No video games – think again!

One day, his mother forced a 9-year-old boy to stop playing video games. They had argued for a moment. Mom said that computer games will definitely not help and that it is all about senseless violence. Mom is afraid that her son’s life will be distracted by the fact that the child will spend most of his time in front of the screen, not having time to interact with the outside world and learn something useful. The boy could only shut his mouth, looking at his screen and wondering when his mother will stop talking about him.

The occasion described above occurs commonly even in our family. Parents tend to limit their children’s play time as much as they can. In his mind, there will be no knowledge that can be learned from video games, except for violence, brutality, sex, weapons, and all things bad. However, most children are powerless towards their parents. Most of the time, children will take the losing side in that battle, they just obey mom’s commands and stop playing, even though in their hearts the desire to continue playing is agonizingly high.

If we try to look outside the box, and stick with the myth that parents are always right, we’ll see that, despite all the complaints about googly eyes and senseless violence, video games are a good thing that have come to be. integrated into family life. Also, its popularity is rapidly increasing faster than any other form of entertainment. So who is right in this endless debate? Children or parents?

Steven Johnson, author of the book Everything Bad Is Good For You, has said that what could matter about video games is their form and not their content. Parents often overlook the fact that through their interaction with the digital world, children will become more aware of the world. They will learn to explore the world and even become more curious about it. Let’s forget about the fact that kids can learn to drive a car carelessly, they’ll actually learn economics from The Sims, learn strategy from Command Conquer, and learn about teamwork and strong coordination when playing Counter Strike in multiplayer. Even in games like Flight or Train Simulator, kids will learn how to fly a Boeing, Airbus, or about the use of traffic signal systems in real railway technology. Furthermore, research by an Oxford University scientist has claimed that playing the video game “Tetris” after a big scare could reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, although much remains to be done to translate this result of experimental science. in a potential treatment.

Today, the amazing success of the Nintendo Wii has brought a new paradigm of video gaming: mental training for your mind, visual training for your eyes, and physical training for your body. We can play golf like Tiger Woods did, play tennis with Roger Federer in his own living room; even learning how to quit smoking by following the Allen Carr method. With the help of the mainstream, gaming now moves to a much more social stage, not just playing online but now friends gathering in living rooms to dance, sing karaoke, play contests or pretend to be in rock bands.

Unfortunately, the story does not end there. The games still have some drawbacks and could physically cost people. The stiff joints and gnarled fingers that result from too long a session with a joypad, or the muscular tensions that affect enthusiastic Wii users are some of the counterbalances that follow the mental benefits generated by video games. That is why a control of oneself and time during the games is very necessary. The most important thing is to relax during the game as most of the people tend to get carried away when playing the game. They get frustrated when they lose and addicted when they win. Remember, games are just entertainment tools; they have nothing to do with your pride and your real life. Becoming a smart player is really a choice.

In the near future, as the world becomes more uncertain and the economic downturn continues, people will be more eager than ever to escape to another world, like the world of video games. There’s nothing wrong with that, but again, self-control is needed to not turn into an addicted gamer who only thinks about his game instead of his real life. As time passes, no answer will be satisfactory enough to answer our initial question. Who has the reason? Children or parents? The easiest way to answer is: both sides are right and both should use their arguments to check each other.