5 Beneficial Skills And Behaviors You Can Learn By Playing Video Games

Contrary to what some parents seem to believe, there are some benefits that derive from playing and enjoying video games. Playing video games can develop skills that one can use throughout life. Here are a few of the positive benefits that may result from video gaming.

1. Increased hand-eye coordination.
By playing certain fast-paced games such as first-person shooters and racing games, one quickly learns how to rapidly translate what one sees with the eye to a hand movement. The video gamer has a vested interest in picking up this skill, because if they do not, the games are over quite quickly.

Hand-eye coordination is useful for such areas as driving a real vehicle, writing, and self-defense. Translating from the eye to the hand is an important life skill that one uses every day.

2. Enhances reflexes.
This benefit is similar to the previous one. Many games require the gamer respond quickly rather than taking the time to think about what one needs to do.

Just as with hand-eye coordination, properly developed reflexes are necessary to respond to the outside world. At the very least, we can say that reflexes help us avoid danger and injury. Better-developed reflexes enhance our ability to play games such as racquetball, tennis, and any team sport such as baseball or football.

3. Problem solving skills.
Many games requires the gamer to figure out not only what to do but how to do it.
Just like in real life, there are often multiple means to achieve some end, and each option requires thinking through the implications of each path.

4. Increased memory.
Many games require remembering where to pick up certain useful tools or where to perform other specific actions. In many cases, one must remember to do a series of actions in the proper order. In Legend of Zelda: The Windwaker, one must remember the location of certain items so that the player knows where to pick them up later. In the classic Mario Bros game, there are specific "booby traps" which kill Mario if the player forgets about them or does not remember how to avoid them.

Memory of course is a life-skill which has become more important than ever before. We must remember website addresses, passwords, phone numbers, and the like.

5. Typing skills.
This applies to some PC-based games, including many online games. In World of Warcraft, one must learn the location of certain characters on the keyboard to perform many of the required actions in the game.

Typing of course is a required skill for any job that requires the use of a computer.
Though many parents are stressed over their children's fascination with video games, there are many positives to video gaming which should not be overlooked.

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