Why video games feel so addictive
- Video games are alternate realities. We experience great satisfaction from our gaming achievements. When compared, real-life seems so much harder and less gratifying.
- Video games sometimes provide the guise of genuine social connection. In reality, it can push someone into a dangerously secluded way of life.
- In games, there are rules and defined goals. Progress is quantified. There are no real-world consequences of failure. In essence, gamers gain a sense of inflated purpose and accomplishment. By contrast, the real world seems mostly bland, and self-worth can be difficult to obtain.
