As much as we may love gaming, a lot of us struggle with the notion that we could be doing better things with our time, and that gaming is “empty calories” in terms of hobby choices. However, aside from the fact that hobbies should be chosen based on where your passions are, the truth is that gaming can be a lot more beneficial than you might realize. Here, we’re going to explore some of the lesser-cited ways that gaming can actually add to your life.
Table of Contents
The Cognitive Benefits
The cognitive stimulation offered by gaming is not just about keeping you busy. It often genuinely works out your brain, asking you track information, make decisions, and adapt to changing conditions. Whether it’s a puzzle game that encourages pattern recognition or a fast-paced shooting game that enhances your reaction time and focus, games demand more participation than most forms of popular entertainment, which are a lot more passive in nature. As such, playing video games for a couple of hours a day can genuinely have much more cognitive benefit for you than watching TV, yet rarely do we ever hear of the same stigma being applied to habitual TV watchers as those that are applied to people who spend their time gaming.
Growing Your Problem-Solving Skills
Although the nature of gaming can vary greatly between genres, many of them involve the player, a goal, and obstacles ot that goal, which often require some degree of problem-solving. Of course, this isn’t just a benefit that’s limited to video games. Classic board games such as backgammon, which are also being made more widely available thanks to digital platforms, can help you flex your mental muscles through the blend of probability, risk assessment, and adapting to evolving situations. Whether it’s the surprising depth of classic board games or the multi-layered rules of modern video games, the experimentation and iteration on ideas that these gams demand can help players improve their problem-solving abilities. This ability to break down complex situations and make informed decisions under pressure can easily carry through to real life, as well.
Don’t Underestimate Their Stress Relieving Properties
Hobbies don’t always have to have purely practical benefits. Sometimes, the simple mood-altering effect they can have on your mental health makes them well worth the time. Whether it’s through immersive worlds offering you a little space from your daily pressures or the sense of accomplishment that can come with mastering difficult mechanics, the calming and enriching quality of video games is not to be underestimated. There have been whole genres of games made to this purpose, such as those often called “cozy games,” which are all about relaxation and low-stakes decision making, while action games can allow players to release their tension in a safe, playful way.
Building New Social Connections
Socializing is getting increasingly difficult in a world dominated by screens. Outside of school and work, many people find it hard to connect with others, but video games have traditionally served as an easy means to build bonds, whether it’s sharing your tastes with friends near you or finding your place in online communities. From discussing your favorite games to joining forces in co-op games, or even learning important lessons on healthy competition, video gaming can definitely help you round out your social experiences even easier than most other hobbies. Forums and streaming platforms are making it increasingly easy for people to find their “tribe” where friendships can form naturally over joint interests.
The Real Educational Benefits Of Gaming
A lot of games can not only expand your creativity and appreciation of the arts, but also your knowledge of a wide range of different things. There are plenty of history-based games and historic simulations that allow players to explore their curiosity about different times and settings, learning more about the events, cultures, and peoples of the places where games are set. Other games, such as grand strategy games, can help players learn more about economics, trade, and resources. These games alone do not always (or even often) constitute a full education on the matters they explore, but they can easily serve as a stepping stone that curious players can use to explore the concepts they introduce in full.
Developing Your Own Creativity
A lot of gamers find their imaginations and creative minds captured by the level of immersion offered by video game worlds, their narratives, and characters. Others find themselves more engrossed in the mechanics that drive the gameplay experience from moment to moment. In either game, video games have sparked the imaginations of countless creatives, many of whom are working in gaming or in other creative industries to this day. With modern tutorials making it a lot easier to start learning how to develop games, the barrier to entry has never been lower. If you feel inspired by the games that you play, you can easily turn them into fuel for your own creative ventures, whether that’s inside the world of video gaming or beyond it.
Is It Important That Gaming Is Beneficial?
While there are several benefits to gaming that you can easily cite to justify your hobby, it’s perhaps worth looking a little closer at the concept to begin with. In reality, when it comes to other hobbies, rarely do we spend a lot of time looking for reasons to justify them. Even when they do have benefits, those are rarely promoted as the reason to get into them. We engage in hobbies because they offer joy and color to our lives, not because they help us tick boxes. The benefits listed above are all certainly good reasons to enjoy gaming and spread the love of it, but don’t let them become your reason to game. Game because it’s what you love.
Stop worrying and learn to love your video games. It is true that, like all things, it should be done with moderation, but there’s nothing wrong with having the occasional gaming binge session, or fitting an hour or two of it into your life a day.