How would it feel to gain XP?

[WaterAndWindSpirit]

So... If gaining XP was actually a measurable phenomenon instead of a gaming abstraction, how do you think it would feel to gain XP?

Would you feel a surge of energy for each XP gain, and a huge surge upon leveling up with after effects lasting for hours?

Or would it be a rush of euphoria, that could result in laughing and crying tears of happiness when leveling up?

Would the adventurers go on life threatening adventures just for the feeling of gaining XP?

Would there be serial killers who kill for the XP rush instead of a more traditional killing rush?

[Dalin]

Well, in games without a "leveling up" mechanic (like GURPS), it might just feel like regular living. My real-life skills have improved over time, but most of my improvement has not felt like anything. Occasionally there are Eureka! moments when I know I've just made a breakthrough, but they are definitely the exception rather than the rule.

That's a very boring answer to your question.

If I were running a game where I wanted to emphasize those metagame aspects (maybe a game of real-life people entering a computer RPG), then I would probably go with the euphoric rush idea. Or maybe riff off of the Matrix, "You know kung fu!" I would also be sure to include power-ups that actually make your body glow with a visible, color-coded aura.

[Celjabba]

Hearing a "ding" bell sound is an usual sign !

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0124.html

An example of euphoric rush would be like highlander quickening.

[thastygliax]

I have seen at least one computer game that announced "So-and-so has leveled up!" while briefly briefly making the character glow. Usually in the middle of a fight, so there was no time to just sit and glory in it. (I'm guessing that phenomenon is more common than I realize, because I don't ever play console games.)

In the Earthdawn RPG, gaining XP ("Legend Points") isn't just a mechanical abstraction, it's also part of the in-game metaphysics. Adepts (the PC hero types) gain XP by surviving fights and other challenges, but they can also earn it through "spreading their legend." The more people who know about your deeds, the more powerful you become, quite literally--as in you can gain XP by periodically depositing copies of your adventuring journals in the Great Library. Leveling up also requires finding a teacher and spending time training, and there is usually a bit of mystical flavor to Adept advancement. But there is no defined "feel" to getting XP.

[whswhs]

I don't do "leveiing up" or use rules systems that assume it. I take gaining points to be mainly a measure of enhanced competence, which I've experienced in real life, occasionally in a relatively strong form as "Oh, okay, I get it!"

[ravenfish]

In games where "leveling up" both involves sudden jumps in ability and isn't simply a training montage back in town, I tend to roleplay it as a moment of sudden clarity. I have never trained at combat or magic use, but, in those things I have attempted to master, there have occasionally been moments when it "clicked" and suddenly everything made sense, leaving me far better equipped to face the subject afterwards. Admittedly, these moments tended to be triggered by studying rather than by killing a set number of goblins, but the principle is the same.

[Anaraxes]

Originally Posted by ravenfish

Admittedly, these moments tended to be triggered by studying rather than by killing a set number of goblins

But, did you try killing a set number of goblins?

[ravenfish]

Originally Posted by Anaraxes

But, did you try killing a set number of goblins?

I admit that I haven't. I suppose that must be why those moments have been so rare.

[Black Leviathan]

If there was any awareness of character advancement by characters I expect it would be an epiphany moment like the sort of think you realize in the shower or it would be a sense of renewed confidence as you're looking at the bodies on the battlefield or checking under your armor and finding no wounds.

Realistically healthy humans don't experience any kind of euphoria or spirituality from learning, even when they're learning about spirituality or slight of hand.

[LokRobster]

The One (Jet Li movie) portrayed “leveling-up/xp gain” every time the bad guy killed another alternate world version of himself...

Eurphoric Rush style, basically.