Getting Gamers: The Psychology of Video Games and Their Impact on Players - Perfect for Gamers, Educators, and Parents

Without exaggeration, this is an incredible book. Thoroughly researched. Artfully written. Fun as heck. On one level, it's an entertaining and light read that illuminates how games work at a psychological level; on another level, it's a deep read with a wealth of information that provides insight into how our brains work and what drives our behaviors.It's rare to find a book that can appeal to such a wide variety of audiences without losing anything. Without dumbing down the material. Even if you know nothing about psychology, you'll be able to understand all the topics the author talks about because he put them into simple descriptions using fun and easy to read examples. This book drops a lot of knowledge on you, but it's so enjoyable you might not realize how much you've learned.Even if you've got a degree in psychology, or you're deeply interested, in the subject, this book provides more engaging overviews of psychological research (with references to whitepapers, if you prefer the dryer versions), and gives you a framework for going deeper. The more you want to put in, the more you can get out. It gives you enough knowledge to what questions to ask if you want to learn more about any subject the author discusses. Footnotes are abundant, and at the end of each chapter there's an overview of the main topics covered.If you're a gamer, get this book. Do you want to understand why you've spent $300 on League of Legends? Not that this book will necessarily stop you from spending more, but at least you'll understand what's motivation you to do it.This book is a must have for any game designer, but also for any web or product designers. The same ideas drive these other domains. This book does a fantastic job at presenting a broad overview of how our brains work (from the angle of games), but with enough specifics that you'll be able to re-read the book many times, and each time, learn something new. If you spend your time creating experiences for people, this is a book you'll frequently reference. I just finished my second re-read.