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Are Video Games More Than What They Seem?

A young person today in a country with a strong gaming culture will

have on average spent 10,000 hours playing video games by the time they
turn 21 (Reality is Broken, pg 6). This number might not seem significant at
first, but when compared to a few other important statistics, its real
importance starts to emerge. The time people will have spent studying at
school from the fifth grade to high school graduation amounts to 10,080
hours. This is the exact time spent in school given that they have perfect
attendance (Reality is Broken, pg 6). It is important to understand that
people are spending almost the same time playing games as they are
studying. But do video games have value greater than what we think? If we
look into the history of games, the first game was played in the kingdom of
Lydia during the time of famine. Because there was so much hunger and
suffering, it was decided that to prolong the supplies that they had, they
would eat one day and play the next and so on. The people would be so
immersed in the game that they would forget about food. This went on for 18
years. The kingdom managed to survive and make their world a better place
with help from games. Similar to the situation in Lydia, we are faced with
many global issues. Conventional methods have not resulted in the success
that we would have hoped for. It is imperative that we find solutions and that

can only be achieved if we begin thinking differently. This provides a great

need for more research into video games as a medium that leads to the
solutions of the problems that we face.
Now we come back to the important number of 10000. In his book
Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell talks about how a person can achieve
perfection in an anything. He says that if we spend 10000 hours learning
something while being focused on it, we can become masters of that
particular skill. In North America alone, there are 195 million gamers who
have spent that amount of time. We can argue that there are 195 million
people who are masters at the art of gaming (Reality is Broken, pg 7). But
are these people getting better at things other than leveling up? Are they
learning skills that can transfer over to the real world? I believe that video
games can make people under the age of 21 smarter and allow them to
achieve skills, depending on the genre, which can help make the world
better.
In the past, most of the research done on games is about their
negative effects like addiction and violence. It is important to consider both
sides of the argument and maintain a balance. Considering the positive
impacts of games is becoming even more important because of the dramatic
change that has taken place with the nature of games becoming more
diverse, complex, realistic and social. The aim of this research is to provide
strong evidence to support the claim that video games are more than what

they seem. To achieve this goal, it is important to consider the research that
has previously been done in the subject. In addition to past research, the
paper will also use direct accounts from gamers.
To prove the claim that video games are important, there are a few
questions that need to be answered. The most important one is whether
video games make people better at anything. Do they help us improve skills
and abilities and can this progress be measured? Another important question
is whether video games are a better alternative to other mediums of learning
such as school. It also important to consider if video games provide the
satisfaction that people desire when they want to have fun and enjoy
themselves. To completely support the claim that video games can make the
world a better place, we need to ask ourselves whether video games have
purpose greater than just that of entertainment. If we can answer these
questions, we can conclude that the claim must be true. It is also important
to consider arguments against video games, for example the negative
effects that they have.
The first thing we consider is the effects of video games on people
being able to learn skills that can help them in their every day life. To do this
it is important to make the distinction between video games and other kinds
of media. The main difference is that video games are interactive. They allow
the users to feel engaged by responding to the user in different ways. This
quality of video games is very important in developing skills in people.

According to research done by Isabela Granic, people who play video games
and specifically in the shooter genre have better cognitive skills. In one case
study, the cognitive skills like attention allocation and mental rotation
abilities improved when a few people were given a shooter game and were
compared to other people after two hours of gameplay. Another very
important cognitive skill is the visual-spatial ability. This refers to the ability
to understand and remember the relationship of different objects in space.
An example of this ability in action is using a map (pg. 4). Granic did a case
study that suggests that the improvements in the spatial ability leading from
commercially available shooter video games is comparable to learning in
formal courses like college and high school. Another important thing that
video games do is breed creativity in people and specially children. A study
done by Granic on 500 12 year olds who play video games show better
creative skills like drawing and telling stories. It also showed that video
games are the only source of improving creativity that does not rely on
gender or race (6).
Perhaps the biggest difference between the games today and their
predecessors is their social nature. Contrary to popular belief, video gamers
are not isolated from society. They are not nerds, as the stereotype would
suggest. In fact they have a much wider circle of people around them. An
example of this is the massive online multiplayer game World of Warcraft.
In this game, millions of people are playing simultaneously and mostly at a

