Do computer games improve you in any way at all?

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So I bought a Playstation 2 last week, having not had computer games at home since my ZX Spectrum. I always restrained myself in the past on the grounds that I would spend hours playing it when I could be putting my time to 'good use' reading books or tidying my room. But then I succumbed and now I am obsessed with Grand Theft Auto 3 to the extent that I haven't even bothered playing the other game I got with it yet. Or doing anything else with my life.

I am clinging to the hope that it is improving my driving and sense of direction. At the moment, all it has done is give me an eye infection through excessive staring and overwear of contact lenses. Really, are video games just a totally blight on one's life? Are there any transferable skills on offer? And how do I blow up the Triad laundry vans?

― Nick, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

This entire thread is all about those laundry vans. Admit it Dastoor, you're a sick man.

― Mark C, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

It's all part of a government conspiracy to turn us into apathetic automatons by de-sensitising us to violent imagery esp. those depicting war. Is one point of view.

― Trevor, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Forget ye not that following on from the Gulf War, Saddam Hussein pre- ordered several thousand Playstations from Dixons. The mother of all battles will probably commence from a bedsit in Baghdad.

― Trevor, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Wasn't that because the Playstation contained top notch chips that could be used to make a superguns or something?

― Nick, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Well, that was partly true.

But this article, "How Saddam Hussein Stole Christmas" tells the full story....

www.newconsumer.com/_disc5/0000002d.htm

― Trevor, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

But let us not also forget the hysteria surrounding many of the sanctions imposed against Iraq by the US. For example, the export of pencils to Iraq is currently prohibited, because the graphite may be used in the construction of carbon rods. They honestly believe that there's some hardcore underground sect exclusively employed in sucking the lead out of 2HB's. And there's me thinking that they just want to restrict the ability to write, but that is of course totally implausible.

― Trevor, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

transferable skills?? hmmm, from video games to real life. well... i have got a lot better at using the hookshot recently -- v good for getting across canyons where the bridge is down. plus i can now play the ocarina so well that i can slow down time. beat that.

― Alan Trewartha, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Civilisation II has taught me that the best way to take over the world is to stage a fundamentalist revolution in a modern democracy and then SMITE the INFIDEL DOGS!

― RickyT, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Good grief! Is that true? Maybe we really should be restricting the sale of games consoles to the Middle East after all. Lessons of Civilisation = critical and overlooked piece of 9/11 jigsaw?

I do remember someone saying that underlying Sim City was a radically economically libertarian agenda.

― Nick, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

i think i read that sim city stuff was all based on some chicago school of economic/urban development.

― Alan Trewartha, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Well, it's true in my playing experience. Unfortunately, the makers have removed the Fundamentalist government type in the new edition on the grounds that it has too many advantages in the later part of the game. No more pretending to be an ayatollah w/wads of cash, derangedly happy populace and nukes for me.

Oh, and Sim City is not alone in having an agenda; Civ has some dodgy underlying assumptions as well. However, it must be said in the authors' defence that the games would probably be unplayable if there weren't some form of (inevitably political) simplifying decisions made by them about how the games' populations should react to the players commands.

― RickyT, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Yeah - I think so. Playing DELTA FORCE has made me more observant to "disguised" things. I went to a concert and tried to find its venue. I saw it, but it lay hidden from my approach in a load of bushes. I caught a glimpse and honed in on it.

Rogue Spear and other Rainbow Six modifications have allowed me to substantially increase my Planning skills.

― Kodanshi, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I was on Downing Street a few weeks ago and correctly identified a gun as an AK-47. The only way I could have known that was from playing computer games.

― Paul Strange, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Kodanshi and Paul's responses are exactly the kind of thing I'm after.

― Nick, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

From playing vib ribbon i am now extremely good at jumping over X shapes that wobble towards me in time to fat buoy slim.

― Steve.n., Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Civ II is actually a really good historical tool in some ways. Unfortunately not in other ways but if I had a reasonably bright, bored kid to teach I'd use Civ II as an aid. Too late for it to be any use for me, though.

― Tom, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"I was on Downing Street a few weeks ago and correctly identified a gun as an AK-47": blimey paul they kept this quiet!!

IN SHOCK ARMED BID FOR POWER STRANGE FRUIT SHEDS INDIE IMAGE AND EMBRACES REVOLUTIONARY TECHNO-GOTH TACTICS. "Our methods may seem brutal; what matters is that they are effective. The revolution is what counts; we cannot pay mind to the feckless squeamishness of the lackeys of the bourgeoisie," said coup leader Paul S.

