Playing video games has been a victim of prejudice and anecdotal fallacy for the longest time. It has been associated with laziness and introverted behavior in gamers. Luckily, science has come to its rescue with tested and proven uncontested information that vindicates the entire gaming industry and its stakeholders.

How Exactly Does Playing Video Games Elevate Your IQ and Overall Brain Functionality?

This article puts an end to the negative stereotypes in gaming by discussing eye-opening scientific findings in the gaming world. As opposed to the rumor that games slow your brain activity and make you ‘dumb’, it has been found the opposite is actually true.

When playing an engaging game, your brain activity increases by more than 50% depending on the level of engagement the game offers. In this era of machine learning and cutting edge technology, simulations are the way to go. This has been best expressed in video games. The development of engaging games has benefited the human race in ways more than one.

To commence with, it has enhanced the brain function of gamers by providing an intricate assignment for them to solve in order to advance to the next level. The brain is never more engaged than when faced with a puzzle/problem or a game to win. You get to kill two birds with one stone; develop your psychomotor skills while having ultimate fun. Other benefits are:

• You develop problem-solving skills.
• You become a strategic planner.
• You gain spatial reasoning.
• You improve your memory retention capability.
• You gain some social skills.
• Your concentration span increases.

5     Reasons Why You Should Take Up Gaming

Gaming is a leisure activity. It is also many other things. Read on to know why you actually need to be part of the players today.

1.     Video Games Enhance your Cognitive Skills

Yeah, you got that right; as odd as it may sound. Games like ‘Call of Duty’ require that gamers learn the pattern of the rival groups in order to develop a counter-strategy that will enable them to succeed in the game. That’s not all: the game continually presents new challenges that require mastery to conquer.

Gaming has also been incorporated in school curriculums globally to excel your reading and writing skills. It helps you avoid having to pay someone to do your assignment. Games presented in high-resolution audiovisuals enhance your memory and promote user interaction. This fosters excellent online social skills among the students taking part.

2.     They Promote Quick Decision-Making Skills and Improve Thinking Capacity

Imagine driving at 100mph, and suddenly a deer freezes in the middle of the road upon sighting of your full power headlights; what would you do? This is a split-second, life or death decision you must make fast! Guess what? This is what racing gamers face all day, every day, and they excel at. They are so good at it because they train hard.

Games train you to make quick, important decisions, especially when your only option is to win. For you to make a quick, right decision, you need to have a high thinking capacity that enables you to analyze the situation and come up with the best way out.

The skills acquired are not only applied in the game but also in real life. Gamers are better decision-makers than non-gamers.

3.     Racing Games Improve your Focusing Ability

Are you familiar with the famous formula 1? What kind of focus do you think the drivers have for them to comfortably navigate meandering terrains at killer speeds? This is a task that needs coordination of all the human senses.

You need to listen to the navigators, keep an eye on the fuel gauge and still watch out for fellow racers while maintaining a cool head to win the game. Without focus and excellent multitasking ability, none of these is possible. If the racers move around the terrain severally, one has to remember the routes, and this is where your memory is put to the test.

In a study published by the New York Times, adults were made to play racing games over a period of 6 months while their brain activity was being monitored. At the end of the study period, they showed heightened information retention capability, and they could focus better. The psychologist said, “They reversed their brain aging process”.

4.     Puzzle Games Improve Intelligence Quotient and Overall Brain Function

Just like the muscles, the brain develops when exercised. We have a gym for muscles and games for the brain. There is no better way to engage your brain than presenting mayhem that needs solving. Puzzles increase your problem-solving ability.

Legend of Zero and Mario are some of the games that make you smarter by challenging your IQ. They help you pay attention to detail for you to figure out the missing or misplaced puzzle to complete the picture. Puzzles increase brain activity in the cerebellum and prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for memory formation, planning, and spatial navigation.

5.     Games Make You a Strategic Planner

Gamers love this: the ability to come up with your own strategies to see you through the game and emerge victoriously. Games like ‘God of War’ need more effort planning than playing. By training yourself the planning skill, the same trait manifests in your daily life, making you less prone to mistakes.

Parting Shot

Video games have been the parents’ top enemy in the entertainment field. Excuses like “do your homework first” have been used to keep gamers off their consoles. We need to comprehend that playing offers as much brain development value as education does.

In fact, it instills skills that assist students in staying ahead in class. The next time your teachers asks how many people play video games, raise your hand. You are among those students who engage the brain in multiple ways and in turn, develop different traits and skills.