A few days ago I posted the reason why I play video games today: because they teach me things about myself that I would never have thought of otherwise.

http://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/thread.php?id=159594&page=1

Sure when I was a kid games were pure entertainment value but now I can find much more meaning in the gameplay mechanics of every game I play. Heck some games like Braid and Kid Icarus Uprising have changed my life for the better and how I view the world.

But from the feedback I got, it looks like noone agreed with me, or people didn't really understand me.

So I would like to know, purely out of interest, what do you think the core reason you play games is? Is it simply for entertainment value alone?

Give me your thoughts.

Pure entertainment, nothing more and nothing less.

Having Fun.

I play video games to have fun, not to compete, not to be challenged, etc. except if those things add to the fun.

Unfortunately I feel that the industry has moved away from games being fun as the main focus. I have no problem with competitive, challenging, story-driven, etc. types of games (in fact some of my favorite games have those as key aspects) as long as in the end they are fun - what I can't stand is games that put more emphasis on their looks, their story, just being stupidly hard/competitive, etc. and neglect making the game itself fun.

Luckily the industry is large enough now that I can still find plenty of games I like to play so I'm still having fun and being happy!

Good games are no different from other art forms in that they are good for you. An aesthetic game mechanic is beautiful. A lot of the game designers' personality goes into the game: Their sense of humor, their view on aspects of the world. We like the books, music or games we like because it feels like meeting soul mates, in a way.

But I think I'm not so much talking about story aspects. Tbh many story-driven games are still on B-movie level. It's all very violent, kill this or kill all that. I can't relate to that, anyway. What I mean is more abstract, the way a game works.

Even in games that I really really love like Zelda the story is not the big thing for me. Zelda games are a thing of beauty, but the actual story is the least important reason for that... (isn't it all the same anyway? 3 goddesses descend and ban the evil Ganon, but he comes back, hero beats him, they seal him, seal breaks, 3 goddesses ask 7 mages for help, hero seals the evil Ganon gaaaa... let's pray they never use voice acting). It's everthing else that is amazing, how they create a world and balance all the details so they feel meaningful. 

For entertainment and fun but I can appreciate a good story

Mostly for fun and to evade reality.

Just fun stuff.

Like reading.

Purely for entertainment. If I need to "work" in a game it goes straight into the trashbin. I DO enjoy to play some difficult games and I do put much time into some games, but as soon as playing the game becomes tedious I'll stop playing it.

for fun? since i touched my brother's........c64 i was in love with gaming

To score me some hot chicks ;)