Games. When people hear that word, they often think about young kids with their eyes glued to their tablets all day or unemployed men twiddling their lives away in their parents’ basement while on a Discord call with their similarly unmotivated buddies.
A stereotypical, and grossly false belief. It may seem hard to believe, but according to statistics from 2023, there are said to be a total of three billion gamers globally, almost half of which are females. If you are one of those people who enjoys playing arcade games, you may want to check out GGD Australia.
This debunks multiple myths. First, the notion that gamers are jobless basement-dwellers (mostly since the world will be a sparser and less functional place if three billion remain underground exclusively gaming,) and second, that the hobby is predominantly male-occupied.
Most don’t realize it right away, but gamers are everywhere: the office worker passing time with Clash of Clans on his lunch break, the wizened socialite on the slot machine, and even the exhausted mom of three decompressing with Candy Crush Saga after putting her kids to bed.
Despite many people assuming that gaming is an unproductive use of one’s time and can even be potentially harmful to impressionable young children, the experts themselves disagree. Many claim that playing games offer a variety of benefits to both children and adults alike.
The Positives of Playing
- Educational
It may sound ironic, especially since games are believed to be distractions responsible for interfering with children’s studies, but video games are often credited for helping children learn new things. While obviously not a qualified substitute for an actual education at a certified institution, certain video games such as Plague Inc. perfectly supplement their learning and can educate children and adults alike about countries and pathology, while still providing entertainment value.
To kick things up a notch, there is also a sub-branch of gaming that takes things a little more seriously called serious games, pun not intended. Despite the name, they are still made to be enjoyable, albeit to be taken seriously. Some of what this genre encompasses are educational games and simulations (flight, medical, etc.)
- Social Development
Online multiplayer games generally involve cooperative and competitive aspects, allowing players to hone their teamwork and leadership capabilities. Communication is key, whether it is in strategizing, fighting, or getting to know each other’s skills and playstyles. In a given team, there are always those with unique strengths and weaknesses.
Player A may excel in team fights, but struggle to survive on his own due to a lack of environmental awareness. Player C might be a cunning strategist, but lacks the skills to execute them properly. Playing video games helps the players discover their strengths and teaches them how to cover the weak spots of their teammates.
Players of table games such as Baccarat may choose to work together to increase their likelihood of winning. To achieve their common goal, the members within a team must learn to communicate properly, listen to one another, and act accordingly to the role assigned to them.
- Personal Development
Almost every game in existence involves a challenge of some sort. It may be a hulking beast to be vanquished or a complex puzzle to be deciphered. Either way, players must employ the use of their skills and intellect to overcome the obstacle in question. Combat usually involves swift reactions and impressive hand-eye coordination.
After all, players need to be fast in recognizing threats in the game, and even faster in reacting to that threat, which translates to improved quick thinking and motor skills that can be applied in other facets of one’s life. Puzzles and war games involve thorough planning, improving analytical skills.
Table games involve reading people’s body language and facial expression to determine whether they’re in possession of a good hand or not, as well as cloaking the player’s own expressions and body language to prevent others from getting a read on them. This is useful to enhance people’s ability to convey confidence through the way they present themselves physically and to be able to get an idea of what people are thinking.
- Monetization
Finally, kids can now proudly tell their friends and family that all those hours they put into gaming is worth something. There are numerous ways to be able to earn from gaming, some of them involve nigh-professional skills, some demand patience, and some merely need luck. Those with godly talent can become professional esports players to rake in fame and fortune, winning grand prizes in tournaments and partnering with corporations as brand endorsers.
Players who prefer to avoid such intense competition may monetize their hobby by selling high-level accounts or profiles with rare in-game loot. These usually take a lot of time so some busier players prefer to purchase already leveled-up game accounts to skip the grind and head straight to the good stuff.
Lastly, perhaps the oldest and most popular way to monetize gaming, betting. However, while luck plays a big role, choosing wisely on which online game to invest your money in can minimize unnecessary risks. Generally, online casinos boast more generous bonuses and offer unique features that traditional casinos don’t, such as allowing you to challenge Australia’s best online casinos even if you’re all the way out from another side of the world.
This worldwide accessibility allows you to browse through a selection of available games on the internet and choose the one that best suits your tastes and skills to maximize your winnings.
- Entertainment
And last, but definitely far from the least, *cue subheading*. Come on, it’s practically impossible to not include this in the list. Games offer near-limitless entertainment to everyone. Whether the preference is for chill games like Wordscapes or intense FPS games like Call of Duty, there’s a game made for everyone’s unique tastes. For those that love the rush of adrenaline, there’s an array of horror games that put horror movies to shame. After all, it’s much to be the one being chased by a deformed entity than merely watching someone else get chased.
Then for the ultimate daredevils who find horror games to be “tame.” There’s nothing that gets people’s blood pumping more than dealing with things that involve genuine risks. Gambling, when done in moderation of course, yields more adrenaline and dopamine, which when added together and subtracted with self-discipline, equals fun! As long as you remember to only wager what you’re comfortable with losing, you’ll come out of every session feeling like a winner.
