Long live Flappy Bird, the game we loved to hate. But why oh why was that simple little game so awfully compelling?
In this video, Sci Show explains how our love of Flappy Bird — and other video games for that matter — are fuelled by a deep-seated human desire for achievement, however trivial. Successful achievement releases dopamine in the brain, which feels great.
But there’s a little more to it than that. Your brain also records the events that led up to release of dopamine — in this case, playing Flappy Bird — so seeks to replicate the good feelings by getting you to play again. And again. And again. [YouTube]