The game I played this week for Critical Play was Poker, Texas Hold ‘Em. No individual person developed Poker, and the target audience of this game is for adults.
Poker is a fun game, but gambling addiction is real and applies to playing Poker as well. Poker is a blend of chance, skill, and social interaction, and the execution and combination of these elements puts people at risk for addiction.
Firstly, Poker can be seen as a game of chance. The cards that you are dealt and the cards in the river all come from a shuffled deck of cards. This inherent randomness means that every round of Poker carries an element of unpredictability. Players might experience a series of “bad” hands or a series of “good” hands, both of which strongly influence their behavior for the next rounds to come. This unpredictability of each round is the key element of why Poker can become addictive. The design of the game, where the rewards are intermittent instead of linear, can cause players to continue playing in hopes of the “big win.”
Poker is not solely a game of chance, though. Poker is able to combine the randomness with the elements of skill and psychology, where skills such as decision-making, bluffing, and a good eye can become a “miracle” when given a bad hand. As opposed to games that are mostly based on chance, Poker’s blend of chance and skill creates a deeper sense of involvement and control for the player. Players might continue playing in order to hone their skills, believing that their skills can influence the outcome of a round more than it actually does. Poker also has a higher learning curve than other games, requiring a huge investment in order to get skilled enough to influence the game. And even if you are the most skilled player at the table, the biggest pot might be won by the least skilled player, just by chance. This happened during one of the games I participated in.
In conclusion, Poker is a game where probability, randomness, and a steep skill curve can determine whether you win the pot or lose all your money. Poker’s defining features, where rewards are intermittent, players feel in control, and a high learning curve, make the game addictive. Unlike other games that are pure chance or pure skill, poker is able to be engaging while also being addicting at the same time.
