Satoru Iwata, the now deceased President of Nintendo and self-professed gamer, changed the way video games were played, focusing so much attention on the hardware that his efforts led to, among other products, the infamous Wii, selling over 100 million units. He was a gamer who believed video games are "fun fun for everyone!", as well as a benevolent company President punctuated by two occasions in which he took a 50% decrease in salary during company slumps as a result of competition from other companies (Sony and Microsoft) and the smart phone industry respectively. He passed away at 55 years of age as a result of cancer.
But are video games just a fringe activity, or are there benefits to sitting in front of a screen with palm-sweat hands and grinding teeth maneuvering some kind of avatar or race car through a series of challenges? Indeed there are. However, it must be qualified that while there are some revealing studies out there, the application of scientific and academic study to the phenomenon of video games remains rather new, and thus you'll notice some of the claims to be preceded by 'might' and 'may' and other conditional terms.
1. Mario Bros considered steroids for the brain: A focus group with a median age of 25 was assigned to play Super Mario Bros 64 for 30 minutes a day for 2 months straight; a separate control group played no video games at all. Both groups received an MRI and the difference was striking: the video game group showed a high level of grey matter around the hypo campus, the area of the brain responsible for memory, strategic thinking, spacial navigation, and fine motor skills. The conclusion was that video games can have a marked effect on brain function, and may even be therapeutic for those with various mental disorders, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.
2. May slow the aging process: Playing brain-games, like Nintendo's Brain Age can lead to increased brain function and even memory, especially for those over the age of 50. This can significantly slow down the aging process, especially in areas of memory and overall brain activity.
3. Might ease cravings: Being engrossed in a video game puts you in flow: time stops, and you're fully engaged in something that takes over your mind and body. This is the same phenomenon artists feel when they're in creative flow, in which they can go an entire day without eating. Hence, video games, by virtue of putting you in flow, can ease cravings for your vice of choice.
4. Decrease in pain and anxiety: Studies of sufferers of chronic pain and anxiety revealed a decrease of pain and suffering while engrossed in virtual reality games. Again, this can be related to being in a state of flow in which even pain is quelled. A study in Medical News Today shows that virtual reality games could be an effective way of treating chronic pain and anxiety.
5. Lead to quicker decision-making: In Malcolm Gladwell's famous title, Blink, life often requires of us not long overwrought decisions, but quick ones; and it's our ability to make them, and make them well, that leads to success. Using this as a kind of truism, video games are known to enhance this 'Blink' ability, in one study revealing a 25% increase in quick decision-making performance.
As we mourn the loss of Satoru Iwata, a brilliant business man, visionary, and gamer, we can simultaneously commend him for contributing to our understanding of video games and their ability to enhance and benefit our daily lives in a myriad of unassuming ways.
No comments:
Post a Comment