VIDEO GAMES ARE GOOD FOR US

During a June in Lahore, sometime in the early 1990s, under the sultry heat of the day, a boy in his early teens set out to live his dream. The desire burning inside him was further fueled by the scorching weather that would have surely made the eggs hatch. With utter determination to reach his target, the young lad was driven with a sense of fearless motivation, a sense of motivation that was uncanny. The unbearable summers of the fort city of Lahore are known for bringing down the mighty beasts of burden. I have often witnessed camels and horses gasping for breath in such inclement weather of the provincial capital. But this was a boy with no ordinary mission. Striving and toiling, he kept on the move. Giving up was not an option for him so he gave his maximum and beyond, not at all ready to give in to the cruel heatwave. Up above in the cloudless sky, the sun watched him with awe, ignoring everything else in the solar system. “How much more energy should I discharge to bring this chap down!”, he exclaimed. By now, the teenager was drenched in sweat head to toe. But this did not concern him much. What was alarming to him was the condition of the only 10-rupee note in his pocket that he must retain at all costs. This was the only capital he had to live his dream. Perspiring profusely, he sat down under a tree to catch his breath, before continuing the ordeal. Not a minute went by, he was on his feet again. Seemed the less-than-a-minute break was sufficient to regain his strength. “Just a little further around the corner and that will be it”, he pushed himself on. At last, his hard work paid off. He had reached his destination. The minute he stepped inside that arcade games shop; all his energy was restored to the full. The cacophony of the gaming sounds emanating from the arcade was pleasing to his ears. Street fighter, Metal Slug, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, Samurai Shodown, Shinobi, Bomb Jack, Airwolf, the variety went on in front of his satisfied eyes and he could not wait to lay his hands on all of them. The boy proceeded to the token guy and without any hesitation gave him the only 10-rupee note he had in exchange for the silvery and golden coins (arcade game tokens). “This would be such a COOL day to spend gaming”, he said to himself, despite the brutal weather outside he had been through.

I am sure most of the guys, and even some girls, can relate to the above true account. For the love of video games, we did not leave any stone unturned. Such was the addictive aura of the arcade video games that captivated us for years. From the maze arcade genre of PAC-MAN in 1980 to the online battle royale PUBG today, the gaming world has seen astounding technological development. Take Street Fighter 1 as an example. The first release in 1987 gave a two-dimensional gaming platform in which one-on-one fighting matches took place between fighters across the globe. In later years, as the gamers developed this genre, it brought a huge array of fighting characters to choose from and that too in a three-dimensional platform. Today, almost all gaming consoles have the latest version of this particular game. A more fascinating fact is that while getting a gaming experience, we immerse ourselves into the gaming character we represent with our gaming controller. We literally relate to them. To say that the gaming world has been quite fair in entertaining people would not be incorrect. Those who could not afford to own gaming consoles at home, always had the option of resorting to arcade shops in the market where a smorgasbord of games was made available at affordable price.

In pre-apocalyptic Karachi i.e. before the advent of COVID-19 and subsequent lockdown, we could see a fair share of gaming cafes scattered across the city. One gaming cafe, located at some floor of Atrium Mall Saddar, offered action figures of gaming characters on sale. I also found a beautifully compiled catalogue of video games at the cafe’s reception. It made it easier for the prospective gamers to decide which game to start with. Now that we are into lockdowns and trying to exercise social distancing, video games have proved to be one of the best sources of putting time to good use. My close friend’s son calls me Chachu and he often calls me out by saying, “Chachu Chachu, come on let’s play Street Fighter. Papa will play with Guile and Guile only. You can choose any player you like.”

It came as a surprise to me that video games are good for mind and body. A 2013 research conducted by a research institute in Berlin Germany showed that playing video games increases the brain’s grey matter (basically the size of our brain) and helps polish mental processing skills. The experiment took two groups of adults. One group was asked to play the game Super Mario 64 over a period of two months for thirty minutes a day. The other group did not play video games at all. Post experiment, the brains of both the groups were checked with MRI. The results showed that the gamers group showed increase in brain size as well as increased navigation, memory and motor skills. One of the psychiatrists who co-authored the experiment stated that, “Many patients will accept video games more readily than other medical interventions”. Scientists are also studying the effects of video gaming in the treatment of patients who have undergone traumas.

So yes, video games are actually good for us on many levels. Of course, it should be mentioned, like anything, to maintain such benefits, games should be played in moderation. Staying up all night, every single night, to fight off zombies? Maybe not the best thing for our health.