Leveling up, Unlocking, Upgrading, Awards, & other incentives to return to a game.

[treismac]

How much does increasing your video game character's powers or unlocking stuff in a game keep you coming back for more and more in video games?

I think the first time that I encountered this mechanic was in Mega Man II. Knowing that a dead boss meant more goodies for the Blue Bomber was a huge incentive for me to keep at the game. To remove this feature would be to remove an integral part of what made Mega Man II fun.

Now, this playing device is pretty much in all modern games, and arguably a central feature in many. In psychological terminology, this is known as operant conditioning with positive reinforcement. You play to certain point or earn enough points, you receive your carrot- again and again and again.

So, with this said, how much video games do you or have you played that have this feature as a part of the game's mechanics? I've read an interview with an indie game developer who condemned this practice as manipulative, but I am not sure if I would label it that harshly. Isn't making progress in life in whatever capacity part of what keeps us motivated to achieve? I see powering up weapons and unlocking characters as video games reflecting the real world in a micro way. Of course, the delay of gratification is much longer in real life, but, hey, that's part of why we play video games, right?

[Sunnyvale]

Metroid and Zelda were the first ones that kept me chasing the carrot. A great idea, I think. I can see the indie developer's gripes, but that's idealistic. We all go for rewards, and given a game with that as the drive behind it, many enjoy the crap out of it. MMO's are a prime example of this. Now, your hours of searching for the next carrot can be shown off to all the world.
Frankly, if video game developer's ignored basic psychology, I'd be pissed.
It's not a 'trick', it's basic.

[understatement]

So, with this said, how much video games do you or have you played that have this feature as a part of the game's mechanics? I've read an interview with an indie game developer who condemned this practice as manipulative, but I am not sure if I would label it that harshly. Isn't making progress in life in whatever capacity part of what keeps us motivated to achieve? I see powering up weapons and unlocking characters as video games reflecting the real world in a micro way. Of course, the delay of gratification is much longer in real life, but, hey, that's part of why we play video games, right?

I think after most of the 1st and 2nd generation stuff it’s hard to find a game without this kind of feature.

The better question is, outside of pong what games don’t have any type of power up/s?

[SparTonberry]

I can immediately think of Galaxian, Space Invaders, Galaga (unless you want to count the double-ship, but that comes at the expense of an extra life, so it's not necessarily a power-up).

[treismac]

Metroid and Zelda were the first ones that kept me chasing the carrot. A great idea, I think. I can see the indie developer's gripes, but that's idealistic. We all go for rewards, and given a game with that as the drive behind it, many enjoy the crap out of it. MMO's are a prime example of this. Now, your hours of searching for the next carrot can be shown off to all the world.
Frankly, if video game developer's ignored basic psychology, I'd be pissed.
It's not a 'trick', it's basic.

I agree. Why not ensure people repeatedly enjoy your product? They already gave you money for it so I see no moral issue.

[Daria]

Damn the whole RPG genre is one giant exercise in carrot chasing. You're constantly shooting for that next level up, area to explore, or piece of uber equipment.