Immerrrrsionnn

The lecture on immersion first got me thinking about how too involved people got into video games that they seemed to go crazy nuts about the particular games they were playing and it all reminded me of a few youtube clips that I had seen on fb which saw young males who had had their world of war craft games stopped for some reasons by their parents and this is how they reacted: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YersIyzsOpc andhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ka8AcYwDCok . In first watching these clips I coud not stop laughing at how crazy and extreme this kid had gotten. However, since this course I have come to see videogame players as almost like sports players, simply due to the great work and effort that is gone into the actual creating and playing of many of these high intense games. Although the gamers experience is not physically involved like sports players on the field, their mind set and discipline in controlling their players in these games are crucial in these games and determines the fate of their characters.
To continue about immersion a thought that came to me from this week’s lecture was also the work and harm that is happening to our bodies in playing these videogames. Hands were of great discussion this week and in saying so, our hands play a vital part in our lives. There is a lot of action happening in these games and it is all controlled by our fingers pressing these buttons on these controllers. Depending on the level of intensity that is happening on screen it affects the way people put pressure on their fingers in pressing these buttons in order for the big scary monster to die! The fact that some of these games discussed in our lectures such as world of war craft are games that take hours, and hours a day to play I am not surprised that there is so much argument against games “sucking in” people’s minds! Although we have heard it in lecture that immersion is all about wanting to take part, there is still a part of me which argues that makers of these games make these tyoes of games purely in gain of money. Like most things in our society, the reason why one is addicted to something all comes down to “it’s their choice”. Just like gambling machines, so many people are addicted and in result lose so much money, which affects them mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally. If rules and boundaries had been set up such situations would not occur. In relation to video games, if rules and boundaries were made maybe not so many parents would be too worried about their children playing such games that have them tranced into another world. However, on another side I argue the point I have just made as I do believe in the theory that immersion is all about choice and if rules and regulations were made for games I think the whole atmosphere and experience of these games could change. In saying this, this probably doesn’t happen to too many people as I myself hardly know anyone who is like this and like Kevin has told us about his brother, these types of videogames such as world of war craft can be seen as another learning space for other people.
I had never actually thought about the importance of point of views were in games. After this week’s lecture and readings I have come to have a bit more understanding of the different perspectives we are given in games. From personal experiences most games I have played have been slide scrolling games as they were they types of games provided on mobile phones, but I preferred isometric games as I got to see from a higher perspective what was happening in the field game. It made me feel needed to help rescue this particular character and help them to safety. I think with most games having players as the main hero is a big attraction for gamers as it makes them feel wanted and needed, where in the real world, one may seem like an absolutely nobody and life just seems to suck big time.