PLAYER NEEDS INVENTORY (PNI): AN ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK FOR ANALYZING PLAYER MOTIVES IN VIDEO GAMES

Abstract

Focusing on player motives in games with narrative elements, we claim that the needs satisfied by a game depends on the interplay of three player experience dimensions (narrative, mechanics, and social context) and we present a formal approach for studying player motives in video games. Motives of the player are classified into six categories and the resulting Player Needs Inventory (PNI) is utilized in the close reading of a video game to identify how player motives are satisfied with different game user experience dimensions. Three patterns observed after the close reading are: (1) needs satisfied by a game is affected by the narrative of the game, the personality of the protagonist (role), and the social context the player finds himself in, (2) the needs for achievement and affiliation are more dominant than others in the form of fusions and subsidizations, and (3) a wide range of needs can be satisfied with carefully designed game mechanisms and a balanced player experience. Casting aside the motives of a player in the pregame phase and focusing on the motives of the player in the actual game phase, the Player Needs Inventory (PNI) presented in this study offers an analytical framework to understand player motives in video games and the conducted analysis may aid researchers interested in player experience. © 2022 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.