Video games are insurmountable if you were born in the 1980's-present.
Popularity of video games was raging amongst all ages at the start of the 1980's when the first arcade games gained popularity, followed by the gaming consoles that were first introduced for home play.
Studies were conducted in 2015 by the entertainment software association into the computer and video game industry and they concluded that a total of 22 billion dollars was spent in 2014. The essential facts can be found here.
Creators, developers and artist push the gaming industry into rapidly increasing heights.
Remembering back to the first gaming console that I was infatuated with was the nintendo. The graphics were shit, but it still grappled my attention, and monopolized much of my time. Then came the playstation.
I never had the pleasure of owning a gaming console at home. I am not sure why that was, but that didn't stop me from spending endless amounts of time at my friend's houses, as well as at home on the desktop.
Days would turn into nights, nights would turn into early mornings. We all go through phases in life, I guess between the ages of 10-15 I was hooked on video games.
The energy and fuel I had to play was impeccable. By the time I peeled myself of the computer in the early morning hours my mind was mush like roadkill on a busy highway.
My parents did what they could to put a stop to the irrational time spent playing on the computer. However I waited until my parents were snoring, I silently crept downstairs into the den and pursued my engagement until I would achieve a milestone in the game.
There was no stopping or getting tired. It was endurance that lasted far beyond my blood shot watery eyes from the beaming screen in the dark room.
I was obsessed. I felt compelled to complete the missions, when I did I felt a sense of pride, like I won the pulitzer prize. Even though the only thing won was my desolation.
There was no moderation for me at all, until I found resistance. The day I realized that winning in the virtual world did nothing for my social welfare I lost all interest in the gaming world and began to live my adventurous teenage years.
Well I think you get the point, now let me tell you what the experts say about gaming. As a matter of fact unless it becomes an obsession, as I have mentioned in my last post everything should be done in moderation, it is beneficial and you can obtain a host of skills.
I would have never thought I would say this, but playing video games gives the users insight, it also gives you the ability to be a canny strategizer. I am sure it matters which games you do play, and in my opinion what matters the most is the amount of time spent playing the games.
I am not going to sit here and be a hater, and a hypocrite and tell you don't play video games, instead I encourage playing video games, just do it wisely.
I suppose I can look at it in a positive light of my obsession and how much perseverance I had in gaming. It was a war of attrition. Me against the gaming industry.
Our lives revolve around video games whether we accept it or not. With new technology emerging such as virtual reality, the force behind this will be immense. It will go past the generation gap, and reach all demographics.
Even now younger children, much younger than the teenagers who were the primary consumers in the 80's and 90's, are encouraged to play games on tablets and different kinds of consoles, as a 'learning' stepping stone.
I never got into the violence of video games and it's effects, and I feel I left it out for a reason. I disagree that violence in video games makes people want to commit crime, I will leave it at that.
I do want to conclude that video games have changed the world, the perception of many, the cognitive skills especially in the younger generations. It will continue to evolve into something that is inimaginable.
Thank you for taking the time to read this post, until we meet again. To be continued....
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