Video Games: good hobby or bad hobby

[secret]

,,,

[plowmanjoe]

Originally Posted by secret

So...new reports suggest that video games are good for you. They say that video games help hand-eye coordination and that most video gamers tend to excel in teamwork and school...Then, there are reports of video games causing people to go mad and recluse. You know how they blame GTA4 and Halo 3 for those recent homicides..

i think video games are good and bad. but not in terms of homicidal behavior, because i don't believe video games are to blame for that.

[STARSCREAM]

They are good.

[JonD7]

to be completely honest... video games help me be a less stressed out person, ever since my PS3 died a few weeks ago(on the 23rd to be exact) i've been cranky...*shifty eyes*

[toef]

Originally Posted by JonD7

to be completely honest... video games help me be a less stressed out person, ever since my PS3 died a few weeks ago(on the 23rd to be exact) i've been cranky...*shifty eyes*

Good and bad. One downside to video games is they are purely a waste of time. At the end of the day, if you beat a game, or reach the maximum level, what have you really done? You've just used up xx amount of hours of your life, and was it really worth it? Wow, that's deep.

So, sure, they're fun to play, and there's nothing wrong with it as a hobby, but I think it has to be done in moderation...unless you really don't care about passing time.

If you take up a more crafty hobby, like woodworking, sewing, etc, you will still get the satisfaction of doing something that's fun to do, but after all your hours of work, you actually have something tangible that you can continue enjoying. Trade-ish hobbies like cooking, or working on cars, have the benefit of learning new things, and actually being able to put them to use in the future (and possibly saving money, instead of eating out as much, or paying other people to do minor maintenance on your car). Learning a new language can also be a fun hobby, and quite useful (if it's a language that can be used in your area...e.g. Chinese if you leave near a Chinatown, or Spanish if you live in Texas, etc).

[pBLU-RAYs3]

I thought of this hastily.

Pros: 1) keeps prisoners stress free. 2) keeps you busy at home 3) learn skills.
Cons: 1) gaming has caused certain individuals to end up in prison. 2) too busy at home therefore hurting relationships 3) learn useless skills like tapping like a maniac.

[Mxr5150]

Great hobby

[red_5ive]

Originally Posted by pBLU-RAYs3

I thought of this hastily.

Pros: 1) keeps prisoners stress free. 2) keeps you busy at home 3) learn skills.
Cons: 1) gaming has caused certain individuals to end up in prison. 2) too busy at home therefore hurting relationships 3) learn useless skills like tapping like a maniac.

I had a girlfriend dump me back in college because of X-Wing (PC game)! But honestly, it was a stress relief as I made the big mistake of taking calculus in the summer. Being a short term course, it was literally 5 hours a day/5 days a week of class, then 4 hours a night of homework. All I did in between was go to the gym for an hour, eat, sleep, and play X-Wing

But yeah, games are fun, but if you get too addicted it can definitely ruin things - that's when it's bad. But really, that's true of anything that you spend too much time on, but it's just soooo easy to sit there with a controller in your hand and before you know it 3 hours have gone by.

[BluRay2344]

awesome hobby!

[SkillzthatKillz]

Originally Posted by toefer

Good and bad. One downside to video games is they are purely a waste of time. At the end of the day, if you beat a game, or reach the maximum level, what have you really done? You've just used up xx amount of hours of your life, and was it really worth it? Wow, that's deep.

So, sure, they're fun to play, and there's nothing wrong with it as a hobby, but I think it has to be done in moderation...unless you really don't care about passing time.

If you take up a more crafty hobby, like woodworking, sewing, etc, you will still get the satisfaction of doing something that's fun to do, but after all your hours of work, you actually have something tangible that you can continue enjoying. Trade-ish hobbies like cooking, or working on cars, have the benefit of learning new things, and actually being able to put them to use in the future (and possibly saving money, instead of eating out as much, or paying other people to do minor maintenance on your car). Learning a new language can also be a fun hobby, and quite useful (if it's a language that can be used in your area...e.g. Chinese if you leave near a Chinatown, or Spanish if you live in Texas, etc).

what you say is true but if you play games online then you are competing and interacting with other human beings...and yes i love video games lol

[SkillzthatKillz]

Originally Posted by red_5ive

I had a girlfriend dump me back in college because of X-Wing (PC game)! But honestly, it was a stress relief as I made the big mistake of taking calculus in the summer. Being a short term course, it was literally 5 hours a day/5 days a week of class, then 4 hours a night of homework. All I did in between was go to the gym for an hour, eat, sleep, and play X-Wing

