Skills You Didn't Know You Could Learn From Video Games

Skills You Didn't Know You Could Learn From Video Games

Skills You Didn't Know You Could Learn From Video Games

Video games might not the first medium you think of when it comes to learning useful skills. Of course, there are games specifically designed for learning and to be educational, but even in games intended only for entertainment, there are surprisingly useful skills that can be learned. Here are some of the most useful that you’ve probably never thought of.

Patience

Old arcaded games put players through repetitive gameplay to see how far you can go. Role-playing games often require repetitive tasks to level up.

The ability to put up with repetition is a handy skill, whether for getting through homework, work projects, or admin tasks.

Putting up with something that isn’t much fun right now in order to secure something better in the future, or delayed gratification, is a skill. You’ll need patience in life, and you can learn it through games, whether it’s a learning game, or a COD mobile emulator.

Strategic Planning

Puzzle games and strategy games are always popular, and reach a wider than ever before audience thanks to mobile gaming. Both casual and regular gamers enjoy gameplay that encourages planning and strategy.

This is a valuable life skill, for tasks like planning income over expenditure, a five-year plan, or a career path. Thinking a few steps ahead is also useful in social situations, such as considering possible outcomes of whatever you might say or approaching tense situations.

Socialization

Gamers are often stereotyped as being anti-social, but this is not always true. For many, gaming is an important part of social interaction.

Whether you’re playing with friends in the same room, or across the world online, gamers are communicating, and chatting as they play. In fact, for some more introverted people, gaming can be an outlet to work on their social skills.

If you play in a guild or a clan, that socialization can also build leadership skills. There’s more overlap than you might think between managing a guild and managing a work project team. Planning schedules, mobilizing people towards a goal, keeping people motivated, and resolving conflicts are all skills that can be taken from games and put into practice in real life.

Mental Prowess

There are lots of games that are designed to improve brain functionality. One popular example is Nintendo’s Brain Age, which included a range of activities to support mental math, reading speed, and concentration.

Other games can train your brain too. Sudoku helps with logical deduction. Tetris develops pattern recognition skills. There are lots of games that support mental skills, by working your memory, matching, and creative thinking abilities.

Like muscles, the brain needs to be worked. An interactive game is a fun way to exercise your mind.

Empathy

Game designers are putting more emotions into games now, and a strong narrative is valued more than ever. Some of the biggest titles of recent years have been emotionally weighty stories.

These games make you relate to the characters and picture yourself in their position, even if you haven’t lived through their experience. The game may make you make tough decisions, with no right or good outcome. This develops the player’s sense of empathy and sympathy.