Can video games have a positive effect on life?
“Dude, I just got hit by Kt, can you pray I don’t have to run back from the graveyard?” Does this phrase make any sense to you? Maybe not, but for millions of gamers online, it makes a lot of sense. Online games, also known as MMORPGs (Massive Multi-player Online Role-Playing Games), allow people to play together online from anywhere in the world. All you need is internet service, the game, and you’re “g2g” (good for starters).
There have been many articles over the last decade about the destructive effects of video games and especially MMORPGs. Parents and spouses of gamers complain all the time about the negative effects of video games. But what about the positive effects of online gaming? I know what you’re thinking “how can there be anything positive about playing video games?” Online games are more than just players running around shooting things. Online games are real communities where people connect with each other through in-game chat or form guilds (like a cyber club within the community) and even hook up and fall in love. I have years of experience participating in these online communities and I can tell you that these people do more than just photograph things. For many people, these online games are the only social network available to them due to disabilities of one kind or another. Many of these people are unable to leave the house without difficulty, if at all, so the online gaming community is the closest thing they have to connecting with people outside of their family. A woman, “Sue”, has spinal cancer and plays from her hospital bed. Another player, “Joe”, suffers a permanent disability for life due to a serious accident at work that limits his mobility. The online community helps these people stay connected with others and prevents them from living a life of loneliness.
Not only is it an active communication network for people who have little or no access to other people, but it can also bring families together. I know husbands and wives in real life who “seek” together in games. I even know a family of four who play MMORPGs, all on their own computer in the living room, and all playing together. Playing together interactively makes family time more meaningful than sitting down to watch TV or a DVD.
Another positive effect of MMORPGs is that the games are designed where you need to work together with other players to complete missions. This means that the players must interact with each other and learn to work together to achieve something.
Video games and MMORPGs are also good brain exercises, unlike watching TV, which is a passive activity and doesn’t really engage the brain. Research shows that keeping your brain active is one of several factors in lowering a person’s chance of getting Alzheimer’s: games like word games, crossword puzzles, video games, anything that makes you think rather than passively entertain yourself.
Video games and MMORPGs are like most other activities in life. You must have moderation when you play, just like moderation in the number of hours you watch television, or moderation in food portions, or moderation in any clothing and hobbies you may have. MMORPG communities are a viable way to connect with people from all over the world, or even within your own backyard.
© 2010 Elizabeth Duvall