But yeah, games are fun, but if you get too addicted it can definitely ruin things - that's when it's bad. But really, that's true of anything that you spend too much time on, but it's just soooo easy to sit there with a controller in your hand and before you know it 3 hours have gone by.

instead of playing x-wing you shouldve done something else with your girlfriend. i'll give you a hint; it starts with an F and ends with a K and rhymes with Duck lol

[BluHavik]

Originally Posted by SkillzthatKillz

instead of playing x-wing you shouldve done something else with your girlfriend. i'll give you a hint; it starts with an F and ends with a K and rhymes with Duck lol

nm, rhymes with killed it

[RClarke]

I've been online gaming via PC for YEARS and i've met some amazing people and still talk to them from 6-8 years ago, on a daily basis. Also, everything i've done in my life mistakes and all I take it as if I didn't do it, i wouldn't be the person I am today (this includes playing video games). I am completely satisifed with my accomplishments thus far in life and who I am today, so yes, video gaming = GOOD.

[NARMAK]

It can help you relax but as others say, it should be done in moderation & i frequently fall in & out of gaming addiction, some will last weeks, others months but i think it all depends on if your gaming in free time or time you should be doing something more important

Just try & keep your gaming in spare time & know that gaming should revolve AROUND YOU, not you revolving around gaming

[tntkain]

I think it is a good hobby. Keeps your brain active while playing instead of just "zoning out" witle you watch tv

[Petra_Kalbrain]

Great hobby... bad habit...

[Petra_Kalbrain]

Originally Posted by SkillzthatKillz

instead of playing x-wing you shouldve done something else with your girlfriend. i'll give you a hint; it starts with an F and ends with a K and rhymes with Duck lol

How is a person supposed to FIRETRUCK with their girlfriend? Honestly!!!

[andyman1970]

They are a complete waste of time. Only a bunch of NERDS and overgrown children who can't let go of their adolescence play video games. Not to mention the people who lose their grip on reality and try to live out the game in reality.

[RClarke]

Some people spend more time posting on forums in a day then most play video games.

[heathward]

Originally Posted by andyman1970

They are a complete waste of time. Only a bunch of NERDS and overgrown children who can't let go of their adolescence play video games. Not to mention the people who lose their grip on reality and try to live out the game in reality.

i hope you are kidding, because your avatar screams out HUGE NERD. i also see you are a buck rogers fan? you should look in the mirror first before calling any of us a nerd.

i'd like to add that soccer moms all over the world are pledging allegiance to the Wii and claiming that the video games have brought their family back together. still a waste of time?

i know i've posted about this before, but Discover magazine did a large piece about the benefits of video games in an attempt to put all the propoganda and bad karma to rest once and for all. this is not Maxim, or Men's Health, or Sports Illustrated...this is Discover: a scientific publication describing, analyzing, and applying the results of actual research.

A host of new studies suggest that video games build rather than diminish cognitive skills. Research reveals that typical teenage gamers are anything but addlebrained. "We had a hard time finding kids who were bad at school, but good at games."

Complex video games require far more than simple hand-eye coordination. Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, the latest installment in a popular Tom Clancy–inspired series, taxes stealth and navigational skills as the player explores huge virtual environments in the guise of an undercover federal agent. To complete the game, you need to think simultaneously on four distinct levels.

1. MANUAL INTERFACE

To control the movements and actions of your on-screen character, you must memorize several dozen distinct button combinations on a video console handset or a PC keyboard. That’s a far cry from the simple jump-or-shoot interfaces of primitive arcade-style games.

2. CHARACTER VIEW

As the game progresses, you take in a shifting landscape of information about the virtual world, such as the sudden appearance of enemies, visual cues that suggest the existence of a puzzle to be solved, and overlaid interface elements that track your character’s health.

3. INTERNALIZED MAP

Most games involve exploring vast worlds as you struggle to learn the rules. You must remember all the twists and turns you’ve made, or you’ll get hopelessly lost. Lose your bearings on this giant ship in Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and your character may end up dead.

4. BALANCING ACT

Playing complex games involves juggling multiple objectives, choosing what to prioritize and what to defer. The goals affect decision making on other conceptual levels: which buttons to press, how you interact with other characters, and which areas you choose to explore.

Among all popular media today, video games are unique in their reliance on the regime of competence principle. Movies or television shows don’t start out with simple dialogue or narrative structures and steadily build in complexity depending on the aptitude of individual viewers. Books don’t pause midchapter to confirm that their readers’ vocabularies have progressed enough to move on to more complicated words. By contrast, the training structure of video games dates back to the very origins of the medium; even Pong got more challenging as a player’s skills improved. Moreover, only a fraction of today’s games involve explicit violence, and sexual content is a rarity. But the regime of competence is everywhere.