― mark s, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Games with some genuine educational value (eg. "Last Express"- a classy PC game with stylish art deco graphix and historically accurate info) are
1) not all that common and
2) mostly boring.
Possibly, the ol' hand-eye coordination claim has some validity, but not that I've observed. So, in my case- no, not much anyway. Since my avid computer gamer of a neighbour moved away a year ago or so, I've really lost touch wit da scene. Thankfully, I think.

Secondly, (and far more importantly), SOMEONE MAKE A PC VERSION OF VIB RIBBON Please Please Please!

― Mitch Lastnamewithheld, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Civ III is annoying, it keeps crashing at inopportune moments, like when I'm about to beat the French hurrah!

― DG, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I was about to say, Paul, the context of this AK-47 encounter has been kept low-key. ;-)

― Ned Raggett, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I can just see /bin/laden playing Civ II.

― Mr Noodles, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Hohoho.

― RickyT, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

the right place is usr/bin/laden anyway, as long as you set the execute bit correctly. (I'M REALLY SORRY)

― Alan Trewartha, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

likelihood of Russian made AK-47 being carried openly on Downing street = 0% (approx)

Far more likely to be a German Heckler und Koch sub-machine gun as used by our coppers and special forces.

― chris, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

On the transferable skills question, some allegedly serious study was published about 3/4 years ago on if playing computer games intensively over-deverloped some particular ability. The conclusion was that one can benefit greatly from such practise if your future career is that of a TopGun-of-sorts. But Nick, I am afraid, that does not mix very well with the short-sightedness...

― Laetitia, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Alan you just made me snort out loud in laughter ho ho. And then I had to explain it to co-worker AND REALISED I COULD NOT. The shame. NB I do not have a computer... but if I did I would be better than YOW at Civilisation I bet (unless there is a wurlde map and I give up in a stress - YES THIS IS A HINT I WANT TO MOVE ON CAN SOMEONE AHEM HELP ME WITH THIS PLEASE YOU KNOW WHO I MEAN DAMMIT) :)

― Sarah, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

It really looked like an AK, you know. But hey, maybe I'm getting misinformation from video games, which is even worse!

Last Express was mentioned earlier - I learned alot about pre-war Europe from that game, curiously.

― Paul Strange, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I developed a passing familiarity with Chinese historical figures by playing the fantastic NES games Destiny of an Emperor and Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Cao Cao, Dong Zhuo -- they're all still up there!

― Phil, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Abe's Oddysee heightened my awareness of the working class proletariat's struggle against the bourgeois capitalist's yoke of oppression and instilled me with conservationist ideals in order to prevent the eradication of rare species, but that's about it really.

― Trevor, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I R playing computer games all my life! I R turning out ok!

― I R computer nerd!, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Age of Empires gave me a feel for calvary tactics, which then made my understanding of civil war battles I was then reading about much richer.

― Sterling Clover, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

ms pacman taught me that i am v.poor at handeye co-ordination

(also it was lame old mr pacman: i just pretended the other for rad sex-pol swank)

― mark s, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I think that computer games improve boys as they make them shut up, like when they watch sports. They sit still and don't get into danger.

― maryann, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I played a playstation game two days ago, Colin McCrae Rally. There is a part of the game where Colin McCrae teaches you how to drive before you start racing for real.
Here are the things that Colin McCrae said to me: Stop mucking about!
Mind the car!
You're going the wrong way!
That wasn't too bad.
Steady on. At least he didn't put his hand on my leg like my real life driving instructor did.

― rainy, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

he didn't say that last sentence, that was my observation.

― rainy, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I've been playing 'Grand Theft Auto', 'Army Men', 'Need for Speed' and 'Moto Racer'.

― maryann, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I've been drinking beer and swearing my head off.

― rainy, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Who else plays 'Army Men'? That game is stupid because you just make your enemies blow up with an 'air raid.' And your own soldiers are more like liabilities than helpers.

The racing car games help you to gain your 'sea legs'. Seriously, I used to feel nauseous when I first played them but now I can tolerate much more disorientation. This might come in handy if you ... um ... watched an IMAX film.

― maryann, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

You could play 'speed racer' to prepare for watching a movie that features a lot of hand-held camera usage

― maryann, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

If you built up your 'speed racer' strength, you would be able to immediately appreciate the aesthetics of the movie without feeling at all nauseous

― maryann, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I learnt all my road sense from Frogger and Horace Goes Skiing. I also learnt to be careful when eating strawberries illicitly in the park.

Erm, seriously, I can't really think of any useful effects. I have probably picked up some random facts from them, but then if I didn't spend so much time on the computer I might be reading books, which would be better for me. Claims of improved hand-eye coordination are comforting but the benefits are probably negligible.

