Winning is having fun?

[Neo10101]

Sorry, in advance if this is a recent post, didn't check because I am currently working while I'm writing this but I just had the thought and didn't want to forget. I was just wondering if anyone here who has friends who equate winning to having fun? I have two different groups of friends, some who I mostly play console games with and some who I mostly play pen and paper games with and somehow both groups have some of these people. In the console gaming group if I start winning, or even if the person is just playing by himself/online if he begins to lose then he immediately loses all the fun he was having and just starts hating the game and this isn't a one time thing like he was having a bad day, every time he begins to lose he starts saying the game is cheap, some one is cheating, the controller isn't working, this game is stupid, etc. He can't just sit down and have a friendly good time playing video games.

Now, with the pen and paper friend since we play Dungeons and Dragons we do a lot of dice rolling to determine how well you can perform certain tasks. Whenever we don't watch this one kid roll his dice he will always roll the highest, if not, almost the highest, never misses, never fails his saves, always passes his checks, and if by some miracle he doesn't make the roll he will somehow magically almost roll just a hair higher, and if the highest roll doesn't do it, he just complains and says he should have been able to do it, even if he is a mage trying to break open a door. Also, if he is in a situation where his character isn't very helpful at that time he will *****/complain/moan about how he can't do anything and how there is no reason to everyone try and help. Sorry, if it was a bit of a rant it was just building up because none of my other friends want to bring it up with these particular friends because they afraid and I don't want to be the one who sparks the fuse for the whole group, so thanks all for those who read.

So, in conclusion do any of you know people like this who either lie or cheat to get into a winning position all the time, or if they can't they just complain and moan because all they want to do is win and that's the only way they can have fun?

 

[staika]

That would be me, well in video games at least. Now I don't cheat or anything but I am very competitive and I don't like to lose and I will get very frustrated if I lose. The strange thing is this only happens to me when I'm playing video games for some reason IE I can play basketball IRL and suck and still have fun but if I start to suck when I'm playing a basketball video game then shit gets real.

Other than me my friends are more lax about video games and I am basically the only person I know who gets mad at losing.

 

[Kopikatsu]

I've written variable essays on this on the Escapist, actually. :x I do think it gets to a point where the game stops being fun and starts being something you have to force yourself to do just to get the tiniest bit better before tournament season. Of course, that's mostly for hardcore competitive level.

Like Korea and Starcraft II. I can't imagine that they're having fun...especially if you watch the reactions of the losers. It's kind of awful.

I have the most fun when my team actually works as a team. Even if we don't win, I still feel like we managed to accomplish something.

 

[Javarock]

Well... Not really

As you cannot "Win" Dwarf Fortress.

Odly enough this also applys toward Charlie Sheen

 

[synobal]

Obligatory xkcd comic

 

[Tibs]

If I am winning I am more often then not having fun. How I feel about a game largely has to do with how good I am at it.

 

[FarleShadow]

Games only stop being fun when you're just losing with no chance.

I prefer games that are 60/40 either way, with noobs or idiots on either side, that way victory is all the sweeter (Than a white-wash) or defeat was by a milisecond (Not a whitewash).

Games where you absolutely rape are alright, games where, regardless of what you do, you lose utterly suck dick.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

No I don't know any people like that, but they don't sound like they'd be any fun to play with. In fact you can bet that if I did know any I wouldn't be playing with them for very long.

I mean sure, I'll get mad sometimes when I lose when playing single player games, but never multiplayer, unless someone is cheating.
I remember one time I had a friend and my brother-in-law over and we were playing New Super Mario Bros Wii. We were screwing up all over the place, but we all had a good laugh about it. It was great fun.

 

[Et3rnalLegend64]

Playing while having almost no chance of winning isn't fun unless of course you enjoy the challenge and believe that you may some day surpass it. I enjoy playing people in BlazBlue when they are markedly more skilled than I. It just gives me a sense of accomplishment if I can manage to beat them sometimes (even better if I can go 40-60 or better with them). I acknowledge skilled players and enjoy when others show good sportsmanship in return.

