According to the ActionType Academy of the Netherlands, people with the INTJ personality type, also known as “Masterminds”, are overall known for their strategic minds, imaginative nature, and desire to apply their passion for knowledge in reshaping our world. Masterminds are innovative with a strong sense of willpower, value transparency and rationality in making decisions, and overall enjoy flexing their mindset in an intellectual challenge.

The ActionTypes Approach examines correlations between personality and performance, a methodology which examines the unique way an individual moves their body. Through observing an individual's coordination, motor skills, and the body’s natural way of movement, the ActionTypes Approach reveals how the individual perceives and thinks about the world. One example of this is through discovering an individual’s Deep Motivational Drivers, or motivators that influence movement. Some external motivators include “organization”, “harmony”, “win”, “experience” and “brainstorming”, while internal motivators include “understand”, “values”, “best of me”, “stability”, and “vision”.

By understanding the distinctive way that one’s brain focuses on a subject, the ActionType method can help an individual improve their physical performance. The ActionType Academy describes those with a Masterminds personality focus by “weighing the meaning (N) of [their] observations rationally (T) and orders it (J) internally (I)” . Due to their rational and orderly focus, Masterminds have dominant fine motor skills, which reflect their detail-oriented mindset. Masterminds move with calculated purpose, and their movements are internally motivated from a desire to understand more about the world.

In a survey study, the Analyst group, a personality group subtype which includes Masterminds (referenced as Architects in the study), responded to be the most avid gamers compared to other personality groupings, as 61.76% of Analyst respondents stated that they spent more than 3 hours per week playing computer games. However, Masterminds were the least likely personality type of the Analyst group to enjoy multiplayer games like first-person shooters or racing games, as 75% of them voted to prefer single-player games over multiplayer ones. Masterminds responded that they generally enjoy games with more significant world building elements, such as strategy games, sandbox open-world games, or role-playing games (RPGs). These types of games bring out the Mastermind’s desire to build and create new worlds. When faced with a choice of playing as a mage, archers, or warrior class in an RPG, half of Mastermind respondents sided most with mages, having the highest preference for magic-based classes out of all the Analyst respondents.

Despite their general preference for single-player games, there is still room for Masterminds to find their home in the realm of esports. In combat games, Analysts are the personality group most likely to perform in an offensive rather than a defensive or supportive role, according to 16 Personalities’ survey. In the esports arena, players with a Masterminds personality type are likely to be heavy-hitters in roles which require offensive tactics or complicated controls that other players might avoid. They are the prime candidates for a team strategist, as they are not afraid to suggest unorthodox plans of action that allow the team to reign victorious. Their attention for detail can help them see how individuals within an esports team can come together for strategic maneuvers.

It’s equally important that the Mastermind’s teammates are open to hearing the Mastermind’s creative strategies, whether as a player or organizer in the esports field. Masterminds typically do not have the patience for those who firmly stick to the status quo. But at the end of the day, Masterminds are willing to hear out criticism as much as they are likely to give it, as they value finding the most practical ideas possible. The Mastermind’s introverted attitude might make socializing in any industry somewhat tricky. Still, given that Masterminds generally tend to have a penchant for gaming, they’re much more likely to find other like-minded individuals with common interests in esports.

Exploring the movement of Masterminds through the ActionTypes method opens a window into why this personality type has a strong knack for gaming. Their increased fine motor skills and dexterity give them an advantage in esports games which require quick mouse movements and keyboard typing, or controlling a joystick. Tennis coach Jerôme Inen explains in a blog post how focus can especially vary from introverts to extroverts. While extrovert athletes tend to focus on the points of contact between their body and other elements in their game of choice, introverts excel in concentrating when they are focusing on a broader visual field. This talent for focusing on the bigger picture, in addition to having an external motivation for organization, makes Masterminds the prime candidate for coordinating group movements within an multiplayer esports game.

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