Why are video games no fun to watch?

[Gamereviewgod]

Just started thinking about this....

Now that games are closer than ever to movies, why is it boring as hell to watch someone play them? We watch other "games" like football and basketball. Those are certainly more fun to play then watch, but yet millions watch them. Why don't video games follow the same pattern?

[MarioAllStar2600]

Cause we know in out minds we could just pick up the controller and play them.
I personally enjoy watching some video games. I love playing WWE games on Royal Rumble and just letting the computer go at it. Kind of entertaining. Sometimes I enjoy watching hockey games also.

[ubersaurus]

Watching games is fun, but it really depends on the type of game. I, for one, can't watch rpgs being played for hours on end(azure dreams is an exception, though), but if its fighting game matches, I see no problem with watching em.

[Lemmy Kilmister]

I injoy watching other people play shooting or fighting games as long as their good at them. Anything else especially rpgs are boring to watch though.

[Cmosfm]

well, cut scenes are fun to watch...but actual gameplay is controlled by another person, and when you're watching it you keep saying (or thinking) "go there, go this way, get this item, no no...not that way!".

Basically games have taken a more cinematical approach in recent years, games play out more like a movie and are more plot oriented...but they are in no way a "movie", they are interactive media. And with interactive media, the person controlling it is the one having the fun...not the person watching the other person control it.

Sorta like saying "why isn't it fun to watch someone build with legos?", of course lego's aren't in any way like a movie...but it's still an interactive media where only the person using it is having fun.

And on this note, I cannot stand to watch people play games...pisses me off...because I want to play! I want to interact!

[-hellvin-]

I enjoy watching most games. RPGS of course are the most boring. Although I watched my friend play like 3 hours of Grandia II and it was hilarious.

[Mitch_Naz]

Watching games can be fun, depending on what game that is though. For Instance, Its quite intresting watching people playing games like Metal Gear Solid, Splinter Cell and games in that nature that are highly realistic and draws attention -- well for me atleast. But ultimatley is always better to play then watch O_O

[Ninja Blacksox]

Yeah. I don't mind watching people play games.

Hell, my love of video games was sparked by watching my older brother play "Yie Ar Kung-Fu" and "Time Pilot" at Fudrucker's.

To be honest, I don't even mind watching a friend play an RPG... But that's only if I can somehow help by offering suggestions (read: annoying interjections).

My friends don't play RPGs anymore.

-A Boy

[Ed Oscuro]

Watching MGS2 being played was fun as hell. Same goes for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic on XBox, though for different reasons LOL

[Kid Ice]

I enjoy watching good players, especially when they're better than me and I can learn something.

Of course I would prefer to actually play rather than watch. Yeah, I would prefer to actually play baseball than to watch it, but how easy is it to get a baseball game together when you're 30 years old?

Football I'd rather watch; too painful!

[Dahne]

It's a good thing nobody was watching me play MGS2. I woulda driven them nuts.

"Darn, he saw me...Reset!"

I keep resetting when I screw up, cause I KNOW I can do better. LOL

[Balloon Fight]

Watching games is fun, but it really depends on the type of game. I, for one, can't watch rpgs being played for hours on end(azure dreams is an exception, though), but if its fighting game matches, I see no problem with watching em.

Uber just said exactly what I was going to say in a nutshell. Bravo. :)

I can sit and watch most fighting games anytime. Especially mvc2 and cvs2.

[Retsudo]

Yep same here. Dont mind watching fighting game matches. Especially Tekken and VF4 matches. Heck, sometimes i throw in Super SF2 and watch the computer go at it in the tournment mode. :evil:

[downfall]

I enjoy watching people play games like DDR, or using the EyeToy. Things like that. Mostly because they're up doing something instead of sitting with a controller, and it's ususally just fun and sometimes funny to watch.

I also enjoy watching people master a game through legit speedruns or whatever. Especially if I've played the game. I can appreciate their mastery of it even moreso then, especially if it's something that gives me fits like Ikaruga.

[Kroogah]

Heh, I got dozens of people to stop in their tracks to watch me play Pump It Up today. And if you think games you play with your hands aren't fun to watch, then

WATCH ME PLAY POP'N MUSIC. (http://www.spaceballsthewebsite.com/yashiro/vids/oipunk0.avi) (15 megabyte AVI file, and no I never get tired of linking these)

[FantasiaWHT]

I could watch someone play DOA: Extreme Beach Volleyball for hours...

SEriously tho it seems like most people disagree with the basic premise of the thread's question.

I can watch any type of video game without getting bored, pretty much :) Especially if it's my wife or best friend playing because we talk about it.

[downfall]

Heh, I got dozens of people to stop in their tracks to watch me play Pump It Up today. And if you think games you play with your hands aren't fun to watch, then

WATCH ME PLAY POP'N MUSIC. (http://www.spaceballsthewebsite.com/yashiro/vids/oipunk0.avi) (15 megabyte AVI file, and no I never get tired of linking these)

Heh, I know that feeling. I'm about average at DDR myself.. can pass most everything up through 8 footers, but it's usually with a B or C. And there's always people stopping to watch me, especially since the DDR machine I frequent is right out in the doorway of the arcade - straight back from the entrance to the mall. You walk in the door, and you see whoever's up there playing. It's a neat feeling, though it can be unsettling sometimes.. there are some scary looking people that come around.

I always stop and watch because

A. I can learn something by watching others play
B. I appreciate it when someone is better than me. It's enjoyable to watch because I know what it takes.

And that's a sweet vid too! I've seen it before, but never commented!

[GrayFox]

Obviously, playing the game is much more fun than just watching it, but for some odd reason, I can watch a game and be completely content. If the person is absolutely horrible at playing games, well then, I might get a bit frustrated. I mean, I don't mind watching someone play a RPG, as A Boy said, if I can make suggestions about what to do next.

Watching fighting games being played by good players is a blast though. I always love to see great players duke it out with absolutely insane strategies and such. Good stuff.

And Yash, your hands made my brain explode. So damned fast.


Awesome.

[punkoffgirl]

I like watching others play about as much as I enjoy playing myself. You see so much more of a game when you're not directly involved in it :)