I agree it depends on the person, but I think it also depends on the game/genre.
For instance, social games give me a lot of lasting joy when they are local.
But online games shoot my anxiety and depression levels up almost as much as social media and Youtube videos do. Not because of I find them inherently negative, but because I find them to be a colossal waste of time! And the back of my head is just screaming with the thought of “life, health, and money are passing you by you fucking moron!” when I play these. I think this dates back to when I played an online game called Utopia, and StarCraft on the battlenet.
If I want a story, I play RPG or adventures/graphical adventures.
If I want entertainment, I probably play a very cinematic RPG, or an action game.
If I want problem solving, I usually pop open a casual skill-based game (Something like Brain Age, but on mobile, math and word based games, Countdown type stuff), or a puzzle game.
If I want to get the blood flowing with some mild entertainment, a motion-game works wonders, and they tend to be mood elevators.
I haven’t played a multiplayer motion game in some time, but I find those are the best experiences for joy.
It’s kind of why I like games like Witcher 3 and Xenoblade Chronicles X so much, I can get a lot of these things with just one game.
I describe myself as a little dose of toxic masculinity.
