Studies have shown that people – particularly adults – who play video games are actually happier than those who don’t. They are more relaxed, more ready to enjoy themselves, and they always have something to do so boredom doesn’t really factor in their lives. What are the other reasons that mean we love video games so much? We’ve put together some interesting ideas.
Table of Contents
We Know Our Inner Child
For those of us who love our video games, whether that’s Call of Duty, Minecraft, or anything else that happens to bring fun and enjoyment into our lives, it means we know our inner child better than those who only focus on so-called ‘adult’ activities. Very few adults ever really get to play on a regular basis; they are far too busy being grown up. Of course, working and raising a family is important and should never be neglected in lieu of gaming, but having the chance to be a child again, just for a few moments every day, is a healthy thing indeed.
Having a strong connection to your inner child and playing as we did when we were younger makes life more enjoyable and enables us to live it more fully.
We Have A Stress Outlet
No matter what it is we do in our lives; there is always going to be some stress associated with being an adult. As we get older, those stresses and worries only seem to increase; we need to get a job, pay back student debt, make sure we can afford a house, pay the bills on time, and so on. It can be extremely stressful, and if we don’t have an outlet for that stress, it can even make us ill, causing high blood pressure and heart problems amongst other things.
When we play video games, we can de-stress and relax, forgetting about anything that might be causing us stress. Although this may not last forever, having these small moments of stress-free living and being able to live in the present rather than worrying about the past or the future is essential for good mental health.
We Are More Creative
When you are playing video games, you are undoubtedly exposed to much more creativity than you are in most other aspects of everyday life. It could be that you’re playing a highly realistic game, in which case the programmer has had to carefully reproduce reality – not an easy feat. Or perhaps you are playing something extremely imaginative, and you have to use your own imagination to place yourself in that world and into the head of the character you are playing.
Whichever way you are playing (and perhaps you will do both), this is a great brain boost, keeping your mind active and attentive. This is important to maintain a healthy brain and, in turn, a healthy mindset in general.
We Bond With Others
It’s all too easy to find yourself in a social situation that is awkward and boring. This could be a work function, someone else’s wedding where you hardly know anyone, or a family gathering where you feel you have nothing in common with anyone else. If you are a gamer, however, there is sure to be at least one other person there who understands how much you love it and will happily chat with you about gaming for hours at a time! That means there is always going to be someone to talk to, no matter what the situation or the place may happen to be.
It’s easy to make friends when we’re kids, but as we get older that skill seems to leave us, and although we might have many acquaintances, having friends is a rare thing indeed. If you can find someone who understands gaming as much as you do then friendship can blossom, so studies say, that’s good for your health.
We Have A Better Perspective On Life
Being able to devote part of our time to something other than working and paying bills means we have an excellent perspective on life in general. We know there is more to it than these boring things, and we know that having fun is an essential element to stop us from aging too fast (at least in our minds if not our bodies) and keep us active as much as possible.
We Are More Co-Ordinated
Playing video games takes a lot of dexterity and the more we do it, the better we become. Being good at these games means we necessarily have to have great hand-eye coordination and excellent fine motor skills. We may not have these, to begin with, but the more we play, the more these skills will develop, and they can be of great use in other aspects of our life including helping us to be better drivers.
We Have Me Time
With life being so hectic and busy, it’s important that everyone takes a little ‘me time’ every now and then in order to recharge and re-energize. When you play games, your me time is built into the gaming session, so you are calmer and more relaxed a lot of the time. You can even include others in your me time if you want to (although some prefer to be alone and that’s perfectly fine too).
Plus, when your friends or your partner wants their own me time, you’ll immediately have something to do which means you won’t feel bored and interrupt their relaxation!
We Always Have Something To Look Forward To
Ideally, there should always be something to look forward to in life, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes there are simply long stretches of the same routine ahead of us, and that doesn’t really give us any inspiration or impetus to do much of a good job. Instead, we just trudge onwards until we finally can see something worth working towards.
As a gamer, there is always something to look forward to, making life a lot more fun. It could be a new game is about to be released, or perhaps a new controller. You might be attending an expo. You could even simply be looking forward to playing your game that night. Whatever it is, that’s a good way to feel about life.
