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[Eden]

In music, the listener is either listening passively or actively. While I write this I'm listening some Thelonious Monk piece. That's passive listening; I'm not really focused on it- it's in the background.
Active listening is the opposite.

So the thought came up in my mind that maybe playing games has two states- passive and active. Just playing blindly through a game, not really remembering much of it afterwards. Being on autopilot.
I think we get that in some games a lot.

Just an observation

btw, I don't mean passive as being "in the zone"- that's more active. I mean games like WoW (most MMORPGs actually).

[Melly]

Any game with overly repetitive actions required lends itself to passive play. Grinding, button-mashing, etc.

Many games have both. Like some RPG's in which buying stuff is practically automatic (just fill your potion to max, buy best equipment) while other activities may be more involved.

It's a good thing for devs to keep in mind, I guess.

[Eden]

I think passive play is inherent in some game designs, The Movies (whilst a pretty good game) comes to mind.   
So...it's important to design stuff that isn't passive. Otherwise you're wasting your time, really.

[Derek]

http://www.progressquest.com/

Passive gaming at its finest.

[Michaël Samyn]

But even if you are passively listening to music, your mood is affected by it, isn't it? Does this happen with games as well?

[Melly]

If it's completely mechanical, I think the only mood shift you'll get is to apathy. In that case even passive music is more active.

[th15]

I think I'd define passive gaming as performing a sequence of actions without any viable/possible variation. The player is making no decisions between each step, it's merely a rote process.

For example, let's look at the combat system that many MMORPGs use. Typically they have a system where chaining specific attacks after each other has additional effect. What results is a boring process of hitting the same series of buttons over. That's bad. However, if the game is designed such that the results of each step can vary (either randomly or by opponent action) then the player is forced to react to the effect his previous attack had on the opponent and adapt his attack. In fighting games, characters typically have an attack-combo "flowchart". If this attack is blocked, switch to this set of moves, if it wasn't do this set of moves. This is definitely more active.

The problem with playing a game "passively" is that a game loses the one element that makes it different from other forms of media.

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

I think passive vs active is really habitual vs mindful. In the first, you're not thinking too hard about what you're doing, in the second, you're more aware and excited about it. In that sense I think the second is usually better.

[th15]

That would tie-in with the flow theory concept of learning challenges.

[Keops]

http://www.progressquest.com/

Passive gaming at its finest.

I lol'd

Although theres really not much difference between this and WoW XD I believe the only active moment I have in WoW is PvP, otherwise I'm playing on autopilot.