Podcast 55 - Psychology of Level Design
What are some of the ways that video game level designers look to psychology for helping players can navigate, move through, and make sense of their virtual worlds?
View ArticleEpisode 56 - Game to Grow
How therapeutic Dungeons & Dragons sessions are reaching people who need help in an engaging way.
View ArticleEpisode 57 - Mental Models in League of Legends
Mental models are representations that help people understand and predict systems or situations such as a match in a competitive game. My guest expert this episode reports on his research into...
View ArticleEpisode 58 - The Economics of Online Games
Just as video games can provide great examples of concepts from psychology, they can also illustrate concepts from neighboring fields. Like economics! In this episode, my guest expert walks us through...
View ArticleEpisode 59: What is a Games Researcher?
People with psychology degrees fill a lot of roles in the gaming industry, including researchers working within a game development company. I talk to one such researcher who works at Riot Games, maker...
View ArticleEpisode 60: Take This (dot org)
I mean, wouldn't it be nice if there were organizations out there that were dedicated to helping people in the gaming communities cope, be healthy, and get the help they need? Wouldn't it be great if...
View ArticleEpisode 61: Twitch Donations
What kind of relationships exist between Twitch streamers and their audience members? How is it different from other kinds of online relationships? And why do people offer monetary support to...
View ArticleEpisode 62 - The Psychology of Trolling
Why do people troll other players in video games? Do they get something out of it or are they just "broken"? A lot of us like to think the latter, but some researchers are starting to investigate...
View ArticleEpisode 63 - Loss Aversion
Loss aversion refers to the fact that we feel more pain from a loss than we do pleasure from an equivalent gain. Losses are worse than gains are good. Most of the time game designers want to avoid...
View ArticleEpisode 64 - How Can Video Games Make Us Happy?
Video games sometimes have an image problem. Honestly some days it feels like one black eye after another. But, let's not lose sight of the good stuff. There's plenty of evidence to suggest that video...
View Article65 - Psych of Final Fantasy
I talk with authors of the new book Surpassing The Limit Break: The Psychology of Final Fantasy. About, well, THAT. Topics like the psychology behind Final Fantasy's storytelling, its use of gender...
View ArticleEpisode 66 - Procedural Rhetoric
When games have a message that they try to convey through systems and gameplay, do players listen? Do they hear what the designers expect? Does anything tend to change as a result?Audio Credits:“Robot...
View ArticlePodcast 67: Esports Performance Consulting
How can psychologists help esports athletes improve, stay healthy, and thrive? I talk to a guest expert with a background in sports psychology and other areas who is doing just that.
View ArticlePodcast 68: Convention Fandom
My guest expert and I talk about the psychology behind geek fandom conventions, how people behave at cons, and how Covid has changed them.
View ArticlePodcast 69: Game Transfer Phenomenon
Ever seen or heard something from a video game while you weren't playing? Ever had an urge to climb a building or select from a dialogue wheel hours after you pushed away from the keyboard or...
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