cooperative level. Games like these provide the users with opportunities to
recognize people and decide on the kind of relationship they want almost
instantly. They need to decide who to trust and how to lead a group. Granic
says that because the immersive social contexts these games provide, these
people are rapidly learning social skills and prosocial behavior (6). When
asked what is the most important aspect of gaming, Sara Dyer said, Video
games provide a forum to me where I can express myself. A place where I
can meet like minded people and what better excuse to hangout with
friends.
Probably the most important skill that video games cultivate in people
is problem solving and reasoning. This skill is very important for future
success in the labor market. According to Agne Suziedelyte video games
represent a problem-solving task. In order to win in a video game, gamers
have to devise a plan, separate the useful information and discard the
unnecessary and remember their previous actions. Agne found that an
increase in gaming by just an hour a day resulted in a 9.3% increase in
mathematical reasoning scores (3).
While it is important to consider the positive skills that video games
help develop, it is also important to consider and address the negative
effects that video games are thought to have. The most recurring negative
effect that is heard is the effect and increase in violence and aggressive
behavior resulting from violent games. In his review of the negative effects

of video games, Christopher Ferguson found that there was only a 2%

overlap between aggressive behavior and violent video game playing. He
also mentions how publication bias is a critical reason for people thinking
that violent video games are a reason for violent behavior (2). If this bias is
corrected, there is no evidence that suggests any kind of relation between
the two. In another study done by Tobias Greitemeyer, he suggests that a
possible way to eliminate the violent effects is to play the game in a
cooperative setting, which allows the building of trust. This kind of setting
promotes a cooperative behavior rather than an aggressive one even though
the game is violent in nature (2).
Another reason why people are so against video games is that they
believe that video games encourage an unhealthy lifestyle. Research done
on this matter proves that this is not the case and on the contrary leads to
better health. Massively multiplayer online role-playing games have shown to
improve cognitive function among elderly players and this has shown to
reduce chances of age related dementia. First person shooter games have
shown to improve vision to such an extent that it can cure cataracts
(Dreifus). Playing video games can also allow people to control their dreams.
This allows them to stop a nightmare, which is helpful when dealing with
post-traumatic stress disorder. This is being used as a treatment for soldiers
with PTSD. Video games can also increase physical activity among children,
which reduces the risk of heart problems and diabetes through technology

like the Nintendo Wii. One of the most important health related aspects that
video games improve is mental health. Video games are a great distraction
from pain. Research conducted by Brian Primack suggests that video games
are used mainly as a tool for therapy. It allows for better recovery by
providing a distraction to the pain and is a solution for the boredom that
comes with immobility.
In addition to the skills and abilities that gaming develops, it is also
important to look at the subjective experience of gaming. Gaming can bring
out emotions like relief, excitement, surprise and wonder. People can change
how they feel by just playing a video game. It does not matter what a person
is feeling or if someone is having a bad day, playing a video game can
change all of that. Games have also shown to be more effective than drugs
in treating mild depression and anxiety.
As discussed before, video games are different and effective because
they provide an interactive interface to people. It allows them to display
different kinds of emotions by playing different types of games. They can
alter things to the way they want. They can create their own world. On the
other hand, they are limited by what happens in a movie or a book. This
freedom of expression is what makes video games a better source of
entertainment. But video games are not limited to the entertainment aspect,
but also provide a source of education like problem solving skills. Video
games are also used as a tool to help younger children learn.

Video games are one of the best sources of genuine fun. It also helps
bring families and friends much closer. Research shows that families who
play video games with their kids have a better relationship (Joe Hadfield).
Video games provide an excuse to meet with friends and be more social.
They also allow people to come out of their shells and find like-minded
people to hang around. I can speak from personal experience that video
games are a very important part of my life. When I play video games I feel
like I have no more worries. For that one hour I can forget about everything
else and just focus on having fun. When asked about his reason for playing
video games, Josh Smith, a student at Virginia Tech said, I feel like they
empower me to break out of reality and enter a world where I can achieve
whatever I want and at the same time not worry about anything else. And
more than anything, I just want to have fun.
Now we move on to the most important part question that links
everything that we know about video games with how they can make the
world a better place. I believe that people are the best version of themselves
when they play video games. They tend to be more collaborative and
motivated. Even when they face failure, they dont give up. They press
restart and try again. This kind of behavior is not often seen in real life.
People dont think they can be as good in real life as they are inside the
game world. When faced with obstacles in real life people become
overwhelmed and in some cases they lead to depression as opposed to the

