What Is a Game?
A game is a form of entertainment, often involving competition and social interaction. It can be played for fun or as a tool for education, training, and simulation. The main difference between games and other forms of entertainment is that a game allows the player to interact with the environment and alter its outcome.
There is no definitive definition of the term ‘game’, and many people who research, write about and make games struggle to find a definition that doesn’t either leave things out that are clearly games (making it too narrow) or includes things that aren’t games (making it too broad). Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman define a game as: “a system in which players engage in an abstract challenge, defined by rules, interactivity, and feedback, that results in a quantifiable outcome often eliciting an emotional reaction”.
This is a pretty good definition, but it doesn’t really help us distinguish between something like a jigsaw puzzle, or something more complex like League of Legends. It’s also worth pointing out that there are many games that have a serious purpose, such as training soldiers or helping doctors practice procedures. So the problem with this definition is that it tends to exclude some of the most important and influential kinds of games.
Another problem is that the definition doesn’t really help us distinguish between a game that requires skill, luck or a combination of both, and something that just relies on chance. Some games, such as chess or mahjong, are very clearly games that require a mixture of skill and luck. But many other games, such as poker or roulette, only depend on luck.
Despite these problems, there are some general principles that seem to apply. One is that the best games are those which are designed with the audience in mind, and which try to appeal to as many of the players’ needs and motivations as possible. This is why it’s so tempting for people designing games to design the games they would most like to play themselves. But this isn’t always a good idea, as it can lead to games which aren’t as entertaining or engaging for the audience.
Other important principles include using a design process which involves the players, and which encourages discussion of the ideas behind the game. This is particularly important for games with an educational or training goal, or which are designed to be immersive. It also helps to be transparent about the ways in which games are made, and the ethics involved. This is increasingly important, as research on video games has shown that people can be influenced by the way in which they are presented. This is especially important in light of the ongoing debate about gaming disorder. Further work is needed to ensure that the evidence about this issue is as robust and trustworthy as possible. This will be particularly important if any future studies are intended to inform policy.