Ms. Sharon Gammell
English 1301.049
Apr. 21, 2014
My Life Playing videogames is one of the most beneficial uses of one's free time on the market, and one of the most rewarding medias ever invented. Videogames were first introduced in the 1970’s. By the end of that decade, they had become a preferred leisure activity. The increasingly realistic and exciting nature of electronic games has helped to make them enormously popular with children and youth. Sarah Glazer, a political science researcher, says more than 75 percent of American youth, under the age of 18, own a videogame console. Among these youth, on a typical day at least 40 percent of those who are a part of the 75 percent play videogames. Most of the games on the market are appropriate for these young players, and the best of them can bring a cornucopia of positive benefits. Besides being fun, these games lead to furtherance in cognitive and or strategizing capabilities and a beneficial social community and even a career opportunities in professional videogame leagues. Videogames, whether they are on the computer or some other gaming device, do provide cognitive thinking and strategy exercises. Two main examples as to how videogames are beneficial to a person's quickness, strategic abilities, communication and patience are fast-paced videogames, and logic or puzzle videogames. The fast-paced nature of a first-person shooter or FPS videogame requires a lot of skill. This skill is procured not only from leveling up through the ranks and unlocking new weapons, but also by acquiring a quick reaction time. Strategic ability is required to maneuver one’s self around the map in such a way as to gain an advantage over his or her opponents. Such strategies include the ability to perceive when to flank or to advance on the enemy team. The act of communicating one’s fellow comrades in battle while devising a plan of attack and carrying it out as a unit takes patience and cooperation. The art of the puzzle game, however, is a much more complex thing. The puzzles range from three-dimensional games to two-dimensional, and they require and build a different type of cognitive thinking. Some puzzle games demand and or build the ability to see patterns and do the required act quickly. Other puzzle games are quite similar to a 1000 piece picture puzzle in that they require and teach a person patience while they figure out what goes where and how it fits. Similar to a game of chess, these puzzle games build one’s brain by using a person's ability to think and plan ahead and strategize their next move. The fact that videogames can and do improve quickness, strategic abilities, communication and patience, prove that videogames are undoubtedly beneficial. Valve Cooperation is one of the most well-known game producing organizations and is popular for their gaming engine, or what Valve refers to as a “social entertainment platform,” Steam. Matthew Shaer, an avid gamer and reporter, states that steam enables players to choose, buy and play over one thousand games. It also allows the user to share their favorite games as well as recommend and modify them, making Steam a community. This gaming engine made online gaming easy and surprisingly affordable as there is neither packaging costs nor delivery. An evolution was begun which led to more gaming tournaments around the world by private individuals as well as Valve Game Tournaments powered by Steam. Valve Game Tournaments permit a willing candidate to purchase a license from Steam and host a tournament and to invite players to participate for a fee. This user-based social activity permits people all around the world to meet, talk and pit themselves against others in an extremely enjoyable fashion while still supporting the Steam community at large. This community, tightly knit and enthusiastic, brings people who would likely never meet together in a fun, sociable, interactive and beneficial way. For some gaming for a