Games as experiences

Maybe the word "simulation" can be helpful to make clear what I mean. A landscape painter does not design the experience of the viewer looking at a canvas with paint on it. Instead, he does his best to make the viewer feel like they are physically in that forest, to give them an sense of the (imagined or real) emotions and impressions of being in that location, in that situation, near the person depicted, in their life and/or times, etc.

So when we design a game, I feel we should focus on the situation we are trying to create in the mind of the player, the story, the objects, the environment, the characters. And not on the interaction itself, on the game itself and whether or not they're having fun, or they can save the game when they want to, or even how the camera moves or the avatar is controlled. All those things are means to an end, the design of which should serve that end, exclusively. Playing the game is not the experience we should be focussing on, being present in the simulation is, being part of the story is.