I don't enjoy playing people who are significantly less skilled than I, especially since I can no longer choose a character I'm weaker with when I get matched up with them. It poses no challenge, and I feel bad if I demolish them because it's not a fair win to me or fair loss to them. This forces me to hold back, which may be hurting my skill in the long run since holding back is becoming a bad habit when I start winning by too much. Winning for the sake of it isn't fun to me.

Raging because your absurd lucky streak doesn't continue indefinitely is being a spoiled brat. Same thing goes for your console friend. The world doesn't end when you stop winning.

 

[ChildishLegacy]

I don't have a competitive bone in my body, unless it comes to games where you need to win the whole match to rank up/gain exp (like halo 3 etc.).
I just think people should chill out about winning, there's always so much whining in text chat when people are on the losing team, and don't realise that they are contributing to a loss too.

I often see in TF2 "OMFG GUYS WE'RE LOSING BECAUSE NONE OF YOU PRICKS ARE PLAYING MEDIC" - this will often come from somebody currently playing pyro.
It's fine if you want to get annoyed with yourself if you lose, but I think people need to stop taking this out on other people, because a large majority of people game in public matches for fun, and more often than not, the person complaining about a loss is just as bad as anybody else on the team.

 

[Neo10101]

I don't have a competitive bone in my body, unless it comes to games where you need to win the whole match to rank up/gain exp (like halo 3 etc.).
I just think people should chill out about winning, there's always so much whining in text chat when people are on the losing team, and don't realise that they are contributing to a loss too.

I often see in TF2 "OMFG GUYS WE'RE LOSING BECAUSE NONE OF YOU PRICKS ARE PLAYING MEDIC" - this will often come from somebody currently playing pyro.
It's fine if you want to get annoyed with yourself if you lose, but I think people need to stop taking this out on other people, because a large majority of people game in public matches for fun, and more often than not, the person complaining about a loss is just as bad as anybody else on the team.

Yea exactly, my friend who is like this with the console games. If Im playing with him he will constantly say that how I play is BS, or that Im cheap, or something completely ridiculous as if he has no patience with losing at all. I've actually gone as far as purposefully losing just so he would calm down.

 

[linwolf]

Games only stop being fun when you're just losing with no chance.

I prefer games that are 60/40 either way, with noobs or idiots on either side, that way victory is all the sweeter (Than a white-wash) or defeat was by a milisecond (Not a whitewash).

Games where you absolutely rape are alright, games where, regardless of what you do, you lose utterly suck dick.

I disagree survival mode with no hope of winning is so much fun, there are no pressure just enjoyment.

 

[ChildishLegacy]

I don't have a competitive bone in my body, unless it comes to games where you need to win the whole match to rank up/gain exp (like halo 3 etc.).
I just think people should chill out about winning, there's always so much whining in text chat when people are on the losing team, and don't realise that they are contributing to a loss too.

I often see in TF2 "OMFG GUYS WE'RE LOSING BECAUSE NONE OF YOU PRICKS ARE PLAYING MEDIC" - this will often come from somebody currently playing pyro.
It's fine if you want to get annoyed with yourself if you lose, but I think people need to stop taking this out on other people, because a large majority of people game in public matches for fun, and more often than not, the person complaining about a loss is just as bad as anybody else on the team.

Yea exactly, my friend who is like this with the console games. If Im playing with him he will constantly say that how I play is BS, or that Im cheap, or something completely ridiculous as if he has no patience with losing at all. I've actually gone as far as purposefully losing just so he would calm down.

I know just the type of person xD
There's somebody in our group that's a fine individual in real life etc, but the moment he is on xbox and something goes wrong, it's somebody else in chat's fault and he starts shouting and pointing fingers. I really do think that games can bring out the best in some people, and the worst in others.

 

[FarleShadow]

I disagree survival mode with no hope of winning is so much fun, there are no pressure just enjoyment.

I don't much enjoy getting constantly raped, but I guess you're different!

How's prison working out for you, anyway?

