Every gamer knows that they develop many skills from indulging in their favorite games. Whether they’re occasional players, spend hours at their console of science indulging in gameplay, or are making a career as professional esports players, gamers are acutely aware of the many benefits they can get from gaming.
But what many people don’t know is that multiple scientific studies have been conducted on the benefits of gaming and the skills you can gain from spending time each day or week playing your favorite game.
So what exactly are they?
Problem-solving skills are massively beneficial in all aspects of life. Not everyone can solve complex challenges and problems with ease, and gamers are more likely to be able to do this than nongamers. For instance, in multiplayer games like Overwatch or Fortnite, players need to work with others to complete the game, enhancing their problem-solving and teamwork skills.
The University of South Carolina found that video games simulate how players process the world. Those who engage in problem-solving in the virtual world are more likely to rely on applying these skills to real-life scenarios. This is due to the rules being open-ended in video games, meaning there is too much trial and error to get the right result, as players need to think carefully and get creative. Doing this repeatedly means that when they approach issues in real life, they will be able to find a solution more easily, and they are already used to tackling problems to proceed through games.
Contrary to popular belief, gaming can actually enhance social skills. Gamers who play multiplayer games and become part of gaming communities often learn societal norms and how to engage with others. This sense of community, where players can express themselves more freely and learn valuable social skills in a comfortable environment, fosters a strong sense of belonging and camaraderie.
Video games are not the only type of games people can play, and there are many different ways someone can enjoy gameplay outside of the video game realm. From playing card games, for example, to board games like Scrabble or Dungeons and Dragon or even online games like wordle in apps, there are various types of gameplay and local games; even video games provide educational opportunities. For instance, in Minecraft, players need to calculate how much energy the player has left before recharging, which involves math and strategy. This shows that gaming can be a fun and effective way to learn and practice skills like math, spelling, comprehension, and grammar.
Again, another issue that might, on the face of it, seem contradictory; however, gaming can have multiple health and fitness benefits. While this is largely aimed at those players who are more active in their games, there is still a physical component of gameplay involved in some games. This can be VR games where the players use a VR headset to help them play the game. It can be via a game like Pokemon Go! Where players need to move around areas to find different Pokemon. Plus, there are many pro esports gamers who are reinforcing the need to be fit and healthy for gaming, which is infiltrating through the ranks to influence players of all levels and abilities.
Video games are beneficial in helping you improve your physical awareness, especially if you play 3D games like ‘Assassin’s Creed’ or ‘Call of Duty.’ According to recent studies, those playing 2D games see an improvement in mental rotation, while 3D players have a more significant role in spatial awareness. These games require players to navigate complex environments and make quick decisions, which can improve their spatial awareness and mental rotation skills.
But how does this help in real life? Spatial awareness is required for tasks like parallel parking or organizing a room, for example, and ensuring everything fits in correctly. It is also essential for many careers, especially those in STEM. If you play video games, you are already building skills you might need for a job in STEM or at least be great at parallel parking!
One study found that action video games can improve a person’s ability to create perceptual templates. This means gamers are often more mentally agile, able to assess what is and isn’t essential in different scenarios, and create perceptual templates in real life. The quick thinking and mental agility required in gaming can make gamers feel sharp and alert in their daily lives.
Applying this form of gameplay to real life means gamers could be more skilled at handling complex scenarios such as disaster sites or emergency rooms due to their ability to see the clear picture, break down the scene into priorities, and focus the necessary energies.
On top of this, gaming can also improve your ability to distinguish patterns, something that won’t come as a shock to regular gamers, and patterns of grey. What it means is that gamers have improved contract sensitivity, meaning it’s easier to find something you might have dropped in the grass, for example, or find faces in a crowd.
Gray matter in your brain is essential, and a 2015 study found that regularly playing video games can increase the amount of grey matter in the brain. Grey matter is responsible for muscle control and sensory perception. Researchers used MRIs to examine the brains of professional gamers and compare them to nongamers. The results showed that gameplay could increase grey matter volume and connectivity, which is essential in certain regions of the brain.
Playing any kind of game, be it video games or board games, requires you to remember a certain amount of information to help you play the game. The further into a game you get, the more you need to remember, meaning you need to hold a significant amount of information and have this to hand while playing and completing tasks. So, while studies are yet inconclusive as to whether these are permanent changes or short-term resulting in a decline once you stop playing games, there is proof that playing games boosts your memory, at least in the short term.
When memory capacity is increased, learning and recall become more manageable, and one can explore more of one’s capabilities every day.
When you’re gaming, you need to play close attention to what is happening both on the screen or board in front of you, and in your hands. And this means you need to be able to use the control pad without taking your eyes off the screen or gameplay in front of you.
In many games, especially those like Tomb Raider or Resident Evil, you need to pay attention to all details and match the buttons with QTEs (quick time events) as you have limited amounts of time, and diverting your attention can lead to you missing your window to engage. This isn’t just applicable to the mentioned games. This is true of many games, and you need to react instantly or preempt changes in the gameplay to proceed successfully. This requires exceptional hand-eye coordination. In real-life scenarios, hand-eye coordination is vital for a wide range of job roles such as a medical career, i.e., surgeon, for example, or STEM, and many industries, especially in roles you need to be hands-on.
There are so many benefits from gameplay that can be transferred to real life. These na have huge implications for boosting career prospects or simply being better at some skills than others or non-gamers.
