I’ve always found myself bouncing off hard on “make your own fun” type games like Minecraft or the newer Zeldas. This extends to any type of game that has no clear goals or motivators.
Turns out I’m just an extrinsically motivated gamer. For me, it’s about the destination, not the journey. I enjoy games that keep me going with rewards promised at each step of the way. When given the choice to be creative with the tools I’m given, I’ll just find the most efficient way of getting it done.
I’d like to hear what type of gamers y’all are. What type of games bring you joy?
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It’s gotta be a mix of both. If there aren’t frivolous side tasks I can do, a game feels empty to me, but without a primary set of goals, it feels aimless. Games that combine the two are my white whale. I want to defeat the big evil with fishing minigames and trading quests.
I agree, but there is definitely a limit to the degree of frivolous side quests. I’m playing TotK here and there, and some of the quests/objectives are basically punishment. I liked the koroks in BotW, but a lot of the new ones can fuck right off.
I too am enjoying AC Valhalla, lol.
ah man, ive given up on AC a while back, is Valhalla worth the time? I was under the impression they were all mostly the same with a different coat of paint
It’s worth the time to me, but I can definitely understand why others might not feel the same. Personally, I don’t love the Viking “honour and glory” theme but I do like the zany “mystery” side quests and the overall game structure. As for whether it’s a rinse-and-repeat of previous games… yeah, it is, in most meaningful ways. Since Origins, they’ve relied on a lot of the same mechanisms, but that’s not a deal breaker to me. I like (modern) AC because of the visual polish and atmosphere, not necessarily unique gameplay. Odyssey was my favourite of the “new” gen of AC games, and I think Valhalla made a lot of tangible improvements to the mechanics and gameplay loops since that title.
Time played: 400 hours. Completion percentage: 15%
extremely intrinsically motivated. give me a world with stuff in it, not goals
I almost exclusively play games where I can set my own goals, or do my own thing, or experiment. I also gravitate towards immersive games. I assume that means I’m more intrinsic?
I really don’t like games that treat leveling as an obstacle to the “real game.”. Makes it seem pointless.
I love good stories. For me, the atmosphere and plot are vital. It feels like after work I just don’t have enough time and mental capacity to put a lot of effort in a video game, therefore I avoid things like Minecraft or the whole survival genre, even though I used to enjoy that kind of stuff when I was a teenager.
I’m extrinsically motivated, but my definition of “extrinsic” is pretty loose. I’ll do things that aren’t necessary to beat the game (I don’t even need the game to be “beatable”). As long as I’m finishing something and getting a reward for it, I’m content.
I’m having a great time doing side content in Tears of the Kingdom: completing as many shrines and side quests as I can, hoarding materials for armor upgrades, etc. Those are optional objectives that you can truly complete. However, I don’t spend much time experimenting with Ultrahand.
Similarly in Minecraft, I liked accumulating resources in survival mode, but I bounced off of creative mode.
EDIT: apparently my Lemmy app went haywire and posted this about 8 times. Very sorry.
I don’t think I fit either side of this dichotomy (though if forced to pick would choose extrinsically), as I love a good story but am very much about the journey and not just the destination.
If I had to guess, the limits of development scope and the resulting limits on worlds being believably reactive means a lot of people are going to see themselves as extrinsically motivated, with the big exception being people that just love building things in sandboxes. Intrinsic motivators would be much easier to come across if more avenues of interaction felt fleshed out but for some rare exceptions.
I most like sandbox games that allow me to do the journey my way. I very rarely do anything the optimal way.
Often if I am playing a linear game people will get frustrated with my because I’ll pass on a better weapon because I like the one I currently have. They say take that sword it’s better but I’m not playing the game to reach the end. I don’t care if a better weapon makes it easier I want a cool sword that fits my playstyle and that I have fun using.
Definitely extrinsically. In a lot of those super open games, I get just completely overwhelmed by choice, don’t know where to go or what to do, and give up. I’ve tried twice to play Breath of the Wild and I just can’t. Give me a linear experience any time.
Whatever gender of gamer this is: https://youtu.be/nZuNMb57rVI
I never skip the intro
I’m largely extrinsically motivated. I always have high hopes of 100%-ing games, but I find once all the quests are done, my enthusiasm for going out and wandering and finding the last things drops off precipitously. Even if I’m not following the storyline and have wandered off to explore, I still feel the need for some ultimate promise of more story to come.
All of you intrinsically motivated gamers. Have you heard of our lord and savior, Bob? Have you played eve online?
One of the most complex, brutal, make your own fun games I’ve ever played. On and off for 16 years and I still suck at it.
I have played Eve. I log in every few months or so to do a little exploration.
I lean toward the “here’s a goal, good fucking luck getting there” types of games, but I sometimes play more open-ended games like Cataclysm: DDA and Dwarf Fortress. Currently I’ve been binging Vechs’ Super Hostile Minecraft maps, which I guess offer a fusion of both?
I kind of feel bad for people who are only motivated by things like trophies, or feeling the need to 100% a game. If I’m not enjoying a game, I’m not going to force myself to play it longer because of some strange need inside me to 100% complete every game I start. If I don’t like playing a game, I will just stop playing it.
Intrinsically, definitely. Minecraft, Dwarf Fortress, RimWorld, Victoria 2, and etc.
When I was young I would spend hours taking photographs or randomly roaming around in GTA San Andreas, it was a nice break from reality to just be free. As I grow old, I find myself actually enjoying good narrative without painfully complex mechanics like Minecraft, and I presume TotK. Back then I would skip the missions and just fool around, now i would follow the missions and in the process fool around only after i get comfortable with the game world and setting.
