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Eric Killman
Mrs. Watkins
Comp II T-TH 9 a.m.
17 February 2015
You Can Play, Just Not Too Much
Have you ever been told, video games will rot your brain? Have you ever heard a
gamer proclaim, video games improve your hand eye coordination? Both of these arguments
have valid points about video games. In an industry that brings in, worldwide, around 93 billion
dollars a year, there are bound to be arguments as to whether they are good for us or not. Im
here to tell you the answer is both. Video games allow us to go anywhere in the world and do
almost anything we want while giving us a few health benefits as well, but enjoying video games
a little too much also has its downsides.
In the multi-billion dollar industry that is video gaming there are hundreds of thousands
of titles and genres to choose from. Choosing the correct one is all a matter of personal
preference. When it comes to choosing the correct one for your health, the choice might still be
just as easy. Video games have been linked to improved eyesight and have shown to make an
older brain feel younger and refreshed. Many people have been told or just assume that gamers
ruin their eyesight when they spend countless hours staring at a T.V. screen or computer monitor
but in reality they are only helping their vision. Jonathan Sherwood from Rochester University
states, The ability to discern slight differences in shades of gray has long been thought to be an
attribute of the human visual system that cannot be improved. But Daphne Bavelier, professor of
brain and cognitive sciences at the University of Rochester, has discovered that very practiced
action gamers become 58 percent better at perceiving fine differences in contrast (Sherwood).

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Sherwood then goes on to explain that in Baveliers research she found video games teach our
brain and eyes to process out what is less important and use the information we take in more
efficiently (Sherwood). Along with improving our eyesight, playing video games has also been
proven to make an old brain act young. According to Matt Richtel of the New York Times, Video
games that require a person to multitask and focus on the objectives at hand sharpen our brains
cognitive skills and have shown to make people in their 80s begin to develop neurological
patterns of people in their 20s, not only while theyre playing the games but also in other
cognitive tasks in every day life. To further assist the aged brain, playing video games helped
improve short-term memory and long-term focus in those who were older (Richtel). With all the
provided information and new studies that have arisen, video games prove to us that they arent
all bad and dont necessarily deserve the, They rot your brain wrap that they get from critics.
Along with the health benefits gaming supplies, it serves us in many other ways. It helps improve
hand/eye coordination, speed up reaction time, and even allows us to interact with people whom
otherwise we would never have the opportunity to connect with. So, not only does gaming have
health benefits but it also carries its own social benefits as well.
For older generations video games are practically a dark, scary, confusing world with too
much going on, on the screen and far too many buttons to manage. So for most, its an anti-social
activity because they cant necessarily get involved. What they dont see is that gamers can
interact with their friends from anywhere around the world or just group up in the living room.
According to Lisa Bowen of the American Psychological Association, Another stereotype the
research challenges is the socially isolated gamer. More than 70 percent of gamers play with a
friend, and millions of people worldwide participate in massive virtual worlds through video
games such as "Farmville" and "World of Warcraft," the article noted. Multiplayer games

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become virtual social communities (Bowen 10). Bowen explains that many video games
promote social growth by allowing players from all over the globe to cooperate in massive online
games or play with their friends. My old roommate and I are a perfect example of Bowens claim
with a game called Dying Light. In this game, youre a special agent sent into a city to retrieve a
file and you must parkour around a zombie ridden city trying to help survivors make it to safety
or gather supplies, all while trying to avoid the many ways to die and trying to find the file. My
roommate had to move back home this semester, so to stay connected we frequently will get
online and play the game together. Doing this has allowed us to stay connected in a way that a
text or a phone call cant. Not only can we connect with distant friends but we can also make
new connections and form friendships with any online gamer from around the world. This
enables us to meet people from other cultures and possibly expand our knowledge of the world.
With all the benefits that playing video games has it can be hard for younger generations to see
any negative sides to gaming but the cons are definitely there. The negative effects of gaming
can often be seen when someone doesnt understand when its time to turn off the system.
Sometimes people can over commit themselves to a game and become addicted. When
this happens an individual will spend hours upon hours of non-stop playing. By doing so, they
are subjecting themselves to a series of health and social problems. When a person sits down and
plays video games for hours they are improving things like hand/eye coordination but the lack of
physical activity, tacked on with probable poor eating habits can cause a persons muscles to
weaken and fat cells to grow. The continued lack of exercise and unhealthy eating habits can
eventually cause a person to become obese. Obesity can stem into a whole new series of health
issues such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The strain excess gaming causes us to put on
our body can quickly turn into too much and cause our bodies to develop possible life

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threatening ailments. Playing excessive amounts of video games takes a toll on our health and
can also lead to social awkwardness. While video games are a fantastic way of keeping in touch
with friends it can also cause a person to struggle with social interaction in person. By playing
video games too much a person does not get out enough to interact with other human beings
making it difficult for them to connect. Many people who play video games too much find it
difficult to communicate with people because they arent used to creating conversation in person.
Interacting with someone face to face causes them to feel nervous and unable to communicate
well with others. Poor social skills can lead a person into having few to no friends causing them
to delve deeper into their anti-social lives. All these negative effects are reasons we should look
to teach people that gaming too much can be an actual detriment to their health.
Video games have come along way since Pong came out and they are only going to
become even more advanced. Instead of accusing video games of being completely bad for us
like generations before ours have, we should look at how we can make video games better for us.
Creating more games that people enjoy and also promote good brain health is a good way to start
to steer peoples way of thinking about video games. Doing this could help open up peoples
eyes to all the benefits that gaming has to offer. At the same time we also have to teach kids and
adults that you can game too much and it can become detrimental to their health if they arent
careful. With all the pros and cons that playing video games has, there is no doubt there will
almost always be debate as to whether or not video games are good for us. At the end of the day,
playing video games does not prove to be solely bad or solely good for us. So let gamers game,
just not too much.

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Works Cited
Bowen, Lisa. "Video Game Play May Provide Learning, Health, Social
Benefits, Review Finds." Monitor on Psychology 45.2 (2014): 10. Apa.org. American
Psychological Association. Web. <http://www.apa.org/monitor/2014/02/videogame.aspx>.
Richtel, Matt. "A Multitasking Video Game Makes Old Brains Act Younger." New
York Times 4 Sept. 2013. Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. Web.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/05/technology/a-multitasking-video-game-makes-oldbrains-act-younger.html?_r=0>.
Sherwood, Jonathan. "Action Video Games Improve Vision."
Rochester.edu. 29 Mar. 2009. Web.
<http://www.rochester.edu/news/show.php?id=3342>.