Do you recall the days when your parents would yell at you for sitting in front of your SNES all day long? We know those were the best moments of our life and we can't shake the feeling that playing games aren't going to help us in the real world. Well, mom and dad, we've come to prove you were wrong…Here's why video games may be good for you.
…sort of. Nobody’s claiming with 100% certainty that playing video games 24/7 is going to make you a healthier, smarter person. And you can forget about going pro as you have less of a chance of joining a professional esports game than you do of becoming a pro football player.
But that’s not to say that video games can have long-lasting, overwhelmingly positive effects on your day-to-day. Based on research, the following are the reasons why you should sit down and play video games.
Practice makes perfect, or so they say. So, what happens when you sit in front of a computer and build imaginary worlds for hundreds and hundreds of hours? One study on Minecraft players found that building worlds out of nothing scored higher on creative tasks than their Netflix-binging and racing-game-playing peers. You may check the best Minecraft servers to learn more. Though it remains unclear what Minecraft players can do with their creativity, having that quality can be a stepping stone to fulfilling their creative desires in the future.
How many times has your mom angrily yelled from another room to get you to back away from the TV? “You’ll go blind if you sit too close” is something we heard countless times in our youth. However, research indicates that that’s not entirely true. In fact, if you’re a fan of action video games, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to learn that you’re improving your ability to discern important objects and items from everything else.
Any hardcore gamer has been in the position where they have to make split-second decisions to clutch the win out of fear of being ridiculed by their dead teammates. While the trolling and cursing won’t do much good (other than help you develop a thicker skin), makings decisions on the fly, especially when you’re forced to do so for hours on end, is a lifelong skill. In the real world, you’ll go through the same decision-making process—finding relevant information, evaluating your options, and finally settling on a decision—as you do in games.
Playing video games as a way to escape real-world responsibilities like doing homework and exercising is not okay. However, gaming can be a legitimate way to soothe chronic and acute pain. Research shows that playing games can trigger an analgesic response to help chronic pain patients overcome flareups. The more immersed you are in the game, the better the effect. Who knows—one day, VR systems may become as commonplace in hospitals as overinflated treatment costs.
Stress and video games have a love-hate relationship. You can grow stressed after listening to the same cutscene for the 17-millionth time, but the opposite can be true to an extent. One study found that those who played video games may increase negative emotions but not blood pressure. So, if you’re anxious about committing highway robbery and picking the pockets of strangers in Kingdom Come: Deliverance for gold, then maybe you should take a look at Gammicks’ guide on Kingdom Come: Deliverance cheats to become rich beyond your wildest in-game dreams without the stress.
Yeah, snacks, drugs, and alcohol are cool, but do you know what’s even better? Not having enough time to do any of those things since you’re participating in back-to-back dungeon raids. Or, better yet, trying to beat your personal best score in Tetris by practicing nonstop. Researchers from Plymouth University found that stopping blocks from piling to the top of your screen (and probably yelling “Tetris!” whenever you get an I-shaped Tetromino) can help curb cravings. This is hardly a surprise, seeing as how it takes years and years of practice to be anywhere near the same level as Thor Aackerlund. Who has time to eat carbs when you’re busy playing?
Don’t you hate it when 10-year-old kids scream in their microphones about having done the nasty with your mom? We know we do, but don’t be too hard on them. You can revel in the fact that those kids are developing their social skills at an early age. Though it would be infinitely better if they used those skills to collaborate with teammates instead of bashing on opponents, at least video games give them the chance to disclose their feelings in a safe(ish) environment. As they grow older, they, too, will learn that not every in-game loss is worth going ballistic over.
We’d like to reiterate that we don’t condone playing games for every waking hour of your existence. However, playing certain video games may be good for you and played for extended periods does offer a range of benefits that we can no longer ignore. So, maybe take it easy on your kids when you see them playing first-person shooters (after they’ve done their homework, of course).
