Aside from having game preferences for specific genres and types of games such as role-playing, Euro-games, card games, war games, etc... I believe each of us has a gamer personality that they tend to gravitate toward while playing a game. Thinking about gamer types as personas is an interesting topic. In this post, I list a my thoughts about possible gamer types and come up with some names for each. See if you agree with these personas and if you relate particularly to one or two of them. Gamer Personas I'm sure others have contemplated the different types of gamer personalities. There's even gamer slang to describe some related gamer behaviors such as "alpha player" or "metagaming". In witnessing myself and others I've played games with, I've come up with several personas to help describe common gaming personalities. Salesman - The salesman is the player who likes to bargain with other players. He/she is constantly trying to form an alliance or make a trade. Sometimes the Salesman enjoys the art of the deal more than the actual game at hand. Those who display this persona can be a lot of fun to play with, as they tend to keep things up-beat and are excited when they get a deal done. Salesmen enjoy games which include money, trading, bargaining, persuasion, alliances, and open discussion. Instigator - The obvious traits of an instigator are that they seem to get joy in stirring things up. Instigators point out when another player does something that could be taken as a mean move. An instigator might say aloud what others would keep to themselves, such as mentioning who has the most points or controls a particular location or resource. Always attempting to direct others actions away from themselves. The instigator thrives on games which are competitive. Cooperative games don't offer enough opportunity to cause players to turn on each other. Games with resources, territory control, and obvious victory points/conditions give this player the tools needed to instigate, antagonize and cause delightful little squabbles between players. Teammate - A teammate loves cooperative games. It pains them to play intentionally against others. They prefer playing with the group. Teammates also realize the pitfalls of quarterbacking, preferring to get input from the team, sometimes choosing the group's collective suggestion over their own personal inclinations. In addition to co-op games, a teammate persona may also like games without a lot of player interaction, thus allowing a winner to be determined based on the merit of their play. Where there is interaction in a competitive game, it can feel confrontational which may not sit well with this gamer type. This persona will generally steer clear of battle games and games with obvious, direct conflict between players. Professor - This persona tends to be interested in the intricacies of a game. They scrutinize each decision and will many times be thinking several steps ahead. A Professor doesn't like to rush decisions and is therefore prone to "analysis paralysis". Playing a game for them is like solving a puzzle. It is a challenge that typically requires winning or finishing with a lot of points to feel satisfied. Games in a Professor's wheelhouse would typically be Euro-games and competitive games with lower levels or player interaction and randomness, "thinky" or "meaty" games. Squirrel - A squirrel persona tends to easily get distracted and create distractions. This is typically not intentional, as this kind of player may have a low attention span. A squirrel may drift off when rules are being explained, because rules can get boring and lose their attention. They are ready to play the game ... "let's get on with the fun!" This persona might require rules to be re-explained during gameplay. When rounds/turns progress slowly or the game feels like its running long they resort to grabbing snacks, checking his/her phone or striking up side conversations. A fun player to be around, the squirrel persona is fast-paced, makes quick decisions and enjoys the company of others. Games that would typically suit squirrels are ones with social/party interaction, battle, action and player interaction. Shadow - Although the name sounds a bit negative, a shadow persona stays out of the spotlight. Shadows like to let others take the lead and attention. They are subtle in their gameplay and many times try to go unnoticed. They enjoy others taking the brunt of player attacks and interaction so they can go about their business without being disturbed. A shadow waits until the right moment and then may surprise everyone by laying down their cards or other game elements and announcing that they've just won the game. This persona likes many types of games but would most likely avoid social/party games or two-player war-games where its harder to remain in the shadows. Overview of Gamer Personas These are the six game personas that came to my mind. I'm sure there are most likely many more gamer personalities we could define. I would enjoy hearing about other gamer personas that you have encountered. I wonder if someone has written a college thesis or a psychology paper on the subject. Its certainly fun to put a name to the different gamer types. What one or two personas do you connect with the most? Which persona do you find the most fun to play against/with? Fill out my fun survey below about this subject. Please post your thoughts and comments in the comments section of this post. Keep visiting King's GameNight Facebook page and ...
Game on!
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