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A video game allows you to develop your skills and use your brain in a complex way (especially true of competitive multiplayer games). A slot machine is played by mindlessly pulling a lever.

> develop your skills and use your brain in a complex way

What skills? I don't think there's anything complex about button mashing to make blinking lights blink differently.

In that case, you should have no difficulty winning any major esports tournament and claiming some easy prize money.

To be equally reductive, how is any hobby more than playing a slot machine? It’s just pulling a dopamine lever.

I do not believe a hobby needs to yield social value. I believe it is sufficient to derive enjoyment from the activity itself. You don’t need to personally enjoy my hobbies, just as I don’t imagine I would enjoy yours.

> To be equally reductive

I'd say it's less reductive and more the objective reality.

> I do not believe a hobby needs to yield social value

I didn't say anything about social value. I'm talking about value to you individually.

I don't think you've answered that question. I don't see there is any value. I think you're pushing buttons to make the blinking lights blink differently, just like a slot machine.

Why do either of those things matter to you if the person in question enjoys them?