One could take this even further, and apply it more generally to someone like myself. I like hard, challenging games, particularly multiplayer ones, as facing real people (with experience and skill) is almost always harder than facing AI.
One could reasonably ask this question: if I want a real challenge, why do I play games so much? Why don't I get my ass back in school, finish my once promising life at an Ivy League University, and get a serious and demanding job in computer programming or in research? Now that is a challenge.
The answer is that I'm scared of real challenges, and non-threatening "challenges" such as those found in video games make me much less nervous. Losing in Guitar Hero is much less frustrating than years of laborious Guitar lessons, and losing in Tekken is a whole lot less painful than getting your ass kicked constantly for years until you're actually a capable fighter.
In short, games minimize the pain and worry that comes with actual challenge. This is true for all genres, and is one of the reasons we find them so enjoyable.
