Why do gamers game?

A question I've had on my mind for quite sometime, but not one I can answer so easily. More than anything, I believe it's a psychological way of thought. A gamer's mind is clearly different from the average Joe, as we gain a significant amount of creativity from the astonishing games we play daily. Of course, we all have different opinions on exactly why we play video games. For some, it's just a hobby, some a deep passion, and then there are those who are into them much more than I can describe. Video games aren't just something we (the gamers) do to kill time, it's truly a way of life for us. Something I would like to bring up, there's a pretty popular YouTube series on the net titled "

There's also a fairly old IGN article I read by a user who attempted to cover the very same subject. I couldn't find the article to link, but I believe, if memory serves correctly, the guy stated that gamers usually play video games to escape the real world problems they may be having in life (in a nutshell, of course). Since I read that article, and watched the video, I've been constantly having thoughts on the question: Why do I love playing video games?

What I think, is pretty similar to what the IGN user said. I think gamers play video games when (not all - but most) the player's life needs some excitement, when it's not everything they want it to be. Do you remember when you were just a child on Halloween night, and you would dress up to go trick-or-treating as your favorite cartoon character or super hero? I believe it's a lot more like that than anything. When a player picks up a controller, they enter the life of a fictional character, to chose what he or she does at any time they want.

I've stated several times on the MLP Forums that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was my favorite video game of all time, even though I'm a huge Sonic the Hedgehog fan. But why is this? Mostly to it being an RPG, a Role Playing Game. In Skyrim, I am able to pick and chose to be whoever I want to. If I want to be a mage and conqueror the ways of magic, I can do so. If I want to be a fearless warrior who always dives into battle, I can do that too. What I'm doing in this game is picking how I want to live my fictional life however I want it to be, and have to answer to no one.

Offline, I have the most boring life I believe a human being can have. I live on a small farm, only have 2 friends who can be real jerks at times, and I live with my parents still (but I'm not complaining). I've served my time going to school, and now I'm adapting to the real world with a working a job and bills to pay, this life I live is boring. When the end of the day comes, and everyone is in bed, I can hardly wait to pick up the controller to enter a different life, one that I've built the way I want it to be.

Even if the game isn't Skyrim, it can be something else I really enjoy like Sonic or Halo, Titanfall or Gears of War, Star Fox or Tomb Raider, God of War or Rayman, the possibilities are (literally) never ending. When playing video games, I can control whether I want to be the hero, or a villain, there are no bounds to what I can do in life behind this controller. If I'm playing Star Fox and I want to do a barrel roll, you better believe I'm going to do one!

In conclusion, I believe gamers game because life "offline" isn't what they want it to be. Behind the keyboard or controller, you can be whoever you want to be. I'm not saying every hardcore gamer has a boring or dull life, but I'm fairly certain most do. Life isn't exactly fun when you graduate and become an adult out on your own, it's perfectly natural to want more excitement in your life, and to live one you possibly couldn't. I'm not saying that as a bad thing, but how many of you reading this could go out and fight a dragon at will? Or use the power of the Chaos Emeralds to become Super "Username"? Fiction, make-believe, and imagination are all wonderful things that can bring joy to plenty of others. And it's thanks to our favorite game developers that have a passion for making these adventures possible for each and every one of us. There's also some gamers out there who not only enjoy the amazing writing and creativity some games have, but admire the art and high resolution graphics some contain. Like on Skyrim, I could seriously spend a good hour just admiring the wonderful land of Tamriel, and go to the Throat of the World to watch the Northern Lights at nighttime while getting some wonderful advice from Paarthurnax. Maybe even launch a goat of the side of a mountain when I get bored. In your favorite game, you can life the live you've always wanted to without having to put up with the troubles or boredom of your offline life.

But hey, that's just my opinion on it all. To each their own, right? (\