The most addictive games are the simplest

[JellyWorld]

I know many of us spend hundreds of dollars on games like HL2, Doom3, Halo2 etc, these games are really fun, but yet some of the most addictive games are the simplest, like 3d Pong http://www.liquid.se/pong/ or SlimeSoccer http://homepage.ntlworld.com/bartle/soccer/. Does anyone have any theories on this phenomenon? The kind of pleasure you get from playing these games is quite different from the enjoyment u experience when playing, say, an FPS.

 

[firemachine69]

Super Print for NES. Ungodly simple, yet kept me going for so, soooo long...

 

[HunterSeeker]

The most addictive game I have ever played was probubly Heroes of might and magic 3 followed bt Sid Meiers Alpha Centarui.

 

[dream431ca]

The most addictive game I have ever played was probubly Heroes of might and magic 3 followed bt Sid Meiers Alpha Centarui.

You call those simple games?? ;( man those games were hard for me.

The simplest game I played that was addictive was probably Diablo 2...man that game has crack in it.

 

[CREMATOR666]

The simplest game I ever played was strip poker

 

[Loke]

Trax for Gameboy. I can't remember how many times I've completed it...

I actually completed the game without getting hit once too.

 

[HunterSeeker]

You call those simple games?? ;( man those games were hard for me.

Well no but they where to most addictive ones I have played

Everyone is not the same I guess.

 

[xLostx]

c-s all the way *twitches*

 

[DEATH eVADER]

Castle Attack 2 from Firefly Studios (creators of the stronghold games), comparing your highscore with everybody else on the net is satusfying (spelt wrong, please help)

 

[$kelet0r]

I disagree about the simpilcity part
I believe the addictiveness of a game comes actually from specialising at the same task over and over
So for example Pong, tetris, counterstrike are all highly addictive because they encourage the player to become ever more proficient at one task in one familiar setting.
While HL2 is fun because there is far more choice and each time is different in small often imperceptable ways and the game itself is 10+hours while a game of cs, pong, tetris is over in a few minutes
So it is the desire to constantly improve at a single short term task that makes something addictive not its simplicity.

 

[Qwert93]

The simplest game I ever played was strip poker

Strip poker? Just how old are you? I envy you .

 

[Danimal]

*cough*General Games Chat*cough*




Yes, I occasionaly find games like Duke Nukem 2 and Hocus Pocus to still be fun.

 

[LittleB]

I disagree about the simpilcity part
I believe the addictiveness of a game comes actually from specialising at the same task over and over
So for example Pong, tetris, counterstrike are all highly addictive because they encourage the player to become ever more proficient at one task in one familiar setting.

I agree this is the reason. When I was a truck driver, the only thing I liked about it was backing into dock. It was the hardest thing to do, but cuz I got better at it, I enjoyed it immensely.

 

[bliink]

* Moved to correct forum!

 

[A True Canadian]

I've actually found myself playing the games that came with my PC system.

Freecell, Hearts, Solitare, Minesweeper.

Those count right?

 

[ne0_shiny]

simplest game ever
and the toughest??
http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/3cup
ive figured it out
can you?? (if you can never find it out and get frustrated, pm me for the answer...if you do that kind of thing)

 

[oldagerocker]

Squares ftw

 

[Lucid]

Castle Attack 2 from Firefly Studios (creators of the stronghold games), comparing your highscore with everybody else on the net is satiisfying (replace the u with an i)

Castle Attack 2...kept me entertained for hours.
It was so fun.
Yet so simple.

 

[Baal]

The game can be simple, but usually for it to be addictive, it needs to be hard, in my opinion.

For example, first person shooters aren't usually all that challenging (Half-Life 2 for example was a pretty easy game, and didn't last long enough to get addicted), World of Warcraft on the other hand...is very addictive. Very.

There needs to be lots of rewards for a medium to short amount of playtime. World of Warcraft has a pretty quick leveling system, resulting in heavy addiction because you get to reap the rewards of your playtime. You don't logon for hours and don't see yourself progress. Unlike EQ2 where I've been informed leveling just takes a god awful long time, and you lose interest.

 

[Cole]

Starcraft,
2 resources, simple.
Simple to learn, hard to master. Great to play with a few friends.

 

[Asuka]

Wow 3d pong thas crazy lol. Was fun for 3 mins.

 

[Bobcat]

I have an old Pong console for the TV, still works, doesn't get any simpler...

 

[Edcrab]

I like the works of Spiderweb Software, personally. I remember playing the Exile series and really liking it at the time, and the Avernum series is basically their latest realisation of that world.

Still wonder about buying a copy of Geneforge 2, mind. It's good, just doesn't have quite the same feel as the Exile or Avernum series...

I also remember how much of my time the likes of Pop Cap have stolen from me, and wonder what's wrong with me.

 

[IchI]

World of Warcraft is by far the most addictive and best game I have ever played.