Getting Gamers (eBook)

Jamie Madigan, PhD, has become an expert on the psychology of video games and seeks to popularize understanding of how various aspects of psychology can be used to understand why games are made how they are and why their players behave as they do. Madigan has written extensively on the subject for various magazines, websites, blogs, and his own site at psychologyofgames.com. He has also consulted with game development companies and talked at conferences about how game developers can incorporate psychology principles into game design and how players can understand how it affects their play. Finally, he has appeared as an expert on the psychology of video games in dozens of print, radio, and web outlets such as The Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, BBC Radio 5, the BBC, The Guardian, and more. He is a lifelong gamer and lives in St. Louis, Missouri.

Introduction1: Why Do Perfectly Normal People Become Raving Lunatics Online?2: Why Do People Cheat, Hack, and Peek at Strategy Guides?3: Why Are Fanboys and Fangirls So Ready for a Fight?4: Why Do We Get Nostalgic About Good Old Games?5: How Do Games Get Us to Keep Score and Compete?6: How Do Games Get Us to Grind, Complete Side Quests, and Chase Achievements?7: How Do Developers Keep Us So Excited About New Loot?8: How Do Games Make Us Feel Immersed in Imaginary Worlds?9: Why Do We Go Crazy for Digital Game Sales?10: How Do Facebook Games and Smartphone Apps Get You With In-Game Purchases?11: How Do Games Keep Players Paying?12: How Do Games Get Players to Market to Each Other?13: Do We Shape Our In-Game Avatars or Do They Shape Us?14:Why Do We Like Violent Games So Much? And Should We Be Worried That We Do?15: Do Video Games Make You Smarter?Outroduction:Where Do Psychology and Video Games Go From Here?