It is no secret that despite video game popularity, you can still find plenty of people who are against gaming. Most negativity stems from the claims that video games encourage video.
Sure, some video games might have violent gameplay, but there are plenty of studies to suggest that the reality is quite different. If anything, video games (in moderation) have a positive effect on someone who might have anger issues.
In other words, video games let people channel their anger and express themselves in a virtual reality rather than in the real world.
In addition, video games offer much more. There are certain life lessons from video games that you can learn and apply in the real world.
Improved Communication Skills
Social anxiety is a serious problem for many people. They are afraid of interacting with others in real life due to anxiety and lack of experience.
In-person interactions can be quite scary, but it is a bit different when you are socializing with others remotely.
Online video games offer you a plethora of opportunities to interact with people without meeting them. You can treat the whole experience as your training to become less anxious when talking to others.
MMORPGs like Guild Wars 2 or World of Warcraft can be played without voice chat, but it is common for player groups to join Discord or another communication platform and use voice chat, particularly when playing in a competitive game mode or trying to clear difficult content that requires a lot of in-game communication.
A similar thing can be said about first-person shooters, MOBAs, and other online games. So long as a video game encourages players to communicate while playing, you can expect to find opportunities to socialize with other players. And who knows, you might end up making great friends thanks to the time spent playing video games.
Learning to Work as a Team
Teamwork is another example of a skill not all people possess. Thankfully, online video games are great at presenting scenarios that you need to work out with other players if you want to overcome your opponents in other players or in-game AI environments.
Of course, there are plenty of examples of when trying your best in a video game backfires due to the team that you were matched with. Some games are pretty notorious for having lackluster matchmaking. Some players cannot handle the toxicity and get discouraged from trying again.
In such instances, it is best to seek video games that have wholesome rather than toxic communities.
Basic Knowledge of Computers and Tech in General
This part of the article might seem like a stretch, but it is surprisingly relevant. Playing video games puts a toll on the computer’s performance. There is no need to expect that the problems will disappear by themselves. No, you need to find solutions.
Whether it is random crashes, FPS drops, or an overheating computer, you will need to spend time researching the causes and finding solutions.
For instance, if your Windows computer or Mac is noisy while playing video games, the odds are that there is too much dust inside the computer. If you have never cleaned the dust inside a computer before, you will have the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of the internal hardware by carefully taking the device apart to clean it thoroughly.
Strategy
It is no secret that strategy video games are some of the most popular, particularly among those players who prefer to stick to playing solo. Real-time strategy titles like Age of Empires or Starcraft have co-op modes, but the majority of the games are one-on-one skirmishes.
Sure, you might not apply everything that a strategy game offers as far as real-world applications go, but do not underestimate the knowledge you gain.
For instance, recreating historical battles in strategy games teaches you history. Controlling multiple units simultaneously encourages multitasking and eye coordination. Though be wary of how much time you play because long sessions in front of a computer’s screen are not great for your posture and eyes.
Competitive Side
The last thing to mention is that you can treat video games as your competitive environment. When the stakes are not real, you are not as much under pressure as you would be in the real world. Video games provide you with an alternative to be competitive and learn what it is like to go up against other people.
Conclusion
So there you have it. These life lessons from video games mentioned in the article ought to take one’s stance on gaming as a whole, especially if the prejudice was against video games before.
Considering how big the gaming industry is and how fast it is developing, we are bound to see even more great things in the future that will hopefully offer further means for players to learn and improve.
