Video Games Boost Visual Skills

cmburns69 writes "A new study published in Nature Magazine (MSNBC summary) suggests that playing action games improves visual skills. Among other things, young adults who played action games such as Grand Theft Auto and Medal of Honor regularly could track up to five objects at a time - 30% more than non-players. Apparently, the game type is important, as ten hours of the block-rotating game Tetris failed to improve test scores."

Comments

Games are not just entertainment

[Kethinov]

Several friends of mine credit their above average vocabularies and problem solving abilities to RPGs among other games. There's a reason why most nerdy smart people play video games!

Re:Games are not just entertainment

[RyatNrrd]

A pity then even nerdy smart people can seldom recognise the fact that correlation does not tell you the direction of causation. Do RPGs make you smarter, or do smart people like just RPGs?

Another possibility...

[Peter S. Housel]

... is that people who can't track that many objects at once are turned off by games and don't play them. The article doesn't say whether they tried to account for this factor or not.

Re:Another possibility...

[The Only Druid]

This is unfortunately a flaw of this type of scientific experiment. While it seems to fit the formula for a proper experiment at first (make a prediction, test it with an experimental group while not testing it on a control group, compare results with your prediction, analyze), its flawed in that it doesn't make it clear whether its a causal connection or merely coincidence (i.e. the two traits - game playing and better visual acuity - may be connected not because they affect each other, but because of some third locus), and moreover if its causal it doesn't determine which causes which.

The way to test this, of course, is to test the groups' visual abilities first at the onset of the experiment, then have them play the games extensively for a lengthy period of time (several weeks, months, or years depending on how long such neurological structures take to emerge), then test those abilities again.

Re:Another possibility...

[snarkh]

They did the some experiments training people as well to play computer games. Sure enough, performance improved.

I don't see this result as anything particularly surprising. If you work out, you become stronger. If you have to track multiple objects on screen, your tracking ability improves.

Re:Another possibility...

[MoTec]

The article's references do mention that they compared "habitual" game players with non game players and (no suprise) they scored higher. It makes sense that a lot of that would have to do with what you mentioned.

It also mentions, however: In a fifth experiment, non-players trained on an action video game show marked improvement from their pre-training abilities, thereby establishing the role of playing in this effect.

So, even tho the habitual gamers outscored non-videogame players there is apparently some "training" possible.

What about mech games!

[Buzz_Litebeer]

I had to track radar, what weapon i was on, ammo amounts, and what direction my top toros was facing!

what did they say about mech games!

oh man, I feel so left out.

But on a more serious note. I think these games do increase twitch re-actions for people, to be even remotely good you have to be able to identify a things distance, and even slight variations on where it exists in space to determine if you are going to fire at it.

Just taking medal of honor for example, many times on servers which force the skin type, it can be very hard to determine if someone is behind a wall because of the lack of contrast between default uniforms and the background.

The ability to know how thick an object is can really help determine how abnormal its shape is versus what it should be.

Anyone thats played these games a while, and has become familiar with where things are on there maps can almost run them backward. I used to play on a map called canalzone (the original for qwtf) that was "huge" and I could run it backward, or looking straight at the ground, as long as i knew where my start positon was. You need a good feel for how large the 3d space is relative to your character in the game to be able to do these kinds of things.

Now on games where weapons have travel time in space, knowledge of 3d space is even more important, games such as mechwarrior 4, coupled with some lag, require to know the movement speed in space so you can lead the target. If you dont have any idea how they are going to change relative shape vs distance in space, you are much less likely to hit your target.

so the hypothesis that games can affect how you determine things in 3d space seems completely plausible to me, because having "trained" people to play many 3d games myself (planetfortress.com/canalzone) (www.themfb.com search on wayback machine or google) I can tell you that the ability to have a good twitch instinct and judgment factors about objects in 3d space can really help.

how about loss of vision?

[brer_rabbit]

Sitting in front of a CRT all day playing games does wonders for your eyes. Those l33t visual skills aren't going to help when you can't see more than 10 feet in front of you. You're better off playing with yourself, at least going blind that way is an urban legend.

Re:nothing but pratfalls

[drinkypoo]

I haven't had an accident in some time, at least not one related to aggression (I hydroplaned and spun in petaluma going north on 101, sigh) and I'm still an aggressive driver. The trick is to learn both how to read other drivers, and to learn when not to be aggressive.

I tried driving defensively for a while, but I just got shat upon. Now I still zoom up alongside people who don't appear to be paying adequate attention, I just assume they're going to fuck up and I watch for it. I don't get myself into situations I can't brake or accelerate (or otherwise manouver) out of.

As for the food, though, you're spot on. Eating properly helps a lot. Getting enough rest does just as much for you. Your body needs fuel and sleep, and not giving it enough of both will ruin your productivity, or at least your consistency.

Re:"Game type is important"

[drinkypoo]

Tetris will help you develop different skills than, say, a flight simulator. Tetris helps you identify shapes rapidly, and identify relationships between shapes (the dropping piece, and the holes in the playfield.)