Most of those who have dealt with (Gamers) more extensively with the "sport" of gaming have experienced the phenomenon of being "stuck" by the music of the game and after the end of their engagement with it (which is also observed in movies and TV).
According to a study by the International Gaming Research Unit of Nottingham Trent University, sometimes the sounds of a game (explosions, gunshots, screams, etc.) that has "absorbed" the player remain "with it" even after the player's engagement with it has ended.
This is the most recent study of the university on what is known as "game transfer phenomena" (GTP): a range of small perceptual dysfunctions that follow long-term "marathon" gaming. As reported in a Guardian article, earlier researches have focused on visual distortions and effects, such as Tetris players who viewed shapes moving down when they closed their eyes, for example. This paper is the first time to analyze such experiences that have to do with hearing.
For the purposes of the research the university team visited Forums for games and collected data from 1.244 gamers on such experiences. 12% of them reported that they experienced game audio again outside the game environment, from sword sounds to electronic "beeps" or even very "classic" sounds, like those of coins in Super Mario.
"There are many examples of players 'listening' to game music, as you continue to 'hear' music in your head even after you've stopped listening," said Angelica Ortiz de Gortari, a psychologist who led the study. “Some players heard voices, others heard game sounds. It often happens when you are trying to sleep- some were looking at the computer or her console them because they thought they had let the game play."
The most interesting examples, however, have to do with real-world incidents that seem to point to situations in the game: a player said he heard sounds from the Portal puzzle game when he was passing through buildings that reminded him of the world of the game, while a more extreme case had to do with a player who, when you fell in the dark, heard a sound from the horror game Silent Hill, who informed that monsters were coming.
As noted in the report, there is particularly intense skepticism around GTP, as research is currently based on a small percentage of players who speak to other players on forums where the possibility of exaggeration is always present. However, similar experiences have been studied since the 1990. According to de Gortari, GTPs have to do with how the brain "makes sense" to data coming from the senses. "These sounds make sense, a purpose in electronic games - and this meaning affects how players react to real life."
In any case, one of the goals of the study is the demystification of GTP, which in some cases may also terrify people who experience them, as they may last for hours or days. "We want to recognize, record and explain these experiences. But this research also tells us how the mind works, how it creates connections, how we learn to form links - this can be useful in learning new languages, for example. "
Source: naftemporiki.gr
