One of the major epitomes of the conflict metaphor is the combat. There are countless arguments against violence and depiction of fights and wars in video games, and indeed, because there is so much more to video games other than battles, fights, and violence, those arguments are often just empty words. It would be like condemning cinema because there are war movies. The reality about combat in video games (and all kind of games really) is that fighting is part of our nature. And while our society and culture have made it possible for us to avoid fights in our entire real lives, many people will always be fascinated by some of the characteristic elements of combat. Of course, many others won't. Not all games need to include combat, fights or violence at all, and there are millions of players not interested in playing games that involve any kind of violence.
So, why is combat still so popular?
First of all, combat means competition, one of the most powerful drivers in human nature...