Why Online Gaming Is Beneficial To Us?
Mummmaaa… Paapppaaa… I know you must be calling out your parents aloud after reading the thumbnail of the video and why not dear! After all these years of lecturing and hammering, you finally got something to bicker at your parents with. But hello boys and girls! Do it at your own risk! Haha.
Now, hold your excitement level as we are going to discuss 3 things in today’s videos,
- What happens inside our brain when we play video games?
- Top 6 Benefits of playing regularly.
- 2 Mind knots before playing.
Have you ever wondered while getting bonkers with your video game, crushing your keyboard and joysticks, echoing the entire house, completely focused, performing miraculous turns and moves, that how exactly the computer of our body responds to create such a marvellous experience? Blimey! the brain starts playing its own multiplayer game with the three most active faculties starting with
Parietal Lobe/Cortex
located at the rear side of the brain. They are well known to control the orientation of attention. This is the reason you deliberately build focus in the game. Then comes the,
Frontal Lobe
located on the front side of the brain. This guy helps to sustain attention. This is the reason; you can play for hours and hours and finally,
Anterior cingulate
located in between Parietal Lobe and Frontal Lobe- This faculty is responsible to controls how we locate, regulate attention and resolve conflict. This is the reason you can eat your popcorn without losing focus in the game which is maintaining focus while avoiding distractions.
Active participation of these faculties is important for any kind of sharp and lasting focus including studies, meditation or even driving but how do we manage to focus well or use these faculties efficiently while playing games than the rest of the things like studies? This is because of the cocktail of hormones released by our brain while playing games which might miss in other activities. Starting with Dopamine
Dopamine
is also known as the feel-good hormone released by the Hypothalamus, located in the base of the brain. Dopamine is the brain’s way of saying ‘Thank You’ as it is released whenever we are rewarded. In gameplay, the reward cycle is superfast either in the form of points, level up or kill, hence more reward means more dopamine.
Now, the function of Dopamine is not limited to this, a good amount of dopamine results in better motivation, motor controls or even pain processing. A kind of nectar for better functioning of the overall body. So, whenever the body finds an activity that releases a good amount of dopamine, the brain stores it in the memory and make sure, you do it again. This is the reason we find ourselves keep on playing on a loop. A good amount of dopamine unlike other boring activities is one of the reasons you concentrate better and last longer.
The next active ingredient is Endorphins
Endorphins
are the first aid of our body often termed as a natural pain killer released by the pituitary gland.
They are often released to reduce stress and enhance pleasure. During gameplay, the body triggers the secretion of endorphins to enhance the pleasure of dopamine, this creates thrill and excitement while playing. So, if you reach a euphoric level of happiness while playing, it means there is no end to endorphins.
Another vital participating hormone is Oxytocin.
Oxytocin
is produced in the hypothalamus region of the brain and is secreted in the blood by the posterior pituitary gland.
One of the key components of a compelling game is a good story. Whenever the mind is engaged in a strong narrative in the form of a story instead of random facts, the body releases Oxytocin. It has lots of function, but here it creates the feeling of trust and empathy. Body is like “Where is my oxytocin! There’s an awesome story going onnn!” Hence, this enhances our engagement and attention.
Now, when we know how our body responds to action pack video games, let’s discuss, how we can make the best use of it which leads us to our next part of the video.
Top 6 benefits of playing regularly.
15 years’ worth of study and research suggest that when action video games are played in smaller sessions instead of a big block of sessions, it can give you significant benefits like
Top-Down Attention-
With brain imaging, we find that the network of all three, Parietal Lobe, Frontal Lobe and Anterior cingulate functions much more efficiently in people that play action games. This enhances the ability to focus on one object while ignoring distractions. Well, we all know, a mastery over this could bring what and what not marvels in your life.
Mind Mapping-
Latest action pack games are as complex as any real word strategic activities including, short term, long term goals, constant learning, planning, failure, revaluation, consensus and coordination among team members,
Regular practice of these activities stimulates connections between brain cells creating neural pathways between different parts of your brain. The more you practice the stronger the pathway becomes creating a mapping structure that could be used in any given scenario whether it’s your studies, work or sports.
Mechanical Skills-
Only a gamer knows what level of speed and accuracy of fist control is required to play games like Fortnight.
Let me know your favourite game in the comment section.
The superfast mechanical skill doesn’t go in vain, the muscle memory can be broadly used in areas like speed typing, managing heavy and complex machinery in the real world like an aircraft or even a musical instrument.
Broad Perception-
It’s a skill of the senses that interpret internal stimuli like sight and sounds efficient. A regular gameplay increases our sensitivity to respond to such stimuli. In the real world, this could help in better driving, remembering new places, creating photographic memory.
In the University of Ranchester in New York, researchers found that playing action games compared to slower games has increased the visualisation of the gamers by 25 percent. Surprised right?
Technological perseverance-
If you look at your academic books in the last 5-10 years, you might have noticed the syllabus of the book increased gradually till the point it seems impossible to many but you might have accustomed to it. Similarly, when the world is transforming towards the technological sphere, there is a huge demand for people who cannot just handle complex software and machinery efficiently but also for a long time. So, your long hours of practice in front of a computer makes it a valuable skill.
Enhanced Creativity-
Robotics, 3D Printing, Design farming, Animation, Augmented Reality These are new reality shaped by a group of people who can see the world differently, who can play with their mind like a video game, like an animated movie. Regular and disciplined gameplay activates unused neurons in our brain to think constantly, use it with complexity and hence enhanced creativity.
The latest research shows, regular gameplay helps prevent ageing and is getting popular among the old age population. Do you know, what is the average age of the gamers of the world? Comment down your guesses till I reveal the answer at the end of the video.
Moving to our last section of two mind knots
Number 1- Playing in a cage
We have always discussed the ill effects of overuse of digital devices, than how to utilize the benefits of playing video games without getting carried away. Well, the problem here is the compulsion and not video games. Even drinking water compulsively is dangerous. So, always allot your game time as a reward for your important activities and never cross the time limit.
Number 2- Active gaming
The benefits could only be realised when we play actively and not scratching our phone screens playing Candy Crush’s 600th level lounging in our bean bags. So, shuffle around a wide variety of action pack games of multiple genres to have fun while you learn.
Now, in answer to our previous question, the average age of gamers is 33 years and not anything around 12 or 20 years.
