Video Games: Friend or Foe?

    Let me start off by saying that Play Stations, Game Cubes, Nintendos, and heck even Pac Man's are not my friends. Wii I can do on a good day, but I have been known to get my butt kicked on most games by my four and six-year-old neighbors that I babysit. Despite my lack of talent as a "gamer," many people, especially children, have grown to be consumed by video games. In fact, a study done for a CBS evening news story showed that 97% of the 1, 102 teenagers polled play video games. This proves that I most definitely fall into the "gaming" minority.

    Many people question the use of video games for children. Just like people questioned the use of toy guns for young children, many question video games as well. With some games promoting violence, where players have to shoot people or run from the cops, parents wonder if video games are leading their kids by example. Teaching a five year old how to shoot down a monster or person on a video game isn't exactly appropriate, many believe. Many also so how children become so consumed with video games that their social skills therefore lack because they are holed up with a computer or gaming system. This CBS story, however, says that not all video games are bad video games. The study shows the 65% of the 97% of teenagers that play video games, play with a friend. This shows that not all gamers are those alone in their room with their only social interaction occurring between them and their animated video game player. We could call it face-to-screen conversation. However, this study shows that most children do in fact play with a friend. CBS also says that the three main video game areas played are racing, puzzles, or sports. All of which do not include violence. Connie Yowell of the Mac Arthur Foundation supported the CBS study also trying to prove that video games are helpful to children."Kids are talking with each other, helping each other, sharing knowledge," Yowell said. "It's really peer-based learning going on."

   What do I make of this? Not that my opinion is all that important but personally I think that video games take a lot away from a children's quality of life. Those two neighbors I babysit have three different gaming systems and love spending all day and all night playing if they could. They also have a swimming pool, playground set, bicycles, and a million toys. It saddens me when they get out of their pool to go play a video game on a hot summer day, because that's the only thing that thrills them anymore. I do understand that games such as Wii fit promote excercise and puzzle games, or alphabet or math games are educational, but moderation must be kept in mind. Whatever happened to riding bikes all day and playing capture the flag at nightfall? Those were the good days.