Actually, Ultima Underworld II did allow me to identify the runes spookily etched into the beam in my ceiling in my second-year uni room. R NG L, they said. No, I don't know, either. The first and last initials are my own, so perhaps the middle rune was some kind of curse or insult; it would certainly either explain or describe my academic (non)achievements that year. This is a more interesting theory than a bored student of runic languages carving something entirely different into the ceiling, anyway.

― Rebecca, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Sim Ant got my friend into insects and now he is an entomolygist (sp?).

― 1 1 2 3 5, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

but I R root, I do what I want.

― Mr Noodles, Monday, 26 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Does anyone else want Microsoft Train simulator? Or is it just me?

― Peter Miller, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

That train simulator is probably the only way I'm going to get a new PC, once my dad finds out about it.

― DG, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I am strangely tempted by the Stansted Airport add on for FS2000. Includes the monorail and every last control tower, hanger and building.

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Good God! I was just idly looking around for Standsted simulator information and I come across th is. It really would appear that video games' only real use is in fostering terrorism.

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Sorry - t his is the link.

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

No. Next question?

The only people I know who are obsessed with video games are those trying to escape the awfulness of their own life, or those lacking the imagination to do so by the normal means. Especially videogames used as means to isolate partner from oneself. The only thing they teach is AVOIDANCE of social skills and other necessary real life criteria.

― kate, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Well my ex-housemate could beat all comers at Tekken using HIS TOES. He had very long and weird toes. I am sure that this must be a useful life skill in some way. It sure as hell impressed me, while at the same time being strangely revolting.

― Emma, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

social skills teach you to avoid the necessary things in life like learning to swim like a zora >wheeeee<

― Alan Trewartha, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Kate, I think you're being a little harsh there. I wuv computer games and have been their bitch for about 14 years now. Self- improvement depends entirely on the games you play, if you you only play 'Gran Turismo 27' (or whatever they're up to now) you won't get much, but then there are some games such as 'Shogun' on the PC which come with an awful lot of supplementary stuff, this game coming with a fair explanation of mediaeval Japan, which was jolly interesting I must say.

― DG, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Isolating yourself from your partner??? Pah! Buying a Playstation saved my relationship!

― Tom, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

How to blow up the Triad laundry vans: it's somewhere in here .

PS. How does Vib Ribbon work? Do you place the game CD into the Playstation and then remove it and shove in the music CD?

― Mitch Lastnamewithheld, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Mitch, basically yeah, you stick in Vib Ribbon and it'll load, then there is a section where you can play with yr own CD and Vibri will tell you to put in yr own music CD. Then you can select all tracks or a specific single track. Incidentally, I have a problem with Vibri, it can't select the first track off an album to be played. Is this what happens with everyone elses discs or is it the fault of my PlayStation (ould thing)? It'll play the first tracks off singles though, yay! GTA3 = AMAZING btw. Video games bring people TOGEVVER if they're good enough, although I admit when S.O is obsessed with a single player game such as I'm guessing Civ or even some Final Fantasy series to the extent where they can't get out of it that's a bad thing. But TBH I don't know anyone who's life is seriously suffering - in fact the opposite - from computer games. The same things (isolation, hiding) also occur with TV/reading/MUSIC! IMO.

― Sarah, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Incidentally, I have a problem with Vibri, it can't select the first track off an album to be played....It'll play the first tracks off singles though, yay!

Vibri in anti-rockist shocker!

― Tom, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Then again I like Pokémon more than BOYS and I was quite capable of playing Silver from Noon Till Noon Again, *sigh*. (New Belle & Sebastian is PISH by the way, isn't it?)

― Sarah, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

*cries*

― RickyT, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

RickyT she likes you because you are cute enough to BE a pokemon!

― Tom, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Hurrah! Um, I think...

― RickyT, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

What will RickyT evolve into?

Richardosaur.

― Pete, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Badgermon.

― DG, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Dicklodocus.

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

rickmonchan

― Alan Trewartha, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Rikachu?

― chris, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Hehehehehehehe!! Rickmonchan!! That's the best!

Rick, you don't know what Pokégames I have planned for you tonight hur hur. Actually neither do I cos I thought we were just going boozing but I shall try to think of some now, GLEE! You are defintely cute enough to be up there with the cute Pokémon unlike Dastoor who would be sitting in the corner plotting Dastooordly (hur) schemes with Gengar and Haunter.

― Sarah, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

(Rikachu = too much like Raichu who I don't like very much).

― Sarah, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Sarah thinks I'm the devil, the pinefox is sexually obsessed with me and Nicole thinks I'm like some old trollop from a soap opera. Can all these things be reconciled?

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Don't forget Mark C's obsession w/yr lovely balls.

― RickyT, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Mayn't I?

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Sarah doesn't think you're the devil, she thinks you're GASTLY! (mee- ow!)

― Alan Trewartha, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

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