ABSTRACT
Experiences of awe, the emotional response to vast stimuli that do not fit into established mental structures, have been found to be pleasurable and meaningful. As elicitors of the emotion can frequently be found in video games, awe might be an important, yet under-investigated contributor to game enjoyment and appreciation. However, games place rather high task demands on users, which may interfere with the elicitation of awe. In order to understand the impact of awe on gamers’ entertainment experience, the present paper models the elicitation process of the emotion from the perspective of appraisal theories, with special consideration given to game-based cognitive demands. Implications for future games and entertainment research are discussed.
