Since the invention of video games, they have received a bad reputation by society who feels that video games have a negative impact on child development, raise aggression levels, and causes an increase in violent acts. Due to the violent nature of some games, parents feel that if their child played the game it would raise the child’s level of aggression. Recent research on the use of video games has proven that games are good for a child development. The research shows that some video games improve the user’s cognitive skills, allows them to release aggression, and even lessens the chance of users committing violent acts.  Video games are also better for children than watching television because the user is partaking in some sort of action instead of sitting idle.  Most scientists agree that video games help sharpen the mind and help lessen the chances of the committing a violent crime portrayed in game.  Children develop skills like inductive reasoning, increase in decision making speed, and problem solving skills.  Video games are very helpful to develop and strengthen the brain.

Video games can have some unhealthy consequences when used improperly.  Children are less likely to become more aggressive for playing violent video games but are can get angry if they feel that they game mechanics are working against them (Klein).  A study published The American Academy of Pediatrics stated too much gaming can lead to depression, anxiety, and poor grades. Video games should be something children placed in front of to keep them busy, this can further lead to addiction.  When video game users binge play, it can have a negative impact on their health and physical well-being. Too much time spent playing can also have a negative impact on a child’s academic progress and grades. A 2012 study stated nearly 8 percent of teens in the United States showed signs of becoming addicted to video games.  The study stated that these teens were more focus on when the would be able to get back to gaming rather than the lessons being taught in school (Bern). Professor Craig A. Anderson, director of the Center for The Study of Violence at Iowa State University, states that the effect on playing video games are not felt immediately but instead the present themselves overtime (Bern). Parents are advised to properly supervise their children’s use of playing video games.  Setting time limit or even restricting a child from playing violent games, dramatically reduce the chance on a child becoming addicted. 

Video games and consoles have measures in them to help parents with moderating their children’s time playing and restricting them from being able to access violent games.  Gaming consoles and some video games help the user keep track of how long they have been playing by suggesting when a user should take a break. The Xbox systems allow parents to set content restrictions and time restriction so that their child can only play between certain times of the day.  The Entertainment Software Rating Board, ESRB, is a non-profit organization that assigns content ratings and age restrictions for buying video games in nearly all North America. The ESRB rating systems rates video game content based on the Industry adopted guidelines. The ratings range from E for everyone to M for mature, even including early childhood and adult only.  Most violent video games receive a rating of M due to their containment of violence, strong sexual themes, and partial nudity.  M rated games can only be purchased be a person of age 17 and older, and the buyer must present valid state identification at the time of purchase.  Video game creators have also added settings into their games to where parents can turn off the blood in a game and even set time limits on the console itself.  Even with all these measures there are still loopholes in the system, so parents must stay vigilant and monitor what games their children are playing.

Video games can help improve the developing minds of children that play them; different games present kids with different challenges to test their minds. There is no denying that many boys like playing first person shooter, or fps, games due to their competitive nature and violence.   Fast paced action games create an environment where the user must figure out multiple things happening at once, listing them in an order of importance and acting on them, sometimes within split seconds. However, these games have a deeper impact on them then they understand. In a study conducted by brain scientist Daphne Bavelier, she discovered that fps games increase the focus in users for up to five months without use, after gaming for ten hours over a two-week period (Bavel C. Shawn).  Steven Johnson describes the concept of telescoping in his book and how video games enhance this skill in the players. (John) Telescoping is when a person manages immediate problems while still maintaining a view on the end goal. Johnson writes “it’s all about perceiving relationships and determining priorities.” (John) This concept is present in games such as Zelda, which involve having to complete small quest in a certain order to be able to complete the main quest.   Concepts like telescoping, were once taught through reading epic tales like the Iliad and The Odyssey.  However, unlike an epic tale children will be more willing to engage with video games. Role playing give players a character which they use to complete main objective and quest to over the entire the game. The completion of new quest reward the player with new customization options for their characters, incentivizing the player to go explore and complete more quest.  This reward system helps children develop the skill of telescoping which they can take and apply in the real world.  Understanding that to finish a major task they should break it down into smaller tasks, which will make their work easier. 

