Bunny Blog

I’m going to keep this post short, so that I feel the joy of instant gratification upon completing it, and so that You, the Reader, feel that same joy as well.

I’m always blown away at how effective Instant Gratification is.  I was reminded of this first hand this weekend when playing Call of Duty.

Back in the good-ol’-days of gaming, online multiplayer first person shooters were just that: online first person shooters you could play with other people.  End of story.

While I’m sure Call of Duty is not the first to do this (or maybe they are - I’m not researching this to keep with the Instant Gratification theme, which is journalistically irresponsible of me, but then again, I’m not a journalist), they’ve done a brilliant thing by adding unlockables to the muliplayer version of the game: adding Instant Gratification to an aspect of the game that never had any before (aside from instantly taking out Fred with a bazooka every now and then).  Instead of just playing with your friends, you’re also getting the added game experience of leveling up, as if you were playing the single player version of the game.   Play for a bit, shoot enough dudes in the head, and BAM!  You unlock a laser sight for your sniper rifle.  Brilliant.

Instant gratification is important in gaming because it keeps people coming back for more, and it keeps them locked in while they’re playing.  By keeping the goal JUST out of reach (”If I play one more round, I’ll level up!”), you have a proverbial carrot dangling from the end of the joystick (or controller).

And I was definitely not expecting this level of I.G. in the multiplayer version of Call of Duty.  Not only do you level up, unlocking different styles of play, but you can also level up on specific weapons, unlocking that all-important silencer you need so badly so the baddies don’t see you on their radars.  Between leveling up as a character and leveling up on other aspects of the game, you’re rewarded in nearly every match you play.

Or if not this one, then the next one…