positive attitude that people maintain when playing a video game. Jane
Mcgonical explains this in her book Reality is Broken that if you think about
it, compared to video games, the reality is broken. It is never the way we
want it to be. There is no undo button that can reverse a mistake (12).
According to Jane, the most important way to rectify this problem is to
use everything we know about game design to fix reality. She proposes that
we start living our lives like gamers and lead our businesses and
communities like game designers. She also points out that we should think
about problem solving like a video game theorist would. The most important
of this is to approach problem solving in a different way (15).
Now in North America, we have 195 million master of gaming. These
people must be attaining some skills in their process of mastering gaming.
One of these skills, according to Jane, is urgent optimism. Gamers have the
tendency to act on obstacles as soon as they come across them. The thing
that makes them unique is the hope that they have. They have of success.
They believe that anything is possible. One of the other things that make
gamers so valuable is their ability to work in teams. In an article by Jane,
Why I love Bees, she explains that to effectively solve a problem, people
must work together. She calls this process collective thinking (1). This is
process that has developed a lot in the last few years due to the increase in
the use of Internet and the increase of multiplayer online gaming. So there

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are 195 million potential problem solvers who with collective thinking can be
even more effective.
Games based on this premise have been developed. An example is a
game that sets a fictional world with an oil shortage. People try to solve the
problem and post about it. In another game, people are tasked with coming
up with solutions for energy, food and other important things. Similar games
are being used in less developed countries to educate children about things
like the energy crisis. This new genre of serious games is the future of
problem solving tools that can lead to a better future.
It is important to start thinking about the growing number of gamers all
over the world. We need to think about what kind of games need to be made
and how people can play them collectively. We need to make sure that these
games impact our lives and society in way that is helpful in moving towards
a better world. But as we move towards making alternate realities in these
games, we need to decide what raises our life quality and what serves as yet
another distraction. It is important that research continues in this field of
study because we need to change the way we approach problem solving. We
need to try different perspectives on solving global issues. The research that
has already been done is just the tipping point. With further research into
how video games impact our lives, it will lead to more result-oriented
gaming. All the different skills that we attain on our way to becoming master
gamers will help us making the world a better place. They will help us

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making a better future by helping us solve all the problems that we face. We
just need to change the way we think. It is important to remember that we
can play any game and we can create any future that we can imagine.

Works Cited

Driefus, Claudia. How Video Games Could Improve Our Vision. New York
Times. 2012. Web. 1st May 2015.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/28/science/how-video-games-couldimprove-our-vision.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0>
Ferguson, Christopher. The Good, The Bad and the Ugly: A Meta-analytic
Review of Positive. 2010. Print.
Granic, Isabela, Adam Lobel, Rutger Engels. The Benefits of Playing Video
Games. 2 Dec. 2013. Print.

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Greitemeyer, Tobias, Eva Traut, Silvia Osswald. How to ameliorate negative

effects of video games on cooperation: Play it cooperatively in a team.
Computers in Human Behavior. 5 April 2012. Print.
Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers: The Story of Success 1st ed. New York: Little,
Brown and Company, 2008. Print
Hadfield, Joe. Video Games Are Good - If Parents Play Along. Brigham Young
University. 2011. Web. 1st May 2015. <http://news.byu.edu/archive11jan-girlvideogames.aspx>
Mcgonical, Jane. Why I Love Bees: A study in collective intelligence gaming.
2008. Print.
Mcgonical, Jane. Reality is Broken. The Penguin Press. 2011. Print.
Primack, Brian, et al. Role of Video Games in Improving Health Related
Outcomes. Am J Prev Med. 2012. Print.
Suziedelyte, Agne. Can Video Games Make You Smarter? Economic Inquiry.
23 Jan. 2015. Print.
Dyer, Sara. Personal interview. 28th Apr. 2015.
Smith, Josh. Personal interview. 28th Apr. 2015.