Essays that discuss video games’ ability to engage gamers in their worlds and characters on a deep emotional level
GTA 5’s Los Santos is one of the biggest and most detailed maps in gaming. In the annals of video game maps, Los Santos is one of the best.
Despite this, I’ve never loved it. In fact, GTA 5’s Los Santos is my least favourite map in the mainline series since its transition to 3D.
I’ve talked about one of the reasons why the map disappoints me in my analysis of the map’s actual vs perceived size. Another issue, one that has bothered me since 2013, is that the map feels ’empty’.
One of the reasons why many Battlefield fans still consider Bad Company 2 their favourite multiplayer game in the series is its atmosphere.
By atmosphere, I mean the game’s general mood—the emotions it usually conveys through sound, visuals, gameplay, and story.
Bad Company 2’s multiplayer doesn’t have any explicit story and I have written about its gameplay elsewhere, so this post will mainly cover sound and visuals.
The objective of a shooter is to get kills. Even when an objective isn’t explicitly focused on this end, getting kills is usually at the top of gamers’ minds.
But should it be? You may ironically find shooters more enjoyable if you focus less on shooting and more on surviving.
Prioritising survival will change the way you play shooters forever. It may also make them more enjoyable for you than they’ve ever been before. Here are a few reasons why.
Boltgun delivers a potent power fantasy, but the thrill of being powerful wanes due to a lack of challenge in the mid-to-late game.
A power fantasy is an imagined scenario in which one imagines being far more powerful than in real life.
They may imagine themselves as a legendary warrior, superhero, ruler, or god.
Video games enable players to engage with such fantasies in the confines of a virtual world. Rather than imagining themselves being powerful, video games render the fantasy for them.
One of the best ways to scare someone is to catch them off guard. If you let someone know something scary will happen, you give them the chance to mentally prepare for it. Most people will strengthen their mental defences whether intentionally or not; it’s an unconscious response they have no control over.