10 Clever Ways Developers Make You Addicted To Video Games

7. Creating The Illusion of Socialization

Some games actually do offer players the chance to socialize with real human beings. Surely we've all heard stories of players in games like World of Warcraft find friends, jobs and even the love of their lives simply because of the interaction options these titles present. Socialization is one of the fundamental human desires, and online games have benefited greatly by offering players the chance to interact.

As many single-player games can not offer this social component naturally, they have instead taken to creating it as an illusion. From classics like The Sims to recent successes such as Fire Emblem and Stardew Valley, many addictive titles over the years have based a large portion of their gameplay off of interacting with NPCs. As these NPCs are designed to be fairly as realistic as possible, the games often end up successfully satisfying the inherent desire for socialization.

While many will find this effect cannot permanently replace genuine human interaction, it can still create the illusion long enough to ensure a significant amount of playtime.