...

The big draw of games such as Ultima, Morrowind or Fallout 3, is the vast world to explore and interact with. While such worlds may not be as intricate as ours and often contain arbitrary rules (such as invisible walls or shopkeepers happily buying any and all sort of useless junk), they nonetheless create a physical, social and economical space complex enough for the player's underlying personality traits to emerge.

I am not talking simply about the surface-level decisions, such as good vs. evil, or choosing sneaking over guns-blazing. Games have always been heralded as an escape from reality, allowing the player to become what he could not in real life. Rather than the role the player chooses, lets look at how the player enacts his role and interacts with the complex game mechanics.

For example, some players lose track of the main quest, exploring the vast landscapes and checking every nook and cranny, while others focus primarily on the main story ignorant of anything outside their path. Some lean towards investing in long-term, powerful but expensive items such as stronger weapons and armor, while others rely more on short-term reusables like potions and temporary stat boosters. And further still, some multitask by accepting numerous quests at a time, while others take them slowly, one at a time. With so much freedom to interact with the game mechanics, isn't the approach taken by the player reflective of who they are in real life?

In my case, my love for biking and urban-exploration was mirrored in Skyrim, where I never completed the main quest because there were too many interesting vistas and locations to explore. Upon entering new areas in Deus Ex I would often mentally map out the environment, noting all usable objects, pathways, and characters, before making any decisions - again, just an example of my real-life tendency to plan ahead and organize, rather than rush head-in and figure things as they come. And lastly, even my “buying policy” in games such as Final Fantasy, where I find myself reluctant to purchase expensive gear, is a reflection of my frugal personality, where I cringe at any bigger spending even if I can easily afford it.

...

If one's in-game avatar is reflection of their psyche, wouldn't making changes to their playstyle affect their real world behavior as well?

...

On the academic side, virtual reality has already been successfully used to (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16556961) help people suffering from arachnophobia at least partially overcome their fear of spiders. Similar studies have been applied to a fear of heights as well, and undoubtedly games could be used to explore and treat other disorders too.

Taking this a step further, realistic open world games could be consciously used to test the viability of real life decisions and reinforce desired personality changes. Looking back at my own frugality in life and in games, a form of obsessive-compulsive hoarding, I would always stock up on cash and items, beating the game as a billionaire with 50 unused mega-elixirs. So I did a little experiment. In my last playthrough of The Witcher 2, Skyrim and currently Fallout New Vegas, I have been forcing myself to use up my items and cash if I had them. As I have discovered, finding the balance between spending and acquisition of cash in games proved a good argument for rationalizing big real-life purchases as well.

Another unintended change was my first ever game of Paintball. Initially I got mauled, unsure of how to proceed or properly operate the gun. Until I remember something - several years of online FPSes. And so I began moving from cover to cover, leaning around corners, crouching to minimize my size, holding my breath to steady my aim, sneaking on an enemy from behind, and occasionally madly rushing and zig-zagging to throw off opponent's aim. All of this quickly became second nature ... And I am not the only one to realize this potential of games - Operation Flashpoint started its life as VBS1, a realistic simulation used by the US military.

The psychological changes can definitely carry from virtual to real world, whether it's easing our obsessive-compulsiveness tendencies, overcoming irrational phobias, or improving tactical thinking. If we begin to think of games as tools or real-life-simulations, we can consciously use them to promote desired changes in our own personality.

...

A tangential idea worth mentioning here is “gamification of life”, that is applying game concepts directly to real life. The Extra Credit guys have made an excellent video about (http://www.penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/gamifying-education) how gamification can be used in education, transforming the “boring” school into an exciting game of ever-growing “stats” (grades) and hidden rewards. Framing education in such a way, they argue, can encourage students to study harder, much the same way Diablo encourages gamers to spend yet another evening grinding for “phat loot.”

Another example are online fitness trackers. Many people keep track of their body weight, calories burned and exercises performed. As I looked at my spreadsheet after a few months, I suddenly realized something - my little log was, in a way, my real-world character-sheet! The excitement of seeing one's body weight go down or the average running speed go up mirrors the excitement of the RPG “level up” screen. It is a fantastic motivator.

...

Needless to say, games have an amazing untapped potential in studying, analyzing and even changing human psychology.

And why isn't map making craft? That is exactly what it is. Surely?

Just to respond to this, I think what he means is, it isn't purely crafting (like writing a book or filming a movie) that's completely detached from the gameplay the player goes through. You don't craft the finished product for the player. You create the world and a set of rules, but the player is still involved creating their own experience through the gameplay. So there's a give and take between the mapper & the player. There's an inextricable mix of mapper crafting and player gaming. That's why I thought it was an interesting case-study to look at.