Why is it so much more amusing to watch someone play a video game than it is to play the game itself?

I'm 40, and I can't stand watching someone else play a game. Even when my kids are playing, I'm like, dude, you're doing wrong, gimme the controller. The very thought of watching a "professional" play on YouTube or whatever, irritates me.

I'm the opposite. I rarely find it enjoyable to watch someone else play a game, to the point that I have a hard time understanding things like Twitch, much less that game streaming more broadly took off the way it has.

It's all the good things you get from gaming (learning from mistakes, interesting plot, social bonding from co-op experience) with none of the shit parts (fucking up and dying, grinding, etc.). If it's a particularly difficult or grueling game that I nonetheless have interest in, I can dip out til something cool happens. I get to share in their reactions and find gaming by myself a bit lonely for that reason, because I'm used to being able to share what one of us is doing. Even letsplays, I watch just as much for the commentary as the gameplay, if not a little bit more.

Same reason people watch other people play sports.

Eh, not really for me, I don't even have Twitch or similar apps installed lol.

The older I get, the more I want from games is an interesting experience. Watching can provide that. I don’t have the time or interest for games that are deep loops of grind or challenges designed to be repeated. I get enough of that from adult life.

Sometimes watching the creative stuff people come up with is much more fun to me like in Minecraft than playing it myself. Or games where I found too frustrating to finish myself, but still liked the general story and atmosphere of the game.

what's old? i am 46 and dont have tome to watch. playing is my downtine.

There have been a few people I’ve liked to watch play, like ELPRESADOR, Ashens, Jim Sterling back in the DigitalHomicide days, Tony Hawk, or the dudes from Digital Foundry, or ironically DSPGaming to see the detractor edits, but it’s 100% because I wanted to consume content of these dudes, as opposed to me being remotely interested in the game they were playing or how they were playing it.

I’ve never understood the appeal of watching a full playthrough of someone else play a video game, especially live when the streamer is trying to be entertaining and engaging for those sweet tips, and it’s full of filler commentary and downtime.

Depends on the game. I find it very useful to watch a VOD of someone playing a boring or tedious game since I can skip the boring parts. It also makes it nice background noise if I'm doing something else while the video is playing. But if it's a game that I would otherwise like, I prefer to experience it myself of course.

I mostly play fighting games and watch and often watch people that are way better than me to get more info about the characters they play, the matchups, and general strategy I can use when I play myself.

But for entertainment? I mostly care if the content creator is funny, and not really what they play. God only knows how many hours of DBD, a game I have zero intention of playing, I've watched because the people I liked watching were into it.

For me it's tricky. I don't like watching single player LPs because they play the game wrong. I do like watching multiplayer games if the people are likeable (my friends suck for that specifically). I feel like multiplayer games add to the whole point of internet personalities.

I watch people play games like Detroit: Become Human and TellTale games because if your game is just an interactive visual novel, I may as well outsource the QTEs.

Honestly, even though I really enjoy gaming, it can still be tiring. Having to come up with strategies or execute some maneuver or even just piecing together a plot takes up brainpower that I don't always have. Watching someone else play a game lets me enjoy the game without having to invest energy into it.

So for me, it depends on the type of game and the content creator. When friends have asked me about streamer culture, I tell them to jump around and find a creator who thinks/makes decisions loosely the same as them but more importantly has a generally positive vibe in both themselves and their community - not everyone is sugary sweet screechy nightmare.

For story-based games, I get to experience all the artistic aspects (story, acting, level design, animation etc) without having to learn and/or put up with crummy controls, be distracted by poor performance or optimisation, get caught in thankless grind mechanics, or simply get experience a game in a genre/on a platform I wouldn't ordinarily.

Watching someone who is good at creating narratives play an adventure-crafter/ management sim adds lots of additional layers of interest, where I would otherwise check out after a couple of sessions playing by myself.

Shooters are less of a draw for me, maybe because I still actively play them. I have never clicked with any individual creator but find groups quite compelling, especially when the game has more tactics/strategy involved and they need to work together to succeed.

I haven't thought much about it but even as a child, when in a group I much preferred watching someone play than having a go myself and I guess that followed through to YT/Twitch when they came online.

Sometimes I'm just too tired for some mechanics, but I like the story and want to enjoy it. Also some personalities can maker a game more enjoyable/provide a different experience. It all depends on the game and the player. For me anyways.

Games are fun, but can also be frustrating. Watching someone else play removes the frustration. I like doing this sometimes too, but it's not new. 20 years ago I lived in a dormitory where these two guys would bring a playstation into the dayroom, take over the TV, and play video games and a bunch of us would just sit and watch.

I watched someone play with Horizon Zero Dawn and it was really enjoyable.

I also can't bring myself to buy new games because I think it's a waste of money because I doubt I'll play it for what its worth. Watching other people play is both satisfying and free.

It depends on the mood for me. Most of the time I'd rather play myself. But other times when I just want to lay back and relax with some snacks, I can watch someone play. I find I can often learn new things I can apply when I play myself.

@patchw3rk I only use Twitch when a new game that I want is released. So I can see if the gameplay is what I'm expecting and if it's also well optimized for PC.
I don't watch more than 10 minutes, because I find "Twitchers and YouTubers" like the most cringe existing beings. But as I told you I use their videos just to see if the game is good enough.
I'm not into preorders cuz well is the most stupid thing that someone can do. Companies never gonna run out of digital copies.

For me, it very much depends on the game:

• Masocore game like Only Up? I love watching other people struggle with it and have zero desire to play it myself
• Factorio or Dyson Sphere Program or similar games where the fun (for me) comes in coming up with my own creations? 99% of the time I want to play, not watch. Some exceptions: if someone is attempting a ludicrous challenge, or the occasional tips video

As the youngest sibling I grew up watching my brother play games. From super mario on nes to ocarina and later quake before I started to get any good (and not scared of everything). So maybe watching some streamers reminds me of when I’d just sit back hugging a pillow watching my brother and his friends play

No I don't. I find most people's videos incredibly boring, even if they're supposed to be on an interesting subject. Making videos is so common that lots and lots of people are terrible videographers. They just let things drag on, they waste people's time. So making a video of a subject that is also boring, looking over the shoulder or listening to someone play a game, is even worse.

I'll watch my Mom play a video game in real life for like 30 seconds. That teaches me something about what she's doing, and that's all it's worth. I'm an indie game designer and developer. I see it; I get it; that's all I need.

Games are interactive and are meant to be played. I can't relate to people only watching games, at all. I know people do it. I cannot relate to it in any way. It is alien to me.

One thing I've realized about people's YouTube play sessions, is they get their audience more from the audio they're doing, than from the video. Because people listen to these videos, while they're eating dinner or doing laundry and so forth. Their eyes and hands are on something else.

Never done done this myself, can anyone recommend a good non-RTS strategy gamer they think worth checking out and watching? I'm very much a TBS strategy (or at least pauseable), simulation, citybuilder type gamer.

But in the spirit of exploration, I'll also take RTS watching recommendations actually.