I've been a gamer for as long as I can remember, and it has always gotten me through tough times. When my parents were fighting in the other room, when I had a long day at work/school, or simply to decompress myself. I found myself hoping on a game, and distracting myself for a little while.
From the grand adventures to the intense firefights, and the farm sims in between. I played all sorts of genres, and learned so many lessons from these digital experiences.
Not only is gaming a healthy hobby, it can improve people's 3D spatial awareness, hand-eye coordination, logical reasoning, and more. I often attribute my Google Maps level of awareness in my city to the fact that I've played so many big open world games. You have to keep track of various areas, and remember what they look like to accomplish your goals. Same with real life!
Going out of your comfort zone
Some people are just not technologically inclined, and others blame their age for not wanting to try new things. The situation is that you are never too old to learn something new, and something like a game will challenge you in ways you can't imagine.
People treat books and movies as entertainment, but then for some reason isolate video games as something else. Well it is something else, arguably something BETTER, and that is because not only do you have visuals; You have the ability to make something happen that YOU want to accomplish. Take the philosophy in Skyrim for example, which is basically oh "you see that mountain over there? Yeah you can climb it". You want to go on a boat ride down the canal in Venice in Assassin's Creed? Do it.
You want to try and survive a zombie apocalypse? Live out an entire multi-generational family in Sims? Create your own cities, and then redesign them over and over? Traverse the galaxy in a spaceship? All of these fantastical endeavors you can do with video games.
However some people just refuse to try and learn how to play these games. You may not have to get top tier at it, but just picking up the controller is half the battle.
Why is Age important to this post?
I mean we have Skyrim Grandma after all, and so it is clear that some people of all ages are willing to play. However I spent a ton of time with people of the older variety due to my jobs, and some of them would just tell me how bored they are. From the fitness classes, doctor's appointments, and family time their schedules are usually busy. However there was a lack of excitement, as not everyone could do vacations or full time work.
Sometimes people live in nursing homes, which is a completely viable alternative to living on their own. However they lack novel things to try out, as usually the homes throw the inevitable bingo games or some classes.
Lacking that variety or stimulation is what leads to a mental decline, as we need stimuli for neurogenesis.
I think young generations have a problem sometimes with playing games too much. When I was a teen I definitely remember playing Fallout3 for 9 hours straight one day until my Xbox was about to cook itself.
Obviously everything in moderation, but there are some games out there for everyone. From the exciting action to the lowkey relaxing simulation games.
Being a Gamer...
Is more than just playing games, it is a way of living. Experiencing worlds that you'll never actually be able to see in life. There are so many places to see, things to learn, in life; That you'll never fully have time to see it all. By spending some time seeing places like Italy in a video game, rather than being able to see them in person (I for one can't afford a trip like that). Then you get to go outside of your initial experience opportunities.
This is a way to expand your life beyond what you can imagine.
