Defining the Passions of the Dedicated Gamer Part Two: The World is Ours to Explore

In last week’s introduction to this new series plunging deep into the finer aspects of what keep’s us die-hard gamers intact with the gaming world, we focused on the wonderful sounds and scores of the gaming world. Expanding further into the complex mind of the dedicated gamer, this week we take a look at another important facet in gaming, the wonderful and beautifully captivating environments.

Taking you away, far from reality, video games provide ultimate immersion, and as for many, an escape from the struggles and trials of reality. Becoming someone you’re not, exploring new fantasy worlds full of depth and wonder, and making it up to you to discover something brand new, or in many instances, play the role of the hero. So what is it about these fictional settings and immersive atmospheres that bring us this tremendous satisfaction?

The idea of having an entire map, be it a town or city, country or even an entire galaxy at our disposal gives hardcore and casual gamers alike the opportunity to experience living and breathing worlds, otherwise only found in television, movies, books or in many cases, even dreams. Taking in the depth and detail of the world a team of artists put together for you to discover and explore – essentially diving into the creative minds of those who made these worlds possible – is easy to take for granted, so it’s understandable that many fascinating features in gaming get overlooked.

Video games have become so advanced in today’s modern era that we have the luxury of expecting beautiful sounds of birds and other wildlife littered throughout massive maps, insanely realistic graphics running with day/night cycles, random weather encounters and vivid colors and shading, a stunning amount of population scattered throughout open worlds and strong narratives and dialogue to tie all of it together. An unexpecting adventure awaits beyond every title, filled with new worlds and characters to uncover.

Traversing through the unknown, exploring new areas and crafting supplies to survive are all part of feeling included in the virtual fantasy world. Climbing over mountain tops, crossing heavy streams and rivers, exploring desolate buildings, finding new settlements, etc. are trademarks which make up many popular adventure titles today, and provide the player with the sense of journey and progress, with the chance of discovering something exciting around every corner. Player progression and skill trees only adds to the mix and gives players an enticing take on progress by giving the character more abilities, powers, weapons, armor, stats, amongst many other rewards given through gaining experience.

With all of these features combined, including wonderful storylines and dialogue (which I’ll cover in future posts), gameplay mechanics, ambient and full sounds covering the player through every step, adventurous worlds full of beautiful landscapes and enthralling maps, it’s absolutely no wonder why we love these incredible forms of entertainment. A perfect dose of wonder and imagination mixed with freedom and adventure brings joy to anyone looking for an escape – even if for a moment – from the duties of everyday life.