Belonging and Mastery
I read somewhere that one of the reasons people get so caught up in MMORPGs is that it provides them with positive experiences that real life doesn’t. (The original poster expressed it better, but that was the gist of it.) This post, which I found via Overheard On LiveJournal, is one answer to what that might be.
MMORPGs provide tons of experiences of belonging and experiences of mastery. I’m basing this discussion on World of Warcraft, which is the MMORPG Jaimie and I play. First off, much of the game requires that you play in a group - be that a casual group or a long-term group (such as a guild). This provides you with plenty of experiences of belonging as you participate in guild chat, assist other guild members, call on them for help, and cheer on their accomplishments. Secondly, it provides experiences of mastery as you manage to accomplish difficult things in game - from acquiring that valor drop to running an instance that’s really too high for you to just simply reaching level 60. When you see how it fulfils basic psychological needs like that, it’s no wonder it’s such a time-sink!