For context, I'm in my mid-30s and grew up playing video games. When doing chores I listen to podcasts or audio books. I really like to think of media consumpt

For context, I'm in my mid-30s and grew up playing video games. When doing chores I listen to podcasts or audio books. I really like to think of media consumption in terms of attentional pressure. How long can you not pay attention without "missing something". For movies and TV shows it seems like 15 seconds, plus or minus depending on the content itself. Chatty podcasts give you 30 seconds or a minute. I enjoy the fast video games I play (shoutout to Deep Rock Galactic, killer PVE FPS with a non-toxic player base!) because they modulate their attentional pressure and ratchet it up intensely at moments. It feels great to handle a situation where even a subsecond lapse in attention would result in failure. From wikipedia: Cool media are those that require high participation from users, due to their low definition (the receiver/user must fill in missing information). Since many senses may be used, they foster involvement. Conversely, hot media are low in audience participation due to their high resolution or definition. Seems like it's hard to place fast video games? You don't have to fill in much of anything (hot) but they require full participation (cool).