P1

My earliest experience playing video games

My earliest experience playing video games is with a Computer, playing games such as Flight Simulator X, or browser games. Then I bought a PlayStation 2, which I used to play lots of games when I was young such as Intellivision, Mappy, Pacman and many other movie based games such as Cars. I also played many games such as Buzz. I then bought a Nintendo DS which I played many games, mainly Mario Kart and Mario Bros. I also was a big fan of Super Mario 64 DS, which I played a lot when I was younger. I then bought a Nintendo 3DS, playing games such as Super Mario 3D Land. After many years, I bought an Xbox 360 Slim, where I played Minecraft for many hours and I would say would be one of my most played games when I was younger. When I started to get older, I started to play Battlefield 3, 4 and Grand Theft Auto V. I started to really enjoy games on the Xbox 360, my first game being Forza 3, which was  my first look at good graphics. I also tend to play a game called Roller Coaster Tycoon 3, which I still tend to go back to sometimes. I used to play this game when I was younger too. Today, I own an Xbox One, where I play games such as Rocket League, GTA V, Battlefield 4, Forza Horizon 3 and Forza Motorsport 5. However, after this, I built myself a gaming PC, where I play games such as Battlefield 1, Forza Motorsport 7, Dead by Daylight, Watch Dogs 2, Need For Speed Payback, Rise of the Tomb Raider, PUBG and much more.

As you can see, the earliest game I played, Flight Simulator X, really inspired me to become a computer gamer in the future, as I was very interested as a child in how computer hardware worked. But overall, I still today play many computer games, mainly racing games and in my opinion, I played many more games when I was younger as compared to now. My overall gaming experience has definitely changed regarding my relationship towards them. Having built my own computer, I moved from console to PC gaming, which I enjoy upgrading my computer to push it to produce better graphics and give an overall more immersive experience.

Internet Arcade

- These games are very difficult compared to the modern day games I play. For example, I played this game called 'Out Run':

The game was very hard to play due to the 8-bit look. The pixels on the screen tended to hurt my eyes when I sped up really fast, and the view ahead just doesn't look like its in front of me but on a 2D screen. When comparing to modern day racing games, which are almost photo realistic, this looks really plain and simple. However, even though this game is really difficult to play and low quality, I still felt the same feelings at some points as if I was playing a modern day racing game, such as 'Driveclub', which has great graphics. Overall, I have learnt that even though the old racing games are frustrating and difficult to play, I still felt the same thrill as compared to playing a modern day racing game which I'm used to, of course not as much, but when driving at high speed I noticed it.

Video Game Statistics

• The average age of gamers: 35
• The average age of game purchasers: 38
• Households that own a device used for playing video games: 65%
• Households that own a device exclusively for playing video games: 48%
• The average number of years gamers have been playing: 13
• Devices the most frequent gamers are playing on: PC: 56%, Game console: 53%, smartphone: 36%, wireless device: 31%, dedicated handheld system: 17%.
• 59% are male gamers.
• 41% are female gamers.

Video Game Timeline

The 'Achiever' focuses more on leveling up in a game.
The 'Socialiser' enjoys interacting with other online players.
The 'Killer' enjoys killing enemy/online players for fun.
The 'Explorer' enjoys exploring new locations in a game

From my results, I am mostly an Achiever. This is pretty accurate because I currently play many games, such as Dead by Daylight, where I enjoy leveling up to get more rare items. And the killing part is accurate - I don't play many shooters, however, I have in the past, such as Battlefield 4 and sometimes Battlefield 1 today, however, I prefer survival games. Furthermore, games such as 'PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds' is all about killing to get to number 1 out of everyone, which is a mix of all of these four types, because you kill to survive, you explore to find more items, and you socialize with other players.

Rule-Based system
Explanation: A system based on rules.
Example: In pacman, you can't eat a ghost unless you've eaten a fruit.

Variable and quantifiable outcomes
Explanation: Outcomes that can vary in multiple ways.

Example: In some games your choices determine how the rest of the story unfolds.

Different outcomes are assigned different values
Explanation: The different outcomes have it's own significance.

Example: If you work as a team, you win easier.

Outcomes influenced by player effort 
Explanation: The outcomes are dependent on what the player does.

Example: If you work as a team, you win easier

Emotional attachment to the outcome
Explanation: The gamers react to the outcome at an emotional level.

Example: In Battlefield, you want to win as a team overall, and when you don't, it's frustrating sometimes.

Consequences of the activity are negotiable
Explanation: The consequences of the activity are open to discussion and can be modified.

Example: In Truth or Dare, you could negotiate the consequence to winning or losing the game.

The Last Of Us

This game was very immersive and watching the game was like a movie. I was very impressed by the graphics at first impression, with the realistic character models and scenery. The graphics drew me into the story more, and I connected to the characters, especially Sarah at the beginning. The music is very moving and the sudden change in atmosphere when the apocalypse starts to happen made me feel genuinely worried about the characters and what's going to happen. The introduction got more and more intense, for example, just before Sarah is shot and they're being chased by one of the infected. When I played the game, I felt different as to watching it, as I connected more with the character and when shooting, you realise that it's basically a movie which you can interact with the story. As for how I felt, I felt scared about what was going to happen, and I felt agitated at some points due to the intensity and what went wrong to make things more dramatic. When Sarah is shot, I felt very sad and emotional as I connected to her character at the beginning.