 

[Scabadus]

I'm extremely competitive in multiplayer games and winning them is what I find fun, but on the other hand I'm not the type to moan if I loose (OK that's a total lie, but I won't moan because I should have just been handed the victory). I've had a few ragequits when playing against the computer, but against another human I'll see every match through to the bitter end and if you win you can bet every penny you own that I'll be back with bigger guns and better tactics next time.

That being said, being utterly ground into the dust twenty times in a row is not fun by any stretch of the imagination, and there are times when I just need a break; a different game or difficulty, a new opponent, something different while I think up my new strategy.

 

[MelasZepheos_v1legacy]

I find enjoyment in winning, but often that's not where I find the most enjoyment. Some examples:

Stranglehold: While it was satisfying to finish the game on every difficulty level, what I find the most fun is loading it up on Easy or Medium difficulty and playing through it like some sort of immortal god of guns. The fun comes from feeling like I'm in a John Woo movie, not from hiding behind a pillar waiting for the opportune moment to jump out. Same applies to Max Payne. I may have finished it more times than I can count on all the difficulties, but I only have fun when I'm doing crazy stunts like leaping from buildings sideways dive-shooting a mook twenty feet away so he falls off a roof while I land on a moving train.

Fallout 3: The most fun I have in Fallout 3 is basically getting utterly immersed in it. Wandering the wasteland for hours just taking in the sights, fleeing tough fights and sniping raiders from a mile away with my Reservist's Rifle. The quest is fun and engaging and I like it, but the game is huge, so where would the fun be in just finishing it? I barely even fast travel, I like walking back, especially when the way is fraught with peril.

Those are pretty much the two extremes, where I would actually forsake winning simply to have the most fun.

And I do know people who are very much 'it's only fun if you win.' They usually also underestimate anyone who doesn't hold the same attitude. My current roommates are play to winners, and they challenged me to all sorts of games (mainly FPSs) when we were first living together, because they thought they'd do it easily. We don't play so much anymore since I sent them scurrying nine times out of ten. Just because I don't find fun in winning, doesn't mean my skills aren't just as sharp as yours.

 

[Neo10101]

I don't have a competitive bone in my body, unless it comes to games where you need to win the whole match to rank up/gain exp (like halo 3 etc.).
I just think people should chill out about winning, there's always so much whining in text chat when people are on the losing team, and don't realise that they are contributing to a loss too.

I often see in TF2 "OMFG GUYS WE'RE LOSING BECAUSE NONE OF YOU PRICKS ARE PLAYING MEDIC" - this will often come from somebody currently playing pyro.
It's fine if you want to get annoyed with yourself if you lose, but I think people need to stop taking this out on other people, because a large majority of people game in public matches for fun, and more often than not, the person complaining about a loss is just as bad as anybody else on the team.

Yea exactly, my friend who is like this with the console games. If Im playing with him he will constantly say that how I play is BS, or that Im cheap, or something completely ridiculous as if he has no patience with losing at all. I've actually gone as far as purposefully losing just so he would calm down.

I know just the type of person xD
There's somebody in our group that's a fine individual in real life etc, but the moment he is on xbox and something goes wrong, it's somebody else in chat's fault and he starts shouting and pointing fingers. I really do think that games can bring out the best in some people, and the worst in others.

Yea, same here, normally great guy, just put that controller in his hands and BAM!, auto dick if he is losing, hell if hes winning, even if its short lived he will rub it in your face for as long as he is winning, yet if he starts losing, if you say anything he will practically rip your throat out, and the D&D guy, hes ok before we play but just such a dick because I mean he doesn't even try to hide the fact he fakes his die rolls, he rolls max like 3 times in a row and hes just like, "I'm just good at rolling dice, derp."

 

[Raognerrrm]

I equate having fun to winning.
So if I am enjoying myself, then I am 'winning', regardless of how well I am doing in the game.
That is, after all, why I bought the thing in the first place.

 

[dyre]

bleh, D&D cheaters should all die violently

most of my friends and myself don't appreciate losing constantly (certain DMs....), but we can have fun without winning (or else we wouldn't play something so ridiculously luck based as D&D!)