Researchers from the University of Rochester have discovered that fast paced video games help train the brain to make the correct decision faster. First person shooter or Fps games help improve the ability of tracking multiple object in in view.  Fps games require players to track multiple targets, figuring out if they are a friend or foe and deciding whether to take them out within mere seconds. Newer fps games further improve the ability of tracking by introducing game modes like Hardcore.  Hardcore game modes take away the name tags that distinguish friend from foe giving the user another tack to complete before pulling the trigger, and they only get two chances to mess up.  According to the study at the University of Rochester, researchers found players develop a heightened sensitivity to what is going on around them. That heighten sensitivity and beneficial to determine what is happening in game and is beneficial in the real world when driving, and keeping track of the cars around them.  the ability to track multiple objects is crucial in helping prevent accidents from happening, and ultimately saving lives.

Crime is one area in which video games are having a positive impact that is thought to be negative. Some Researchers believe that children who play a violent video games are more likely to reenact the violence depicted and commit a crime in the future. However, that is not the case.  Video games are proving to have a positive impact on the crime rate, especially in the U.S. and Canada.  According to Zoe McKnight, crime rates have decreased by half, partly due to video games. Video games help children release some aggression and stress allowing them to be more relaxed after playing.   Violent video games contribute to lower crime rates because they allow the user an outlet to release aggression within a controlled environment. Video games help keep children inside during the night time when most crime is committed.  In McKnight’s article, Ken Pense, British criminologist, states "Frankly, there are more interesting things to do indoors now than going out …” (McKnight).  Also, players become older they realize that the things they do in these fantasy world of video games shouldn’t be carried over to the real world.   

As a someone who regularly plays video games I have noticed some of the effects that they have had on me. I played my first M rated game at the age of 8. I learned early on how to get around my dad’s rule about me playing M rated games, after watching him play Halo: Combat Evolved one day I thought I would try it out when he wasn’t home. I did fully understand what I was playing at the time, I only played it to because it looked cool when my dad played.  That night I had some bad nightmares and when my dad found out I was in even more trouble.  With early consoles like the original Xbox, it was easy to get around my dad’s rules about playing certain games, and that is the fear most parents have about letting their kids play video games. However, when I got my first Xbox 360 my dad set the content restrictions on there so I couldn’t play M rated games. Now every console has these “family restrictions” that allow parents to stop their children from playing specific rated games.  For me though playing those games was more about me hangout with my friends and trying to either unlock cool helmets on Halo 3 or using cheat codes to blow stuff up on Grand theft auto.  However, what we didn’t know was that these video games were testing and strengthening our brains diverse ways.  Whether it was playing a game that involved me solving a puzzle to unlock a certain reward or just making sure that we map out the different areas of a target before attacking. we were learning concepts like telescoping, increasing abilities like tracking and even our eyesight.  According to Daphne Bavelier, those who play first-person shooter games improve their eyesight and the ability to see contrast over time (Bavel C. Shawn). The skills that improved from playing video games have helped with my grades in STEM or science, technology, engineering and mathematics based classes.  In high school, I noticed that most of the people taking STEM driven career courses had at some point pick up a video game controller when they were younger.  In recent years, the National STEM Video Game Challenge is try to help kids express their science abilities.  According to the U. S. department of education in 1970 nearly half of all people who had science and engineering doctorates were American and projection figures show that number has dropped by nearly 10%.  The STEM Video Game Challenge is trying to help improve this figures through video game development which helps children and teens learn and develop STEM skills, which are becoming a more vital part of today's workforce.

 Today video games are more helpful than once thought to be.   The video game industry is continually working to help keep M rated games from being easily accessible by children through implementing strict content restrictions.  However, they still need help from parents to keep these games from falling into the wrong hands.   Companies are focusing on providing content that both the child would like to play and the parent would be willing to purchase without fear of the games negatively impacting the child. Though video games are not for everyone, they help develop skills and improve abilities that further down the road payback off.  Video games are helping provide a step up in the job market with the skills they help develop and improve.  With programs like The National STEM Video Game Challenge, video games are proving to be more beneficial in the long run. In the classroom, researchers are trying to find innovative ways to use video games to help children learn different concepts that were once taught in books.  Parents who want to help their children’s future should start considering video games because as new research is being conducted studies show that video games help in key areas.
