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How Video Games can be Beneficial
Merriam Webster dictionary defines video games as electronic games that are played by
manipulating images produced by a television screen or display screen. When people think of
video games they often think of popular violent shooting games like Fortnite or Call of Duty, but
video games can also be app games on your phone like Candy Crush or games on Facebook like
FarmVille. These games are more than just violence and death. Video games can benefit people.
Gamers have been able to improve reaction times, hand to eye coordination, and many other
skills as well. With these proven benefits, video games could be used in therapy to rehabilitate
people with medical conditions. Video games could also teach people skills like welding,
surgery, and many other things by showing a step-by-step set of instructions. Video games have
many benefits that people may overlook because of the bad reputation they have received. Non
gamers should explore the benefits of playing video games.
Gamers have noticed they have improved fine motor skills and visuomotor skills because of
video games. Some people may not believe video games can be beneficial in physical ways. On
the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website, there is a study that
involved adult gamers and non-gamers. Each person played a highly interactive game called
Counter Strike. The study focused on seeing improvements in fine motor skills and they actually
noticed that it improved gamers’ skills and non–gamers’ skills alike. The study concludes “that
playing computer games may be a useful training tool to increase fine motor skills and
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movement coordination” (Borecki L, Tolstych K, and Pokorski M 1). Also, the article Action
Video Game Playing Is Reflected In Enhanced Visuomotor Performance and Increased
Corticospinal Excitability reviewed a study where they tested action video game players, aVGPs,
and non-video game players, nonVGP. The participants were tested and concluded that the
action video game players were better at motor and visual tasks. The study concluded “results
show that aVGPs, who are known to have better performance on visual and motor tasks, also
display increased corticospinal excitability after completing a novel visuomotor task” (Morin-
Moncet, Therrien-Blanchet, Ferland, Théoret, and West 1). These studies provide evidence that
supports the theory that video games can improve skills and there potential to help people rebuild
motor skills and visuomotor skills.
Video games can show step-by-step instructions to improve skills or prepare people to try
