Podcast 68: Fan Conventions
My guest expert and I talk about the psychology behind geek fandom conventions, how people behave at cons, and how Covid has changed them.
Podcast 63: Loss Aversion and Game Design
How game designers avoid –or deliberately use– the psychological phenomenon of loss aversion
My new Book on Psychology and Games is Out!
My new book explains why your workplace should look more like a video game. And it’s out now!
Podcast 62: The Psychology of Trolling
What does research say about why people troll in video games?
Podcast 61: Twitch Donations
Why do people donate to Twitch streamers? What kinds of relationships do streamers and viewers have?
Podcast 60: Take This (dot org)
My guest expert and I talk about supporting those who play and work in gaming communities.
Deep Rock Habits vs. Rewards
Are rewards the same as incentives in game design?
Podcast 59: What is a Games Researcher?
I and my guest expert, a psychology Ph.D. and researcher at Riot Games, talk about using psychology to make better games.
Good Old Scarce Games
How one online games marketplace is hoping to sell you more by offering less.
Podcast 58: Economics and Online Games
How one guild leveraged a basic understanding of economics to dominate other MMO players.
Podcast 57: Mental Models in League of Legends
How do the mental models of League of Legends experts differ from other players? And what does it matter?
Video: The Psychology of Video Game Engagement
A lecture I gave on what makes for an engaging game.
Podcast 56: RPG Therapy
How one non-profit is using RPGs to teach skills, help people, and enhance therapy.
The Perils of In-Game Currency
The psychology behind how we spend in-game currency.
Podcast 55: The Psychology of Level Design
How do level designers look to psychology for helping players can navigate, move through, and make sense of their virtual worlds?
Why Do People Collect Virtual Items?
Virtual items by nature lack many of the things that make physical items so collectible. Here’s how game developers and publishers make virtual things more collectible.
Podcast 54: Effects of Sexualization in Games
Guest experts discuss their “adversarial collaboration” to measure (or not) the effects of sexualized avatars.
Patently Worrisome In-Game Offers
How far can customizing offers for in-game purchases go before they seem unfair?
Podcast 53: The Qualities of Online Relationships (Rebroadcast)
Are friendships and other relationships formed in online games substitutes for offline relationships? Are they better?
Loading: When We’re Willing to Wait
When might you be more willing to wait for a loading or matchmaking screen to finish?
Podcast 52: Being Indistractable
Psychology of Games Summer Book Club concludes with Nir Eyal, author of newly released Indistractible.
Marvel Games and Spatial Presence
What is it about Marvel super hero games that is really effective at making us feel transported to another world?
Podcast 51: Lost in a Good Game
Psychology of Games Summer Book Club begins with an interview with Dr. Pete Etchells, author of the newly released Lost in a Good Game.
What the Heck are Surprise Mechanics?
EAs says loot boxes are just beloved “surprise mechanics.” In a way, this is true. In a more relevant way, it is not.
How Much Screen Time Is Bad for Kids?
How much screen time is good and/or bad for the psychological well-being of kids?
Podcast 50: Moral Choices in Games vs. Other Media
My guests and I discuss how moral choices in games differ from other media and some of our favorite and most compelling choices from games.
Come See Me at PAX West 2019!
I’ll be on a panel talking about how I turned my passion for psychology and games into …all this. *gestures broadly at website*
Shared Mental Models Win Games
Shared mental models, a concept borrowed from psychology, help explain why some teams dominate in multiplayer games.
The Psychology Of Fortnite’s Battle Pass
Three simple psychological principles that help get players to pay for the Fortnite Battle Pass.
Podcast 49: Empathy in Video Games
How do psychologists study empathy and how can it best be used in games?
Podcast 48: Loot Boxes, Part 2
The full interviews behind my recent episode on psychology and loot boxes.
Five Recent Con Panels on the Psychology of Games
Watch five recent convention panels about psychology and video games
Podcast 47: Loot Boxes and Gambling
Should loot boxes be considered a form of gambling? Is there a relationship between loot box spending and gambling?
New Audio Book, Plus How to Appear in My Next Book
The audio book of Getting Gamers is out, plus how you can appear in my next book
Are MOBA Players Smarter Than You?
What link have researchers found between intelligence and how well you play MOBAs?
Podcast 46: Collecting Virtual Items in Games
How do game developers make virtual items as collectible as physical objects?
Podcast 45: The Psychology of The Legend of Zelda
I talk with several authors of the new book, The Psychology of Zelda: Linking Our World to the Legend of Zelda Series
Apex Fish in a Small Pond
The “Squad Eliminated” screen in Apex Legends and the psychology of comparisons.
Getting Gamers: Now in Paperback
My book, “Getting Gamers: The Psychology of Video Games” is now available in paperback.
Podcast 44: Gamification and Video Games as Employment Tests
Why does gamification work, or not work? Can a game be used to screen job applicants?
How Video Games Do Feedback Well (and Poorly)
How games provide feedback …and how they’re lacking.
Podcast 43: Dungeons, Dragons, & Psychology
My guest and I talk about the application of Dungeons & Dragons to psychology –and vice versa.
You Screwed Up: The Value of Errors in Game Tutorials
Should game tutorials hold players’ hands or encourage them to fail?
Podcast 42: Tracking Our Mobile Game Affinities
A Product Manager from King discusses how he measures players’ affinities for different kinds of mobile games and what developers can do with that information.
Podcast 41: How Video Games Prepare You For Success
My guest and I explore how video games teach and reinforce skills psychologists have found to be important for success in work and life.
Podcast 40: Our Avatar Relationships
What kinds of relationships do people form with their video game avatars, and why?
Nudging Moral Choices in Games
How game developers might use a bit of psychology to better structure moral choices.
Podcast 39: Thirty Questions About the Psychology & Games
You say “What 30 things should researchers study about psychology and games!” I say “Listen to this episode of the podcast!” Woo!
The Focusing Illusion and Overwatch
The same wrinkle in our thinking that explains the optimism of people paralyzed in car accidents explains why it’s so frustrating when people don’t play map objectives in video games.
Podcast 38: Mental Health Professionals and Video Games
What do therapists need to know about the new video game addiction standards and other topics related to their patients’ favorite games?
Come See Me at PAX West!
I’m going to PAX West August 31 – September 3rd! I’ll be on panels about gaming disorders and moral choices in games! You should say hello!