Neuroaesthetics Session Explains Why Bad Endings Move Players
The session frames sad endings and quiet moments not as flaws but as deliberate design tools with measurable aesthetic value, giving developers a research-based case for emotional risk-taking.
Reporting from 1 source: GameBusiness.jp.
At CEDEC2026, Kansai University psychology professor Tomohiro Ishidu presented research on why negative emotions like sadness and fear can inspire audiences. His session, held at Pacifico Yokohama North, examined how neuroaesthetics, a field using brain science and MRI to study art appreciation, explains the value of tragedy, depression endings, and even silence in entertainment design.
Tomohiro Ishidu, a psychology professor at Kansai University, brought neuroaesthetics to the CEDEC2026 stage to answer a practical design question: why do players seek out stories that make them sad?
His session defined the field as roughly 20 years old, using psychological experiments, MRI, and electroencephalographs to study how the mind responds to art. The research rests on three pillars: physical features, brain-body response features, and psychological features, the last covering effects that appear after leaving the theater.
On negative emotions, Ishidu offered three key concepts: mixed emotions, psychical distance, and fictional emotions. He cited the Romeo and Juliet balcony scene, where the phrase sweet sorrow blends opposing feelings, as a model for how tragedy becomes aesthetic rather than merely painful.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- GameBusiness.jp なぜ人は「バッドエンド」のゲームに惹かれるのか？ 神経美学が紐解く、ネガティブな感情が感動に変わる理由【CEDEC2026】