The best video games– my opinion– are the ones that break the player’s protective shell. Usually, we are protected from the reality of the game. This is usually a necessary thing for the premise of the game; your typical MW2 player isn’t a trained soldier and thus needs the comfort of "this is fantasy" to be able to play the part of one.

However, many games nowadays try to grab the player by the gut. Alyx Vance comes to mind. How do you think this is done? What does it take in order to make us feel emotion for some pixels on our screens?

Good story lines, characters you can relate to, and good graphics.

Final Fantasy 7 for example. The death of a character impacted many who like that series. So much that a cheat was created to bring her back, although it doesn’t work well.

I’ve heard a rumor that the creators of the Silent Hill games are going to use psychology for their next game. It will involve the player taking a test. The test will reveal player’s fears and the game will act accordingly.