Pretty much everyone has heard someone on TV claiming that video games are corrupting this generation, and they should be banned. Unfortunately, it is a common belief that video games are detrimental to your health, a belief that is demonstrated by James Fox from Georgia State Signal. Parents often tell their children that they will become violent, their brains will melt, and their thumbs will stiffen and be in pain for life. People such as James Fox who believe that video games are simply bad for your health should see that video games are good for you health, because the evidence that says video games are unhealthy, as exemplified in Fox’s article “Video Games are Bad for You”, is invalid, irrelevant, and insufficient, meanwhile there is plenty of research that says video games are actually healthy for you in all the different health categories.

One major health category is known as social health, and there are those who believe video games to be detrimental to this sort of health, but they really should be using video games as a social tool! There is plenty of evidence out there that says video games are healthy for your social life. Nowadays, with the modern wonders of the internet, people who play video games can interact and play with friends on the other side of the world! So as far as playing with friends goes, video games are an amazing way to connect, even if you are in two completely different places. Kevin Anderton from Forbes, a BFA-awarded visual design artist, says:

Around two-thirds of gamers claim that they have met up to five friends while playing games and another 37% say they have made even more. As a 38-year-old gamer, I have made more than a few friendships through gaming. Playing a game provides a good icebreaker, common ground, and a way to spend time together. It is only natural that it would lead to strong friendships. (Anderton)

You can also find friends online (which, granted, should be done with caution), and as Anderton says, it is even easier to bond with online gamers because by even meeting, you have established a common interest, which is gaming. However, James Fox preaches a different idea:

If you use video games for social interaction this could still be unhealthy. Studies show that face-to-face human interaction is more likely to reduce depression than conversations over the phone or by writing. If you have friends online, try to get together with them IRL and see what it’s like. Maybe you can play basketball or go on a hike together. (Fox)

While in-person meetups are healthy, there are some holes in this statement. First of all, meeting someone in-person should only happen if you are an adult who can take care of yourself, or if you are meeting with established friends you really trust. Not everyone you meet online is trustworthy, so that is why all completely online friendships should be carefully examined. That being said, the majority of gamers and friends you would make are probably decent, trustworthy people. So while in-person meetups are great and all, that does not make online social interaction unhealthy, which is why the evidence supporting this belief is insufficient and people like Fox should re-evaluate their opinion on this matter.

Even though there are many people who think that your emotional and mental health are hurt by video games, it should be very clear to them that video games do exactly the opposite. Playing games in general, whether they are on a screen or not, is a fun experience, and allows you to relax. It can calm you on a day full of anger, and it can boost your mood when you are feeling down. Besides bettering your mood, video games can also train your brain. There are entire websites full of small games that can challenge you and your problem-solving. After learning about an online poll by Qutee, Anderton did some research, and in his article, he talked about the results of the poll: “...gamers were asked what they believed to be the main benefit of gaming. Over 40% said that gaming improves emotional well-being. That’s a serious benefit if you consider that one in five people in America experience mental health issues each year” (Anderton). So, this quote supports the fact that video games improve your mood. And it also brings up that a lot of people have mental health issues, which video games could help. However, James Fox has different beliefs:

Playing video games causes your brain to release dopamine. Dopamine is important for learning and concentration, but it is also the same chemical released when people do drugs like cocaine...Video games can also make us more aggressive...The energy a person spends playing video games could be better spent somewhere else. Like drugs, video games artificially increase dopamine levels in the brain without providing you with any skills. You get all the psychological rewards of winning a basketball game or learning piano without any of the real, tangible rewards. (Fox)

First of all, dopamine is a chemical the brain uses for rewarding and pleasure. So therefore, physical sports and activities release dopamine too. So while yes, drugs do release dopamine, it is artificial and that is not the only thing they do. Whereas video games provide pleasure and reward in much the same way as physical activities do. So this is where Fox’s statement loses its validity, because video games do offer tangible rewards, they do not give people false pleasure like drugs do, and most of all, video games do not make people aggressive. If you dedicate yourself to video games, you can make an incredible living from it, in much the same way as regular sports. Plus you get to enjoy yourself while staying safe (whereas drugs harm you in more ways than artificial dopamine), and the progress you will make in your games, or the skills you will acquire are just as tangible as anything else in this world. And while some people might become verbally aggressive in games, these people likely already had low self-esteem and would have become aggressive anyways, but at least in this environment they cannot physically abuse anyone like the stereotypical school bully. Which does not mean that it is right to verbally abuse people, but in the end, that is not a video game problem. All-in-all, the evidence stated by James Fox claiming that video games are bad for your mental and emotional health is invalid.

