Did you know that playing video games can actually improve your brain power? It’s true! All those naysayers who believe that gaming is bad for us have been proven wrong. There are lots of studies carried out on the effects of video games onto our mental ability, and it looks like the results are far better than what most people imagined they would be. Here are some surprising discoveries.
They’re Great For Hand-Eye Coordination
When people start to play video games for the very first time, they can often struggle with controlling their characters. That’s because using a controller can be quite tricky if you have never done so before. It engages our thumbs in a completely new way, and you need to be able to hit the buttons and move the joysticks without looking at it. Plus, you need to be able to match your movements with what’s going on on the screen in front of you. This is great practice for hand-eye coordination, and many people find that their coordination gradually improves the more games they play!
They Improve Our Thinking Abilities
Whether you play Tomb Raider on the PlayStation or poker in a casino online, you will find that you have numerous problems to solve and strategies to think about. And all this thinking gets the clogs in your brain turning and whirring. The more you use your brain in these kinds of puzzle and strategy situations, you will find that thinking in this way starts to get easier. Eventually, you will become a super quick problem solver!
They Help Us Be Creative
There are also plenty of games that give you the chance to improve your creativity. Take word games, for instance. If you start to regularly play word games, you will find that your range of vocabulary greatly expands. Plus, there are lots of games that can help you get your creative and artistic juices flowing, such as The Sims. When you play The Sims, you can build and design houses, which is a handy way to learn how colors and patterns go together.
They Teach Us Teamwork
Do you play games like Call of Duty? If so, you will probably use the online feature that gives you the chance to team up with other players around the world and join their campaigns. It’s not just Call of Duty that uses this function; quite a few shoot ‘em ups do too now. You will find that when you play these games with others, you will play it a lot differently to how you play it alone. That’s because you have to use all your teamwork skills! Studies show that gamers who regularly play with others in this way can give their teamwork skills a big boost, which will pay off in other areas of life.
So, as you can see, there are plenty of advantages of playing video games. Why not switch on your console right now and work on your mental abilities and brain power?!
