11 Positive Things that Come from Playing Video Games

Though many people have a different perception of gaming, there are a lot of positive side effects. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Gaming is the hobby of choice for billions of people worldwide. There’s a game for every kind of game. If you like old-school, classic games, there are options like Super Mario Bros or Donkey Kong; if you like action and adventure, you could take on titles like Ark or Tomb Raider. You could check out Counter Strike or Halo if war games are your thing. You can even play mobile slots or roulette if you like casino games, zombie apocalypse games, puzzlers, or arcade titles. Not only is it good fun to spend a little time playing your favorite games, but there are a lot of positive side effects that can ripple outwards into your life if you play games regularly. Let’s check out 11 positive side effects of gaming.

Higher Levels of Physical Activity

Higher levels of activity apply to a very specific subset of games, like Wii Sport or other VR games that require you to move around a space. If you play games that require physical movement, you’re automatically getting more exercise than you would get if you’re sitting still and sedentary for long periods of time.

Better Teamwork Capabilities

If you play games that require you to work in pairs or teams, you’ll be learning good teamwork strategies and sharpening your teamwork skills without even realizing it. Most jobs require at least a little bit of teamwork, whether it’s in a restaurant setting or in a corporate office. These skills don't come naturally to everyone, so improving them is the cherry on top of your gaming hobby.

Improved Accuracy and Task Completion

The amount of very speedy typing and mouse work that gamers do can’t help but sharpen up their speed and accuracy. If you want to survive an intense battle situation, you have to be as quick as possible with the keys and the clicks. This attention to detail spills over into other aspects of your life: chopping vegetables, focusing on completing tasks at work, etc.

Improved Eyesight

This might sound counter-intuitive, but if you play under the right conditions, you can actually improve your eyesight rather than damage it. If you play a lot of first-person shooter games, there’s usually action going on in the periphery that you have to pay attention to. This trains your eyes to take in a lot more information than usual, and this can help a lot when you’re on the road or playing sports.

Improved Social Skills

Any game that involves you interacting with other human players (AI doesn’t count) is a form of socializing that can help to build social skills that might be lacking in your life. Gaming can teach you how to start conversations, how to interact with different people, and how to handle differences of opinion.

Better Decision Making

Life and death decisions happen all the time when you’re gaming. You might only have a few seconds to figure out how to fit in a Tetris piece, or you might need to save the life of one of your soldiers. Whatever it is, learning to assess a situation and make a decision quickly can save you valuable time in games and in real life.

Improved Multi-Tasking

If you’re trying to fight a battle, monitor your health levels, and keep your royal charges safe at the same time, there’s no doubt that your multitasking skills will be sharp as a tack in no time.

Better Hand-Eye Coordination

In the same way that your accuracy and task completion are vastly improved by clicking and tying your way through various games, your hand-eye coordination is improved as well. Whether you type a lot for work or paint for a living, there’s never a downside to better hand-eye coordination.

Improved Problem-Solving Skills

You have to get across a wide ravine with a whole army, make it past demon guards, and reach the king in time to save him from his enemies. But there’s no bridge, and you have no weapons or horses: what is your solution? Figuring this stuff out in a game world can increase your logic and decision-making skills in real life too.

Improved Cognition

Your visuospatial ability - remembering certain objects or directions - helps you navigate basic tasks in everyday life. Driving, riding, or walking around in games and encountering very average, basic everyday things can help improve your cognition in your daily life as well.

Increased Perseverance

Sometimes, it’s a long road to get to where you’re going in your favorite game. Keeping on no matter what the game throws at you will help you get to the prize or complete the final quest. Perseverance is key to getting what you want in games and in life.

Wrap Up

These are some of the benefits that you’ll get from playing games on a regular basis. Knowing all this, everyone should play games!