Gaming is good for you!

Wow, who would have thought this?

We subscribe to Discover magazine. When the July issue arrived with the headline Your Brain on Video Games, I was looking forward to some sort of article that talked about how video games are detrimental to your well-being.

What I read was something completely different. Quoting research from at least three different studies, the article put forward the argument that video games are actually beneficial to brain function (when taken in moderation, of course).

The article challenges the stereotypes that gamers are:

• attention-deficit crazed stimulus junkies
• out for immediate gratification
• easily distracted
• looking for on-screen carnage

The studies have found that unlike TV and movies, video games get harder as you progress, they have distinct levels and you must pass the requirements of those levels to move on, and stimulate things like pattern recognition, system thinking and patience.

In fact, most good games require a lot of patience and attention to progress. The goals for games may take a long time to achieve and require solving puzzles of different types and complexities. So many different parts of the brain have to work together that gamers tend to think in more creative ways when it comes to problem solving in the real world. So much for the easily distracted, attention deficit crazed, distractable gamer.

As for the carnage, most of the best selling games do not involve a lot of bloodshed and rely only on manual dexterity. The games that stand the test of time and garner a wide audience are the ones that tax your mental agility as well as your dexterity.

The best selling game of all time is The Sims. There is no bloodshed in that game. Instead you have to manage the life of your "Sims" as they try to find a job, raise their children, put food on the table and run a household. Even in the FPS category (first person shooter), the best and most successful games require you to think and solve problems to progress through the game - sometimes shooting the enemy is not what you need to do to progress.

So, what is my point? Do I even have one? Why did I just sit here and type all this out?

Beats me. I'm going to go play....