An item of interest for theoreticians:
This article (http://edwiki.org/edgames/index.php/EdGames/SeriouslyConsideringPlay) By Monica Veinbergs presents a summary of this longer one (http://it.coe.uga.edu/~lrieber/play.html) by Lloyd P. Rieber and suggests that:
QuoteReiber proposes four types of play:
- Play as Progress: the purpose of play is to learn something useful.
- Play as Power: pertaining to adults, this play consists of contests or competitions in which winners and losers are declared.
- Play as Fantasy: Play that liberates the mind to engage in creative and imaginative thinking.
- Play as Self: The main point of this type of play is the intrinsic worth of the experience.
This seems to match quite closely with the RPG theory agenda and identifies some well known gaming stereotypes such as the powergamer.
This looks very juicy indeed, well spotted.
Interesting article. Heavy reference to one of my favorite Psychology authors, Csikszentmihalyi.
This is what I take from it:
Intrinsic motivation encourages initial involvement and persistent, meaningful participation.
A game that's intrinsically motivating has to (1) be manageably difficult, (2) develop relevant material through elemental interaction, (3) simulate a reality beyond its mechanics and (4) offer an immediate method for making a clear impact.