According to parents, games are computer games, which
control the lives of their children, sometimes to an autistic level. But
scientific research shows us that games teach our children some great skills.
A group of knights, dressed in long capes runs through the gates into a great
castle, straight into the garden they want to conquer. With arrows and swords
they defeat their enemies. While the mob cheers out loud, they take over the
whole structure. This is a scene from an online game called Runescape. Like in
other games like World of Warcraft, the players combine their strengths in
guilds. On a daily base, the fantasy world is the point of interest for these
groups.
Young employees often start their jobs with lots of gaming experiences. Most of the time their gaming period has been much longer than the years in which they went to school.
Gaming does something with its players. In the past many people thought those games were too violent or too addictive. But in fact, this is not true and there are positive elements. Gamers are used to reaching their goal, even in very complex situations, according to American research from the company IBM and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Online games like World of Warcraft are played with thousands, sometimes even millions of players together online on the net, where they inhabit their fantasy worlds. Those worlds are very complex and large; it's possible to learn professions, gain skills, earn money, and to conquer land. The games constantly challenge their players with difficult quests and different kinds of levels you have to achieve.
Aid of other players is the key to success in these kind of games. Those teams of players from players from all over the world log in on the same times to plan their actions. Some good teams can't be joined immediately, sometimes you have to be of a specific level to join or they have to be online on certain hours in the week.
The guilds in World of Warcraft do things like killing monsters, conquering land, or completing quests. With those so-called raids, it is not about brute force, but about insight and discipline. (A Dutch guild, Dutch Clan, for example wants their members to be able to be online at least three times in the week from 20.15 till 23.30 to join raids.)
The research showed that this kind of games, MMORPG's, teach the youth starting from a young age to work together. According to the institutes, gamers are the leaders of the future.
On a young age they learn to take risks and to communicate with an international team. Players who do not share their strategic insights will stand alone in a matter of time. The children also learn that hard work will be rewarded. When you play long, or play on a clever way you will gain money, skills and status. Those rewards, according to the research, have a positive effect and will give the gamers a feeling of satisfaction.
Gaming makes young employees used to things like: sharing knowledge, teamwork and leadership. When large companies want good employees they also have to interest themselves in gaming. There are two very important things about games, which could also be used in the business-world. Those points are action and integration.
In games, every move has its consequences. Everything they do has influence on their game. This is called integration. Gamers are also great team players. They do not discriminate or judge people on status, age or sex. They judge people on their skill and knowledge.
The art of those games is that players work hard and achieve goals on a voluntary base. The gamers learn from their faults. So those games are more important and have more positive effects than lots of people think.
Article provided courtesy of Shinrak - Bronze Dragonflight Server