Video Game Obsessed

Some people are obsessed with video games ... is why playing them might not actually be so bad

By
Relationship Advice Expert April Masini

Q: Dear April Masini,

My boyfriend is obsessed with video games and I don't understand it at all. I don't mind playing them with him every now and then, but he wants to play every second of free time. Why do people get obsessed with playing these games? And will they actually help him in any other areas of his life?

Sincerely,

Girlfriend of a Gamer

A:

Dear Girlfriend of a Gamer, 

Of course it's not good to do too much of anything. But playing video games is not all bad, and can actually help you in some areas of life. It's great you want to understand your boyfriend's hobbies a little better, so I'll tell you some of the advantages to playing video games and why some people are so into them.

Benefits of video games:

One thing that video games do help improve is hand-eye coordination. In fact, this is recognized by the U.S. military, which uses these types of games to improve the acuity of pilots, who's vision means life or death -- for them and us.

Professional baseball players also use these games to improve their eye sight. Seeing a curve ball as it is hurtling towards the batter can mean the difference between a game and a loss.

Why people play video games:

There are lots of reasons that people like to play games and step out of their reality. Some people step out of reality in a normal way. Some step out in a clinical way that is not normal. Some step out temporarily and have no problem getting back into real life, others, like the main character in the movie, The Science of Sleep, a Michael Gondry film, have trouble differentiating between reality and non-reality and getting back into reality.

This game playing starts very early when children have imaginary friends, or even play dress up, doctor, or cowboys and Indians. They step outside of their reality to have some fun -- because their real life is pretty sedate.

People who undergo trauma -- physical, sexual, emotional -- will take this idea of stepping out of reality to the extreme and create splinter personalities, as in multiple personality disorder, to deal with the trauma that they cannot deal with in their "real" life. This is different from schizophrenia, which is biological in origin.

Children learn that play time often means having a different world. This inter-personal and intra-personal dynamic does not disappear. In fact, many adults love to play games -- sometimes they create drama in their real lives, and sometimes they play games like board games or virtual world games that allow them to step outside of their everyday life and play.

April Masini -- nicknamed "the new millennium's Dear Abby" by the media, is author of the best-selling books Date Out Of Your League and Think & Date Like A Man, the two (just released) step-by-step dating and relationship manuals, Ideas for a Fun Date and Romantic Date Ideas, and the critically acclaimed dating and relationship online magazine www.AskApril.com.

© 2004-2009 AskApril.com, LLC. All rights reserved. AskApril®, AskApril.com®, and Ask April® are registered trademarks owned by Masini Enterprises, Inc. This material can only be republished and redistributed if it is kept in it's original form, including, but not limited to, all AskApril branding, banners, links, books, and credits.