This question really get me thinking when I first heard of it, I realise it is something that a lot of people overlook. Personally, I only play games when I want to escape from work which might not be the same for the general player pool. Since I don’t have a clear answer for the question, I decided to go look for more information and reference on the internet.

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         The Game Theorists's videos and David Mullich's article serves as my two major source of references, both of them tackle the question with a similar fashion - human psychology. Coincidentally, they both started their explanation by highlighting the most easiest way to answer the question is always - 'because games are fun!'.     

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          Although the answer are rather simple and vague but it provide us with a clear direction to explore deeper into the topic. They then continue their analysis by looking into different type of fun and experience that player can get from various genre of game.

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           Even though there are tons of different theory on type of player and fun that can be found in games (as shown above), they are all just representation of what human want and need.

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          Online multiplayer games that are heavy on communication give player an opportunity to become a part of a big community which provide a sense of belonging. Old school platformer game that required a long time to mastered provide the player with sense of accomplishment and huge satisfaction when they beat the game. A fantasy role playing game where you can do whatever you want bestows player with the ability to write their own story for their character. The fact that all these human needs can be achieve and fulfill by playing games, it serves as a strong motivation for player to continue their journey in the virtual game world. 

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        The Maslow's hierarchy of needs proposed that humans are motivated to fulfill different types of human needs in the pyramid based on the priorities. When we move all of these needs into a game world, player are generally free from the constraint of the bottom two part (physiological and safety) and they are given full freedom to achieve the top three level of human needs.

 

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      'Games are a miniaturized and simpler form of life, which in-contrast to the larger life, the goals are straight-forward, the method to achieve them are definite and the rewards are instantaneous.' - Daniel Micah.

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        I like Daniel's quote a lot and I think the film Ready Player One present the similar idea of game being a tiny version of simulated life where player can fulfill the need pyramid faster and easier than real life. The main character choose to escape the dystopian world and stay in the Oasis virtual world to do and be what he want without dire consequence in real life. In short, I strongly believe that player play games because it allow them to fulfill their needs.