Seven Things You Should Feel as a Gamer

Gaming is a large word to use; really it is, mostly because it refers to anything from video games, to board games or, in extreme ways, just sports. This means that we have all felt something while playing our games in one way or another.

To help you understand this a bit better, let’s take an imaginary look at your past, which is to say I need some examples. When you scored your first goal, defeated that boss monster that took hours or simply discovered something in Dungeons & Dragons that no one else saw, you felt something.

For this article, we will focus on video games and the times you felt exhilaration, excitement, maybe even triumph. All of these are important and they’re also the most obvious things we’ve felt while gaming. However, through my gaming years of experience I felt many things, and I have narrowed these down to the seven feelings that all gamers should feel.

It’s a simple thing and in the 80’s and 90’s winning could simply have been completing Mario or successfully escaping one of the ghosts in PAC-Man. In the modern world it is a lot weirder and more random, mostly because there are so many games that we end up playing. If you’ve been playing for years then you already know what winning feels like.

However, if you’re new to gaming, then you might not have really felt this. It could be because you’ve only played mobile games or you just never played a video game. While winning in kid friendly games can feel good, it may not let you get the full feeling. Confusing I know, this is because games aimed at children have small, easy to overcome challenges.

The full feeling of winning requires a game that challenges you, frustrates you but never discourages you. The first time I felt the full feeling of winning was completing Prince of Persia the Forgotten Sands, I got all the achievements available and I felt so good after the last notice came up. Winning this game is what drove me to keep playing other, which is why I know you should experience this feeling at least once. I’d recommend not doing Dark Souls first either, way too discouraging.

Puzzles are games and games are puzzles. Real games are like this, seriously, no game that I have ever considered to be a proper game has been built without puzzles. This can be anything from literal puzzles that you have to solve to easier things like figuring out where you will find more ammo.

So, when I say we should all feel confused by a game I really mean it. A good confusing game lets you feel frustrated, angry and just slightly irritated. This means that when you do eventually solve it you will feel so much better. Though while I am writing this I realize that anyone currently stuck somewhere in a game is definitely not reading this.

First of all this is not unique to online games, I still seethe with anger whenever I think back to Modern Warfare 2 and Shepherds betrayal. Just go play the game if you’re wondering what that means. Having a sense of companionship with your fellow players, or AI, means that you will have so much more fun in any game.

There really isn’t much more to say, playing a game alone is only so much fun. Having someone to share the experience with improves them all. It’s a great feeling knowing someone is there to cover your back or pick you back up again.

Have you ever started a new First Person Shooter and found yourself repeating the same steps of the previous 100 games you’ve played? Well, my friends, then you are bored, which is amazing news. In the 20+ years that I have been playing I have gotten bored with almost every single genre of game there is.

However, I still go back and play new games every day. Boredom is the perfect motivator to seek out different types of games, to let you find something else that you may love. If you never get bored with the games you’re playing then it can only mean that you aren’t playing enough! If you’re wondering how effective this is, boredom is what drove me to try the JRPG genre of games, I just simply love that genre now.

This is something you can feel more often now with high quality Indie games than anything else. I know we’ve all felt this, even when the only games you play are on your phone. It’s the feeling of meeting a dead end or enemy so strong you just cannot win, when you are starting to look at guides online or asking friends to try.

Only, once you figure it out or you read about the right way of doing things, it is super simple. That moment when Ori just needed to grab a stone and pull it closer to climb up a ledge or there was a secret tomb right next to your campfire in Tomb Raider. This is the feeling that makes you get passed the obstacle with a grim, determined face.

This is something I will be digging deep into my history to explain, remember in Final Fantasy VIII after Squall dances with Rinoa, only to find she’s dating the blond frustration known as Seifer. Ok, I know most people just said “Wot?” but you have to get a little angry every now and then. Either with a game, or just before playing a game.

Anger focuses you and lets you play in a whole other way than you would normally play. This is a great advantage if you’re playing something that requires anger, like mortal combat or flappy bird.

Have you ever watched those funny videos where someone in a sedan just has to try and climb up a very rocky, very muddy, very steep hill? You know they will either break their car or get up that hill, and you just can’t stop watching. Well, those people either have loads of determination or something else is wrong with them.

When you play a good game you will feel this when you meet your first real challenge. You’ll die, go back, die again, get new equipment, die again and eventually have this feeling in the middle of your head. You just won’t stop, this is gamer determination and you must experience this feeling. You simply have to do it, because you will eventually win or solve the puzzle.

Frankly, if you never feel the determination to keep going then the chances are you will never feel any of the other feelings either.