8 Reasons Why Video Games Are NOT a Waste of Time

While being a gamer would usually be the subject of a joke in the past, today, playing video games is seen as a perfectly reasonable hobby.

More and more people are starting to appreciate the video game industry, which has certainly matured over the last few years. One of the arguments that often convince people to change their minds about video games is the large number of benefits they provide.

Adventures players experience in the virtual world can very well impact their real-world lives. Crawling through dungeons and talking with non-playable characters can help them develop critical thinking skills and improve cognitive and perceptual skills. Similarly, playing online games with their friends can teach them more about the value of teamwork than some old books.

Video games can serve as a platform to develop leadership qualities or learn about history while having a bit of fun. When used in moderation, they can be excellent learning tools well worth the time investment they require. Nevertheless, if you remain skeptical about the value of video games, here is a list of reasons that may convince you that spending hours playing video games is not a waste of time:

Increase Attention and Focus

According to the research published in the journal Frontiers [3] in Human Neuroscience, conducted by scientists from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in Chengdu, playing video games can affect brain activity. The participants demonstrated an increased ability to focus on relevant information while screening out distractions, referred to by the researchers as “visual selective attention.”

Besides improving attention and focus, this ability can also help develop decision-making skills and regulate emotions. This way, even playing casino games like poker that requires you to stay concentrated, analyze multiple actions simultaneously and think strategically, can be helpful in boosting your cognitive abilities. So, you can consider inviting your friends for regular poker sessions or visit A2Z Casinos [4] to find the best online video poker games.

Improve Social Skills

Video games are primarily multiplayer, meaning that you will have to interact with other players for most of your gaming experience. This kind of interaction can encourage players to communicate with others to coordinate attacks or share information with them. As a result, they will learn to be more sociable and develop better relational skills.

As with any activity, however, you should always make sure to moderate your gaming habits. If you don’t have any friends or family members to play with, you can always play online with total strangers.

Improve Visual Acuity

According to this article at National Geographic [5], researchers at the University of Rochester found that playing action video games can enhance the visual skills of gamers, such as the ability to track several objects simultaneously and paying attention to a series of fast-moving events.

What exactly does this mean? Well, it means that gamers may benefit from visual acuity improvements similar to those obtained after practicing a task such as reading. The study results show that the part of the brain that is active during decision-making is more reactive in gamers than in non-gamers. This likely explains why gamers are faster and better at making decisions.

Help Develop Problem-Solving Skills

From immersive 3D worlds to simple puzzles, playing video games requires players to solve problems at every turn. Although most games are relatively simple, they can still teach players how to plan their next move carefully or how to use different tools at their disposal in the most efficient way possible - these are some of the skills that are best developed by playing video games.

Improve Hand-Eye Coordination

Just like driving a car or playing a musical instrument, playing video games requires hand-eye coordination. Especially when they involve shooting enemies or targets on the screen, video games force players to control their movements precisely enough to hit their targets accurately. This improves their reflexes and agility, which is an excellent skill to develop regardless of whether someone plays video games or not.

Increases Spatial Awareness

Spatial awareness is an essential factor in athletic performance or even success in some jobs requiring manual labor. When you play video [6] games, you will need to navigate different environments with objects placed all over the place. This can significantly improve your spatial awareness abilities and may even help you navigate tricky real-world situations more effectively.

Improve Multitasking Skills

Gamers are often praised for their ability to multitask effortlessly. They can play several video games simultaneously without losing their concentration or becoming distracted by other tasks around them. This is because they have learned to pay attention to several tasks at once, improving their multitasking skills along the way.

Improve Memory Retention and Recall Capabilities

One of the most common arguments against video game addiction is that it can damage memory retention and recall abilities. However, studies have shown that playing action video games on a regular basis can actually improve both short-term and long-term memory retention and recall capabilities.

Studies have already shown that playing video games can improve learning and even protect from dementia in older adults. At the same time, the more recent study [7] also found that people who played video games as kids showed more significant improvements in their working memory than those who did not, suggesting that playing video games can have a long-lasting effect on cognition.

Conclusion

While playing video games is not for everyone, it doesn’t mean that they are a waste of time. In fact, video games can be a great way to develop a number of skills that will help people in their professional and personal lives.

The only problem with video games is that they can be very addictive if you don’t limit your gaming time. It is essential to play games in moderation to avoid getting addicted to them and make sure that you don’t spend too much time playing video games instead of doing other things.