Up until a few years ago, the view of video games and those who took part in them wasn’t the greatest. It looked down upon, similarly to how we see people glued to their smartphones nowadays as they hope to gain ‘likes’ on a picture of their lunch. It was seen as something to give a young kid to keep them occupied for a few hours whilst the grown-ups did the important things, and if you were in, say, your thirties, forties, or older, you needed to take a look at yourself.

Thankfully, as time has passed, people have cooled their judgement and have decided to be more liberal with their views on video games. Maybe it’s due to the realisation that it’s a billion-dollar industry. Or perhaps they just gave up being the antagonist because they were sick of looking like a boring old dinosaur.

But just why and how did the stigma disappear? What do video games bring to the human race that wouldn’t have been here without them? Why are they so loved? Let’s have a little look at some of the reasons why they have such a grip on the recreational world.    

Everyone Can Enjoy Them

It has always been the case, but not every person who looked at them realised. Perhaps down to stubbornness, but mainly the ignorance and lack of education. Years ago, you’d hear ‘I don’t want to play a soccer game, I’ll just go outside and play soccer’. It’s an acceptable thing to say, but it was always tinged with a sense of superiority and condescension. In recent years, more and more people are getting involved because of the sheer brilliance of some of the games, and the genuine value you can get for your money. There is a genre for every man, woman and child out there.     

It’s Becoming Even More Entertaining

In recent times, the level has risen so very high in terms of the entertainment somebody can get from playing or watching. In terms of viewing games or viewing other players, streaming services provided by the likes of Twitch and YouTube has added a whole new dimension to what was already and booming business. Kids and adults alike can hop onto an app or a website and watch anyone from a skilled player to an average player who will make them laugh hysterically.

When it comes to the duty of actually playing, the graphics, the stories and the whole experience give off a feel that’s similar to being engrossed in an Oscar-winning movie or an Emmy Award-winning TV series. The bar was raised, and you can be taken through an entire roller-coaster of emotions.

Careers

There is a lot of money to be made in this particular industry. And with it being so very diverse, there are a bunch of ways people are getting into it. We talked before about the streaming services and how you can become a content-creating entertainer (and, boy, isn’t that a money-maker if you can get it right!), but there are way more careers available. Anywhere from game designer, to writer,  to voice actor. There are so many opportunities available from all of the jobs being created.   

They Improve Skills

There were always seen as hobbies whereby you stare aimlessly at a screen, destroying your eyesight and killing your brain cells. Thankfully, thanks to a few experiments and a hint of common sense, the masses are able to understand that it’s not the case. If you’re intelligent, you’re intelligent. If you’re not so intelligent, it wasn’t the games that made it that way. It’s quite the contrary, video games have proven to increase cognitive abilities such as reading, taking in information, remembering things and attention span. They also improve physical skills such as speed and hand-eye coordination.    

They Inspire Creativity

When you’re a youngster, and you see all of the different types of landscapes, characters, stories and magic that video games can conjure up, you take in on board like a sponge, and it adds to your imagination. It has the power to open your mind like that of a novel or a movie. We mentioned before about how it could inspire people into creating something of their own and making it into an occupation, and with the wild and wacky stuff that’s around now, the creativity of kids and adults will be flowing for years to come.

They Are Gateway Into Other Hobbies

Again, we’ve mentioned a few times about how it can get people into an exciting job within the industry that they’ll love, but it can also turn people onto hobbies that perhaps they didn’t think they’d ever be associated with. For example, in the early 2000s, skateboarding was quite a popular sport, but the success of the Tony Hawk Pro Skater franchise turned heads young and old into skaters and, around this era, you saw endless skateboards flying around. Another example is from the popularity of driving games and how they attracted people: they were so very action-packed and filled with customizable ideas that it made people want to go out and do it for real. It created hobbies and jobs just by being fun to do on the screen.

We Are Blessed With More Impressive Tech Every Year

It feels as though every week we’re hearing about the new and interesting stuff being brought into the gaming world. And with the technology at our disposal, there will probably be more mind-blowing things to come. You just have to look at the likes of Virtual Reality and where that could take us. The fact that more and more impressive things are being created surely makes even the biggest sceptics stand up and take notice.

The Myths Were Busted

You’ve heard it before, haven’t you? Violent video games apparently made kids and adults want to buy a weapon and hurt others. It just wasn’t true. The mentally ill were that way long before Grand Theft Auto and, unfortunately, will be for some time. Also, while video game addiction is a thing, it’s not glueing every man, woman and child to a screen.