Brainy Psychologist Ties Phat Loot Love To Dopamine Neurons, WoW Raiders Explain Epic Need In More Manageable Terms

I’ve seen my fair share of loot drops during my time as an epically geared Alliance Warrior in the World of Warcraft, and I’d be lying if I told you that my butt-cheeks didn’t clench in chair hopping excitement every time a new piece of gear came my way. Though, I never thought much about the “psychological” reasons behind it all, but Jamie Madigan, a PHD and self admitted MMO gamer, did exactly that.

Jamie explains in a recent post on his site, psychologyofgames.com, that expected, unexpected, and randomly generated events in games like World of Warcraft trigger dopamine (a pleasure-inducing chemical) releases by the brain which in turn cause us to become very excitable loot whores. Okay, those weren’t his exact words … you can see those below.

“… The real key [that makes loot-based games work so well] is that while dopamine neurons fire once your brain has figured out how to predict an event, they really go nuts when an unexpected, unpredicted gush of dopamine shows up, giving you an even bigger rush. … Again, I’m guessing that this is an evolutionary advantage that causes us to obsess over unexpected pleasures and try to predict them so that we can get more of them.

But we can’t predict the inherently unpredictable. … Your dopamine neurons are trying really hard to learn what precedes a [loot drop] … But in reality, it’s utterly random and by definition can’t be predicted. More rational parts of your brain may understand this, but not the dopamine neurons. They’re stymied, but that doesn’t stop them from flaring up and saying “HEY! THERE’S SOMETHING HERE! KEEP DOING WHAT YOU’RE DOING UNTIL WE FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE IT HAPPEN AGAIN!” So you keep playing.”

Jamie’s full article makes use of things like Hot Pockets, slot machines, and fuzzy dog bellies to better illustrate his example. And while I give him an A+ for creative scientific translation, I thought it would be interesting to hear World of Warcraft raiders explain the need rolling lust for epic loot in their own words.

“I love material gain. I do. Even vendor junk is totally exciting because hell, at least I’m getting something. It’s like I have proof that I accomplished something, even though my loot only exists in the game client.”
- Zalmida

“Loot drives me to play the game because I get a feeling of satisfaction. It’s like doing something in real life gives you the satisfaction of that task. Whether it’s painting a house or cleaning the kitchen, it’s the feeling after you do it that makes you feel good.”
- Soliah

“It used to be what separated us from the more casual raider. Blizzard has made it possible for anybody to get similar loot without grinding the same raids. The pride in being recognized for earning the best loot in the game is gone. I understand several reasons why Blizzard would make these changes, but the game has gotten far too easy. It’s awesome for gearing alts and other layer but it just isn’t the same.”
- Anonymous Hunter

Well, as a child my mother never game me anything but dirty looks. I see wow loot as all the missed Birthday and Christmas presents.
- Akaamu

“Loot makes me better than everyone else.”
- Horsteul

Because I like having shinier things than my neigbor… so in essence, greed drives me.
- Dammagessuk

“‘Get rich or die grinding’ That is m ultimate quote.”
- Wontoon

“It makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something in my otherwise failed life?”
- Firedbeard

“It makes me feel like i have achieved and I am successful when I obtain powerful/special/rare items. I try to loot as much as possible because like must human beings, I want to have as much wealth as possible and as many nice things as possible. I guess it’s connected to my self-esteem and an innate survival instinct to be the ‘alpha’”
- Dravea

So as you can see, while dopamine neurons may fuel the excitement that is our immediate reaction to loot drops, the long term drive behind the continued pursuit seems based on factors such as in-game status, the sense of accomplishment and compensation for lack of real life success, competitive nature, and the most popular response … greed.

If you’d like to add your own loot loving reason, feel free to do so in the comment section below.