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As far as mainstream gaming goes, the main focus has been in distraction and addiction, using very powerful psychological triggers. (Skinner boxes, variable rat

As far as mainstream gaming goes, the main focus has been in distraction and addiction, using very powerful psychological triggers. (Skinner boxes, variable ratio reinforcement, social pressure, etc.) If fact, these triggers have been deeply embedded in our social media too, turning both video games and social media into tools for manipulating our emotional selves into cycles of distraction and addiction. There's billion dollar industries being created and supported on manipulating the emotional parts of people's brains into using their products for distraction. So how the hell do we get back our ability to focus from these incredibly sophisticated distraction machines? I've been working the past year on measuring meditation using physical sensors. My research has resulted in releasing an app to measure and track the depth of mindfulness meditation using a Bluetooth LE heart rate monitor. (http://www.buddhamindapp.com http://www.buddhamindapp.com) I see games incorporating physical sensors to see what's happening within us emotionally. With 9.5% of all kids between the ages of 4-17 diagnosed with ADD, we really need some new tools to fight back against the technology's creep into our minds. With the latest update pushed into the app store, we can now measure the depth of your mindfulness meditation in real time. (By using an algorithm to measure heart rate variability). Incorporated with this is a meditation quality score. We're working towards building a video game that teaches kids the ability to focus, and fights back against ADD. So what does this have to do with the quality of games? I think as the amount of information in our lives continues to explode, the two main problems for us will be keeping the noise and crap out, and filtering what we let in. So those shooters will enter our dreams, we'll dream in their worlds. But what are they doing for us? The next breakthrough in gaming is going to be in helping us manage and explore our minds, to live more optimal lives. It won't be enslaving us emotionally with achievements and unlocks. At least, I hope not.

burningion 14y ago
And to go further, I see games which are already doing this in a positive way. Take a look at Rocksmith, which gamifies the process of learning to play guitar, or Dance Central, which can help teach people how to dance.
- Lewisham 14y ago
  I think it's a pretty facile view to take that Rocksmith or Dance Central are inherently more meaningful because they teach a certain real world skill. World of Warcraft teaches lots of skills (see work by Joi Ito, like [1]), but I am sure you would put that in your "demonize" category. Just like with other mediums like literature and cinema, you get into a lot of trouble very quickly when you start saying one art piece is worth more than another. Everything has value, even the most mindless game provides mindless escapism, and that is OK. It is OK to escape for a while. The problem isn't games. The problem is that we have poor motivational draws for other life aspects. Try reading some intrinsic motivational theory like Self-Determination Theory or Reiss 16 Desires. [1]: http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-6048770-7.html http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-6048770-7.html
  - burningion 14y ago
    I agree with you here, there are certainly skills to be gained from playing games, and World of Warcraft could certainly be giving a lot as far as social interaction, cooperation, and leadership. Even the horrible example I was thinking of (Call of Duty) has some benefits. The problem is, I don't see real life ever being as seductive emotionally as the gaming life. More and more our synthetic realities (video games, social media) are becoming more emotionally charged than our physical layer of reality. Just look at the number of people walking down the street with their faces in their phones. When they come home it's back to the computers and video games. Where do we regain the ability to focus in the real world? Or is the constant distraction the new norm for us as a culture?
    - Lewisham 14y ago
      You're not wrong, but the motivational ship has already sailed. However, I'm sure much the same was said about television and radio before it. The problem isn't the technology, it's us. However, we've survived OK so far. Do I think people spend too much time on their phones Wall-E style? Sure. Do I think it's the phone's fault? No. I think it's an us thing, and we're still working out how to deal with it. It wasn't long ago that a social convention was popping up where people would put their phones on the table and turn them all onto Airplane Mode. We need new social conventions, but the technology that invades our lives away from the desk is all very new in the grand scheme of things.
xradionut 14y ago
"There's billion dollar industries being created and supported on manipulating the emotional parts of people's brains into using their products for distraction." You are talking about beings, (humans), that believe in religion and political propaganda. We are addicted to noise and crap being in our heads.
JenniferFinelli 14y ago
o_O This made me think. I def don't know if I agree with everything about mind-slavery (doesn't literature manipulate our emotional selves, too?), but the concentration-studies idea really intrigues me. I have family with ADD, and as a distracted, impressionable person myself, I believe it would be nice for us all to be able to be more aware of the choices we make as gamers. I do think that's going to be more of a personal decision than a facet of the game, but the idea of a game that supports that kind of thinking--wow, you blew my mind!

burningion 14y ago

And to go further, I see games which are already doing this in a positive way. Take a look at Rocksmith, which gamifies the process of learning to play guitar, or Dance Central, which can help teach people how to dance.

Lewisham 14y ago
I think it's a pretty facile view to take that Rocksmith or Dance Central are inherently more meaningful because they teach a certain real world skill. World of Warcraft teaches lots of skills (see work by Joi Ito, like [1]), but I am sure you would put that in your "demonize" category. Just like with other mediums like literature and cinema, you get into a lot of trouble very quickly when you start saying one art piece is worth more than another. Everything has value, even the most mindless game provides mindless escapism, and that is OK. It is OK to escape for a while. The problem isn't games. The problem is that we have poor motivational draws for other life aspects. Try reading some intrinsic motivational theory like Self-Determination Theory or Reiss 16 Desires. [1]: http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-6048770-7.html http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-6048770-7.html
- burningion 14y ago
  I agree with you here, there are certainly skills to be gained from playing games, and World of Warcraft could certainly be giving a lot as far as social interaction, cooperation, and leadership. Even the horrible example I was thinking of (Call of Duty) has some benefits. The problem is, I don't see real life ever being as seductive emotionally as the gaming life. More and more our synthetic realities (video games, social media) are becoming more emotionally charged than our physical layer of reality. Just look at the number of people walking down the street with their faces in their phones. When they come home it's back to the computers and video games. Where do we regain the ability to focus in the real world? Or is the constant distraction the new norm for us as a culture?
  - Lewisham 14y ago
    You're not wrong, but the motivational ship has already sailed. However, I'm sure much the same was said about television and radio before it. The problem isn't the technology, it's us. However, we've survived OK so far. Do I think people spend too much time on their phones Wall-E style? Sure. Do I think it's the phone's fault? No. I think it's an us thing, and we're still working out how to deal with it. It wasn't long ago that a social convention was popping up where people would put their phones on the table and turn them all onto Airplane Mode. We need new social conventions, but the technology that invades our lives away from the desk is all very new in the grand scheme of things.

xradionut 14y ago

"There's billion dollar industries being created and supported on manipulating the emotional parts of people's brains into using their products for distraction." You are talking about beings, (humans), that believe in religion and political propaganda. We are addicted to noise and crap being in our heads.

JenniferFinelli 14y ago

o_O This made me think. I def don't know if I agree with everything about mind-slavery (doesn't literature manipulate our emotional selves, too?), but the concentration-studies idea really intrigues me. I have family with ADD, and as a distracted, impressionable person myself, I believe it would be nice for us all to be able to be more aware of the choices we make as gamers. I do think that's going to be more of a personal decision than a facet of the game, but the idea of a game that supports that kind of thinking--wow, you blew my mind!