What do you like about video games?

^ Topic, just please use specifics (i.e. no "it stimulates my brain or, they're exciting!")

Mine: The thing I like about video games is the ability to reload a save, unlike in real life. In a video game, if you make a really strong character mad at you and you die, then you just load your save and he can become your ally!

The storylines and just playing with friends.

Their ability to get me fully engrossed into a story

I have been playing video games for about 20 years now, and I get different joys from different games. As I have gotten older though I prefer slower, more atmospheric games.

Nothing better these days than sitting in front of a 50" LCD under a blanket with the rain outside getting drawn into some fantastic RPG universe.

(bring on FFXIII btw!)

I was sort of born into them so I can't help but like them. =P

All of the obvious stuff (fun! exciting!) applies, and I do love a good story, but I think the thing that I like most about video games is the fact that they give you a sense of satisfaction when you do something/beat something. It's not the "omg i have purpose in life!" satisfaction, but it's enough to make you keep coming back and doing more. It's the only way I can explain how I enjoyed Harvest Moon 64, a game about farming lol

online gaming.

laughing at the people who try to talk trash after they got their butt handed to them.

Stepping out of your own world and into a new one. Its just important to keep recognising the boundary between virtual and real life.

I like video games because for those hours I am in playing them, I am in a totally different world, and I can achieve things in the game which I could never do outside of it. I also love the feeling of beating games, and playing them well (i.e online multiplayer).

I'm obsessed with graphics which I know a lot of gamers won't like, but I just love the look of video games. =) SalvationGift31

There plenty of things why i like Videogames.

I like the story in games, some of my favorite stories ever are from videogames (Crono Trigger, MGS3, SotC, FFVIII, etc. )

I like the experience some games provide like SMG or in its time SMB3, also OoT was such a great experience.

I like action and over the top situations like DMC, Bayonetta, GOW, MGS.

The music is fantastic like in Silent Hill, MGS, Zelda, KOF, etc.

They are fun to play alone or with other people, from Zelda to Mario Kart.

Among other things i like.

the thing i find most amusing in video games is the physics of peoples bodies.. like in gta4, saints row, hitman, and force unleashed.. it cracks me up

i play to push (and question) the limits of the systems, and to explore who i am to a certain degree. i believe anything can change your perspective, and games are good at doing this because of the placement of the avatar in relation to the world, the time investment necessary, and the challenges involved. there are many limits in a game and many ways to work within those limits or against them or exceed them.

i also think games keep you in the present, and train all your senses so they're sharp and aware.

Well, in a video game I like a good story, having a great time with a friend or yourself and the music.

That video games are fun, and to do stuff that I couldn't do in real life, like go on a killing spree in GTA4.

Love experiencing new stories and video games are a great way to do this without spending too much time away from real life. I also like just watching them progress over the years, especially in the past 10- there's always something new and exciting around the corner!HellsAngel2c

I like how it lets me escape from my problems, from myself for periods of time. I like how games with really good stories or characters bring me new thoughts and perspectives on events and people in the real world. I like feeling like a hero. I like the ability to murder people to let off steam without actually having harmed anybody. I like exploring exotic locales and meeting interesting new people for under $50 and in the comfort of my own living room. I like throwing myself so far into an RPG that I take on traits of the main character for a while. I like the feeling of standing up for what I believe is right because in the real world the unjust wear business suits and get away with everything with the help of a lawyer. I like living in worlds better and less complicated then my own.

The Playing of Them ! :D

I like games that let me be creative. Not like customizing your character or like something like Spore but something like Master of Olympus: Zeus where you can build a large base but where everything serves a purpose. You can organize your city in a trillion different ways, you can make it beautiful, but everything serves a purpose, it's not purely there for cosmetic purposes like customizing your character at the start of an RPG. I love city builders. I also love open world games like GTA and Oblivion. But the thing is, with all these games I'm left unsatisfied so quickly. I always want more.

In GTA I want to be able to buy companies, fly planes, I want a big countryside, I want parachutes, I want a scuba suit, I want a jetpack, I want snowy mountains, I want to be able to climb those snowy mountains with full mountain climbing gear, I want better stealth gameplay, I want to be able to play as a cop for a while, I want to be able to use disguises to slip past enemies, in IV I wanted the gym back because it let me customize my character but in a meaningful way, not a purely cosmetic one and I had to work for it which made it all so much more satisfying, I want to be able to rappell down buildings, I want an underground base like the batcave or something, I want better melee combat, I want to be able to establish a drug ring, I want to be a street thug whose brother was killed but I take full vengeance halfway through the game so a new story can begin, I want to rise from a street thug to owning an empire of companies, goons etc. If you felt like giving up while reading that I understand. Thinking about all the things I wish I could do take over my mind when I play. And I don't get these things and that leaves me unsatisfied and makes me eventually stop playing.

It all comes down to the fact that I want a game where I have hundreds of combinations of actions, items, environments, events and enemies so if I want someone dead, someone who's got alotta guards, I can do it by climbing that vertical cliff, gliding onto his roof in my stealth glider, sneaking my way to his room and stabbing him in the heart or jumping in a bomber at an airport on the other side of the map, flying it there and carpet bombing the whole area or putting on my scuba suit and traveling there in my speedboat, then swimming underwater to where the guards can't see me to the side of his house where his room is, taking out that sniper rifle, putting a silencer on it, taking a beautiful shot through the window and curtains with the help of those thermal sights I bought and then slipping out of there the way I came while the enemies are scratching their heads wondering how the fook this happened.

They are a form of escapist entertainment for me. They allow me, like movies, to explore another world, but unlike movies, I get to interact with said world. I like the fantastical and downright unreal elements of video gaming (which is probably why I do not like realistic games too much). I like playing with friends because it's a form of bonding. I've played video games since childhood and I don't think they'll ever not be a part of my life. Even when I'm old, I might be playing Final Fantasy XL, or playing something with my grandkids.