Video games are more than fun! They can teach you life skills that’ll help you be more

disciplined and successful.

Video games are often believed to cultivate immaturity, violence and even addiction. However, like most media, video games can be both good and bad, depending on how they are used … as in all things.

Video games can help develop skills and knowledge that you will carry with you for the rest of your life. Let’s find out what they are:

1.     Patience

Older video games forced you to endure tons of repetitive gameplay to test endurance. RPGs with a level-up mechanic often encouraged repetitive monster fights to get stronger.

The ability to endure routine and repetition will come in handy no matter what you pursue: grinding up homework, work projects, or money for a vacation.

In other words, the ability to suffer from something unpleasant right now will assure you something even better in the future. Some call it delayed gratification. Others call it patience and perseverance. Either way, life demands it.

2.     Socialization

Starting with the first consoles, before broadband allowed online gaming to take off, playing with friends involved a physical meeting in front of a single TV. Even in the current online multiplayer gaming climate, players can communicate via voice and video chat, developing a community.

It could be argued that play allows introspective individuals to be more social, ultimately improving social skills.

In the case of guilds and clans, socialization can evolve into leadership. It may sound silly, but there is a lot of overlap between running a guild and, let’s say, managing a project team. Synchronizing schedules, mobilizing people towards a goal, inspiring motivation, and resolving interpersonal conflicts are all skills that can be learned from play and applied to real life.

3.     Mental Prowess

Some games are designed to train and improve brain function by developing mental math skills, reading speed and concentration.

But brain training isn’t limited to video games that explicitly train the brain.

Like muscles, the brain will atrophy if you don’t work it out. The interactivity of video games is a way to exercise the mind while having fun.

4.     Empathy

Game designers are exploring and incorporating emotional elements into video game characters.

These video games force you to relate to the characters and empathize with them. These situations develop the player’s sense of sympathy and empathy.

5.     Literacy

Video games with a strong narrative focus can help people learn languages and improve their literacy, even by introducing them to words they may not encounter elsewhere.

Classic adventure video games are the perfect example, where you have to read the dialogue between characters to understand the story and often understand culture-specific phrases and lines.

6.     Hand-Eye Coordination

You need good hand-eye coordination to play even the most basic video game. Whether moving a character or just clicking on something, synchronizing eye and hand movements is vital.

Obviously, the better you are at this, the better you will be at some video games. Improve your hand-eye coordination; you won’t have to look down to see which button to press. Your reaction times will also improve.

Studies have shown that games help strengthen our hand-eye coordination. There is so much this skill helps outside of games, be it sports, music, or basic daily activities.

7.     Observation

You have to be aware of your surroundings in a game. Maybe you are on the battlefield, and an enemy has just landed in the distance, or perhaps you are a detective, and you notice a crucial piece of evidence in the corner of the room.

Some video games go further and are built around the concept of observation.