So today, just for the giggles, I took the “Bartle test of Gamer Psychology” at
http://www.gamerdna.com/quizzes/bartle-test-of-gamer-psychologyThe test is a series of thirty questions generated randomly from a question bank. Some of the questions are straightforward and some of them have no good answer, just a choice between two evils – I tried to choose the lesser of those if I could still answer honestly.
It turns out that I’m 93% Explorer, 67% Socializer, 33% Achiever & 7% Killer (. . . they don’t know me very well, do they? I wonder what this says about me in the real world? Kind of makes me look like a pub crawler . . . ) They tell me that I am “thoughtful, exploratory & social” but missed the obvious fact that I was also naked at the time . . . so what do they know?
If you haven’t Bartled yourself, what the results based on my scores purport to mean is:
It's not so much the wandering around and poking about, but that euphoric eureka moment the Explorer strives for. The joys of discovery do not necessarily involve geography, real or virtual. They may derive from the mental road less traveled, the uncovering of esoteric or hidden knowledge and it's creative application. Explorers make great theory crafters. The most infinitesimal bit of newness can deliver the most delicious zing to an Explorer.
Secondary influences:
Explorer Socializers are the glue of the online world. Not only do they like to delve in to find all the cool stuff, but they also enjoy sharing that knowledge with others. Explorer socializers power the wikis, maps, forums and theory craft sites of the gamer world. [Gosh, I never realized how awesome I am . . . now I’m going to develop some sort of complex.]
Explorer Achievers have been there, done that and have the t-shirt...in fact they have a plethora of t-shirts, badges, trophies and other rewards. EAs are the completionists of the gamer world. They like to find new places, quests, easter eggs, unlocks, maps etc. and check them off as have, visited or beaten. Like real world travelers, EAs enjoy collecting memorabilia that helps them relive their experiences later. [Not really true for me. I’m one of those “less is more” people . . . so the 33% score seems to fit.]
Explorer Killers enjoy seeing the world, meeting interesting people...and killing them. EKs love all discovery, but finding an edge over the competition is best. Always seeking new opportunity, an EK likely knows the ten best places to find certain types of opponents, as well as ten different ways for taking them down. [Hmm, apparently I lack the killer instinct, relying on my charm, wit and good looks instead . . . so far, so good.]
What about you? Have you Bartled yourself?