Effects of Online Games on Students

Taking part in the virtual game can impact students positively and negatively. Some parents think video games only cause harm to their children. Others don’t even bother restricting screen time. Both extremes are equally wrong. Playing them in moderation is the key.

The positive impact of online games

Improves accuracy, and logic

Playing video games and accomplishing different levels help you learn the tricks for completing an activity. Several tries and repetitions lead to accuracy and preservation in attempts. Simply put, logic and accuracy play a crucial role in getting desirable results. Hence, if the player does not use these two elements, their efforts will not succeed. The majority of the video gaming addicts know how to complete the levels because of their improved logic and accuracy.

Besides, pre-written research papers on this topic also reveal that online games for students improve precision in decisions.

Improves problem-solving skill

To win a game, you must recognize its strategy. For instance, you must try different approaches or look for various layouts to complete the levels. Recognizing these strategies and applying them in the virtual world enhance problem-solving skills in the students.

Besides, another cause and effect of online games are that the players also learn from their mistakes. When you make a mistake while playing, you instantly know it. For example, if you fail to jump at an obstacle while running, you’ll end up going back to the start. Thereby, you’ll learn to understand when is the right time to jump to cross that obstacle. It makes you adjust to the environment of the game constantly.

And, in real life, it is a critical life skill. Learning from mistakes and keeping moving on is the key to success. You will understand that changing your tactic or strategy is crucial instead of giving up as you keep playing.

Improves activity of the brain

One of the key advantages of online games for college students is that they help with brain development. It is well said that to improve the functioning of your brain, it is necessary to utilize it in a positive context because a work-shy brain can do nothing but waste time resources that can’t be reversed. So, many online activities such as adventures, puzzles, or strategies are out there to stimulate your brain activity and underpin your intellectual health to be used for the best. Besides, these activities are critical for developing essential life skills such as:

• Memory: as a player, you must store information, memorize rules and routes. It helps you develop memory. And, having a great memory helps students achieve their academic and career goals efficiently.
• Motor skill: many games require hand and eye coordination for successful completion. Constant practice enhances your visual-spatial ability. The motor skill not only helps you become a better player, but it is also a critical life skill.
• Reading and math skills: reading messages and rules allow you to be attentive and comprehend the rules and strategies. As a result, you improve your reading skills. Some students online games also require quantitative analysis to win. Thereby, many games improve reading and math skills.
• Improved decision making: to complete a level, it is crucial to make the right decision too swiftly. Hence, online players are 25 percent quicker in making the right decision.
• Improved concentration: to succeed in anything, you need focus and concentration. And, these college online games help you improve concentration.

Negative consequences of playing online games

Isolation from society

Continuous attempts to escape reality and increasing dependence on the virtual world are red flags. The negative effects of online games on students include their tendency to isolate themselves from their surroundings. There comes the point in addiction when real human beings, real problems, friends, and family are overtaken by the sense of freedom a gamer finds in games. This worrisome situation is prevalent in many students who lose their sense of reality. Cutting ties from society and societal norms, relationships eventually leads to a lack of empathy, sympathy, and humanity.

Incredibly difficult times are ahead regarding increasing addiction and the negative cons of playing video games. Gaming addicts cannot manage, communicate and interact with fellow beings as normal. Consequently, a gaming addict finds it hard to feel involved in society. Virtual reality replaces reality for them. They tend to live in their own self-created, animated virtual world. Thereby,  the virtual world replaces human emotions and feelings with competition, winning violent instinct.

Addiction

Gaming is associated with psychological problems as well. Many consider it as a syndrome that has many stress-related injuries on the gamer. Mental health is compromised on different levels through gaming preoccupation, withdrawal symptoms, intolerance, downplaying use, and educational loss. The biggest collateral damage of this addiction is the player. Studies suggest that a player is more vulnerable to guilt, mood swings, uncontrollable emotions, and aggressive behavior than a non-gamer.

One of another notable online games problems includes an addictive state of mind due to continuous gameplay.  Wondering how? It is the chemical our brain releases when we are happy and satisfied. The positive feeling, happy state of mind, and pleasure are attained with an increased level of Dopamine. It is a neurotransmitter made in the brain which acts as a chemical messenger. A reward, sense of completion, stage crossed, mission accomplished, and other such connotations all help the player’s brain release dopamine. While dopamine activity is a natural phenomenon, addictive gameplay makes it unnatural to attain pleasure.

Detrimental influence on health

Games for college students have also been linked with sleep deprivation, insomnia, and other anxiety disorders. It also leads to depression, physical stress, and muscle strain due to sitting posture. An online player with this addiction tends to forget eating and skip meals, leading to malnutrition and dehydration. Another alarming situation is continuous eyesight fatigue, which affects mental health.

Moreover, Another concern is exposure to extreme violence prevalent in most games. Violence has become a common element these days. It results in youngsters committing violent crimes, acts, and even suicides.  The virtual world over the years has magnified its severe mental and emotional effects on students’ minds. Students tend to lack concentration and focus on their studies.

All in all, the impact of this side of the digital depends on its usage. It can have both positive and negative effects. If used in a positive context, the adverse effects can be reversed. Hence, ensure you choose to play an educational game that enhances your skills.