ABSTRACT
This chapter builds on the chapter by Konijn and Nije Bijvank (this volume, chapter 12), who make a provocative statement in considering all digital games as potentially serious. According to this perspective, game play that is personally meaningful or relevant to the player (e.g., for his or her identity) may be considered serious. However, this seriousness does not necessarily imply being of desirable value, which is another prerequisite for serious games. If we accept the potential qualifi cation as serious, we need to show how these serious effects present a positive outcome for the player. In this chapter I will extend the argument made by Konijn and Nije Bijvang in suggesting that successful completion of emotion regulation episodes qualifi es for desirable impact in some game play. I hereby parallel the idea of games as suitable environments to apply and practice rather than to cognitively problem solve (Gee, this volume, chapter 5; Graesser, Chipman, Leeming & Biedenbach, this volume, chapter 6; Lieberman, this volume, chapter 8).
