Video Games and Gamers are Misrepresented by everyone
Video gamers are often singled out as antisocial, nerdy, and awkward. The segregation between gamers and everyone else in the world is really unfair to me. Gamers often just want to be include, but when they bring up a video game, people shun them. I know what you are thinking. “Most video games just involve sitting in a chair and have no physical activity.” I think that gamers are undervalued and disliked because of the little physical activity involved. Yes, I said that gamers are undervalued. I say this because there have been multiple scientific studies on video games. One big test was when scientists made people play a 3D game (group A) and other people play a 2D game (group B). The memory of Group A showed better cognitive memory than group B. This story by Danny Gallagher gives 7 other health benefits of playing video games. One thing that article did not mention was the financial aspect of gaming. Please refrain from saying to yourself: “Video games are just for fun and passing time” because some people make a living off of playing video games. Just as America has the NFL or NBA, gaming has Esports. Esports have grown so large, some universities are giving out full scholarships for League of Legends. Speaking of League of Legends, The prize money pool for the 2015 world cup was $2,130,000. That number continues to grow as the sport grows exponentially. Other popular games like CS:GO, Dota, Call of Duty, and the newest Esport game, Overwatch. Although Overwatch is just five and a half months old, people are already winning millions playing in tournaments across the globe. Now, you may be thinking, “what am I supposed to do with this information?” Well, taking all the statistics scientists have gathered about the psychological benefits of playing video games, you could help implement them into schools across the U.S. Instead of making kids in kindergarten learn patterns through worksheets, you could give them a computer program that rewards them for remaking the pattern shown on the screen, and at higher levels, give them parameters for a pattern and have them make it on their own. Also considering the Esport aspect of gaming, you could let students play games like Overwatch, League of Legends, and Dota in their free time instead of football or basketball. Because some people were just not made for a lot of physical activity, this would give other kids a fair chance to choose between Esports and traditional sports. But what do I know? I’m just a fourteen year old gamer. Sincerely, Brandon P
