Types of Players: What Characteristics Shape Men When Playing And Where Do They Appear?

The urge to play is in all of us, even if it is not always equally strong. Most people like to spend part of their free time with playful sp...

The urge to play is in all of us, even if it is not always equally strong. Most people like to spend part of their free time with playful sports, board games, gaming on the computer or console, or other types of games. Where the child in a man can be very special is the way in which he acts out his play instinct.

For example, are you good at losing, or are you driven by ambition? Do you mainly want to have a good time, or celebrate success quickly? Are you an analyst and rules fan, or do you prefer to indulge in the whim of the moment? We took a closer look at a few classic player types and are happy to share our findings with you here. Maybe you feel caught even with one or the other description.

Men in Competition Fever

Sports betting is a unique form of gambling. Betting is not only an exciting pastime, it can even add an extra kick to your favorite sport. A clear favorite is football bets. Most men who love to gamble prefer to bet on King Soccer. This can be the classic bet with a reputable bookmaker, as well as a guessing game with colleagues or with friends and family.

And how do men tick when they're in a competitive frenzy? Scientists at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz have dealt with this question as part of a study. According to this, men are primarily competitive. You want to compete and get the best odds. According to the results of the study, the main motivation is both the fun of thrills and the opportunity to compete directly with others and to show off one's own expertise. Overall, three classic bet types could be identified:

1. The Expert: A significant proportion of men who gamble rely on extensive expertise that they have read up on via various media before betting.

2. The number junkie: A similarly high proportion studies relevant statistics and evaluations for their bet and derives their tip from them.

3. The empathetic: A smaller proportion of betting fans are mainly interested in sympathy for teams, players, etc.

A fundamentally different betting behavior can be observed among women. According to the providers, female tipsters prefer to play it safe and prefer safe results to high betting odds.

Men and Board Games

Board games, card games, even popular escape games are now available as a board games to take home. The large selection is ideal for a social get-together with friends or family.

Here, too, thanks to the cliché, more typical player characteristics can be seen in men. Based on the analysis of various user data, men prefer strategic parlor games that require analytical thinking. They prefer games in which the players compete against each other and do not play together against the game.

The reason for this is the strong desire of many men to win at parlor games and to achieve visible success. In games with a predominantly social component, it is more difficult to differentiate yourself from your fellow players. It is particularly important that successes can be assigned to a single player.

Many male players are not particularly good at losing, especially in strategic games. This is especially true when dealing with opponents of the same strength. It is therefore particularly important to them that the game is closely oriented to the rules in order to have a solid basis for discussion in decision-making.

Men in Gaming Heaven

Gaming on the computer, on the console, or on the smartphone is one of the most widespread types of games. Men, in particular, like to pass the time with shooters, jump-and-run adventures, or MMORPGs, although the interest of female gamers is also growing steadily.

There is hardly a backdrop against which so many classic types of players have developed as in gaming. There are many amusing clichés here that we don't want to withhold from you:

1. The casual gamer:
   He is very relaxed about gaming and only wants to pass the time every now and then. Expensive equipment and quick wins are not as important to him as having a good time in the game.

2. The Power Gamer:
   He wants to achieve performance and take gaming to a professional level. He invests a lot of time and money in order to be able to work out his high status himself. Power gamers often aim for a profile level in the field of e-sports.

3. The hardcore gamer:
   The hardcore gamer spends most of their time gaming, leaving little room for other activities. He sinks into the game world, through which he partly identifies himself. He always wants to be the first to purchase a game expansion and achieve new goals.

4. The Tryhard:
   Unfortunately, this type of player is not gifted with a natural talent for gaming. He wants to play, but struggles with the mechanics of the game and has to fight hard for every achievement. The tryhard often chooses a highly analytical approach to games because they lack an intuitive approach.

5. The cheater:
   He wants to get as far as possible as quickly as possible, preferably with little effort. That's why the cheater uses every trick and back door that a game allows. It gets harder for him with every fixed bug, but the next cheat will definitely come.

6. The role player:
   He is primarily at home in MMORPGs and loves to completely immerse himself in virtual worlds. Atmospheric interaction with other players is more important to him than quick success, which is why he invests a lot of time and money in equipping his character.

7. The nostalgic:
   The nostalgic prefers to play the old classic games, even if they don't exactly beguile with appealing graphics. He loves to reminisce and relive the feel of his childhood.

A Scientific Approach: The Types of Players According to Bartle

Finally, we would like to take a scientific look at the topic of player types. A popular approach is Bartle's theory of player types. In 1996, the researcher dealt extensively with computer games in the form of Multi-User Dungeons (MUD) and divided players into four categories:

1. The achiever:
   He wants to achieve something and complete tasks. He, therefore, proceeds very strategically and informs himself outside of the game via tutorials and forums.

2. The killer:
   It is important to him to always win and to systematically eliminate his opponents. He can also use mean methods and takes little account of social aspects.

3. The Socializer
   Above all, he wants to experience social interaction and have a communicative gaming experience within a lively community. Fast successes and great achievements are not so important to him.

4. The explorer
   Above all, he wants to discover new things, have new experiences, and try himself again and again. He likes to test new game variants and always tries to challenge his own limits. New input is more important to him than quick success.

Bartle's scientific classification into player types is mainly used by game developers to tailor new games or expansions to the players' wishes and to be able to set up marketing campaigns accordingly.

Well, did you recognize yourself in one or the other category of player types? As long as the focus is on fun, many clichés can be accepted with a smile. Finally, different types of players can bring more variety to the game situation.