The last health category that will be brought up in this essay is physical health, and while pretty much everyone believes that video games are terrible for your physical health, they should also realize some of the subtle physical skills video games improve. One of the things that most people think is unhealthy about video games, is that they are sedentary and do not provide much physical activity. But, physical activity is not everything in physical health. Video games can actually improve your eyesight and sensitivity, and therefore, improve your reaction time. Video games are being used to help train people going into the medical field, and with that same technology, fitness games are being created. One memorable example was the Wii Fit/Wii Fit Plus games on the Nintendo Wii. They used the game controllers and other accessories to allow gamers to exercise while having fun. The four-time Webby-award-winning website, Mental Floss, has pointed out an interesting physical condition that video games can help: “Another [study] had participants try to play games using only their ‘lazy’ eye, with the ‘good’ one obscured. Those players showed significant, sometimes normalized improvement in the affected eye” (Mental Floss). As this quote clearly explains, video games have been shown to help focus “lazy eyes”. In spite of these subtle physical improvements, there are slightly more obvious negative effects, as pointed out once more by James Fox: “Sedentary behavior, such as playing video games excessively, increases your risk for health problems...If you look down one day and realize you are overweight, it’s simply because you’ve committed yourself to a screen" (Fox). No, this is not how this works. Of course doing something too much can lead to negative effects, but that applies to everything, even physical sports and active activities. That being said, however, sedentary behavior has been a bit of a problem for gamers. But with new generations, people have become more aware of such problems, and come up with solutions. Nowadays, there are “gamer chairs” that are supposed to help your posture. The 20-20-20 rule has been created to help with eye strain. And bad snacking habits that can lead to being overweight are not always the result of gaming, there are people with bad snacking habits who have those problems independently from video games. Adversely, there are people who play games all the time and eat more healthily than most people. The bottom line is, sedentary behavior is a  lifestyle issue, which can be encouraged by playing video games, but in the current generation, awareness of these problems has allowed solutions to pop up everywhere you look. Video games are definitely healthy for your physical health, as long as you properly take care of yourself, just like in any sport, so Fox’s claim that video games lead to sedentary behavior is therefore irrelevant.

But wait, there’s more. Contrary to the exaggerated belief people hold that video games will melt your brain and you will become dumb, it should be very easy to see that some video games actually increase awareness of the outside world and could and should be used as educational tools! While education is not health-related, video games provide ample educational material. Some games, like Minecraft, have introduced relatively unknown animals and minerals. During 2021, the Caves & Cliffs update for Minecraft introduced the axolotl, a relatively unknown endangered species. Minecraft also has a mineral called “lapis lazuli”, which is a real mineral that has been used throughout history. Yet, you could ask pretty much any non-gamer and they would have no idea what lapis lazuli is. The education list for Minecraft could go on, but there are other educational games. Games like Fortnite encourage pop-culture awareness, introducing in-game playable characters such as Ariana Grande (Singer), Master Chief (Halo), Marshmello (Singer), and Michael Jordan (NBA Player). And many games, such as The Legend of Zelda and Mario, encourage puzzle-solving skills. In fact, there is an entire genre of video games dedicated to puzzle-solving. Quinn Levandoski (A high school English teacher who has been writing about video games for eleven years now) has pointed out in a Screenrant article:

Ubisoft added the Discovery Tour mode to Assassin's Creed Origins and Odyssey. This mode was designed for use by teachers as an educational tool to teach students about ancient Egypt and Greece. Discovery Tour lets players either walk around traditionally or automatically move between points of interest paired with narrated informational accounts of how the object or area ties into real history. (Levandoski)

Some games (namly Role-Playing-Games, or RPGs) live out history in interactive fashion. This is the case with the Assassin’s Creed games, among other, lesser-known historical games. Between history, brain games, and modern-day-awareness, video games provide many educational opportunities.

Having had the opportunity to read this essay, it should be clear at this point that video games offer many health and educational benefits. Many people like James Fox believe that video games will “rot” your brain, lead to unhealthy weights, and encourage violent behavior. But on the contrary, video games can help your social life by creating new friendships, and maintaining old ones. They can lift your mood and help your mental and emotional state. They can help with motor skills, reflexes, and other subtle physical features. And finally, they are also a decent educational tool. The media has often made out that video games are corrupting people, and this essay has proven them false. But by spreading video game awareness, you can help put an end to these false claims!

Works Cited List

“15 Surprising Benefits of Playing Video Games”. Mental Floss, Jul 8. 2019, mentalfloss.com/article/65008/15-surprising-benefits-playing-video-games. Accessed 11 Mar 2022

Anderton, Kevin. “The Impact Of Gaming: A Benefit To Society [Infographic]”. Forbes, Jun 25. 2018, forbes.com/sites/kevinanderton/2018/06/25/the-impact-of-gaming-a-benefit-to-society-infographic/?sh=34346b2a269d. Accessed 11 Mar 2022

Fox, James. “Video Games are Bad For Your Health”. Georgia State Signal, May 24. 2018, georgiastatesignal.com/video-games-are-bad-for-you/. Accessed 26 Apr 2022

Levandoski, Quinn. “10 Games That Nailed Historical Accuracy”. Screenrant, Oct 18. 2021, screenrant.com/video-games-most-historically-accurate/. Accessed 15 Mar 2022