from two to four types of them." [1]
Ok, now we know which experiences players seek and that games typically satisfy more than one of them. Finally, the researchers used a regression model, looking at the genre playing frequency and game experience types. Basically, which genres do players actually play when seeking/having a specific experience type. Below, I have added the table and highlighted the most significant ones.
As you can see, some of the values are negative. This means that, for instance, players strongly shy away from playing MOBA games if they want to have a cheerful bouncing experience. Instead, they want to have a compelling challenge.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you all have a great week. Best,
Christian 🙂
