Since the combination of Call of Duty and the Wii made everyone admit they actually really love video games, it's opened the floodgates for them to be analysed in the same ways as that of film, TV and literature. One theory that makes sense the more you think about it, is the breaking down of how we interpret and interact with games on a fundamental level. Now bare with us a moment, as we're going to lay a spot of psychology on you. You see, there's a concept called 'Flow' that we've all experienced when reading a good book, watching a particular gripping film or in this case playing a great game. Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (Pronounced 'Chick-sent-me-high-ee) is the man behind the idea, and it's the notion of completely losing yourself in any given creative medium to the point where you're utterly immersed in turning the next page, wanting a movie plot to unfurl, or playing the next level. Time starts to dissipate slightly as you enter a unique minset - or a 'state of flow' - where you're transfixed on the given experience at hand, "using your skills to the utmost" as Mihaly puts it. Anyway, with that understood it's far easier to apply it to the world of games, as when you think about it most popular titles are reward-based experiences full of fast animations and reward-based pop-ups darting across the screen to ensure you keep playing. At the end of the day most developers want you to get through their games and see every art asset they've slaved away putting together, so in turn they design methods of ensuring this happens. From the feeling of popping a headshot to defeating a boss or grabbing a far-away gold coin, the systems at work in the best games have been fine-tuned to bolt you firmly to your chair and keep you there - but which are so perfectly crafted you'd rather forgo things like food and sleep for the sake of more time in your favourite fantasy world?
