Level Up Your Brain

If you grew up playing video games, whether on a console or PC, you've likely faced skepticism for the amount of time spent in front of the screen, but millions across all ages are still gaming. Video gaming was considered by mainstream society to be a 'guilty pleasure' at best and a total 'waste of time' at worst for many decades.

But what if we were all wrong? Instead of making your brain mushy, maybe holding a controller or mouse is one of the best things you can do your brain health.

If you play complex video games on a regular basis, you may very well be sharper, quicker, and smarter than your friends who do not game. And the best part? I can prove it! Scientists have just validated this same theory through a huge, 30-week study. Let's look into why gaming is such an effective method of cognitive enhancement through scientific research and evidence.

The Brain Bootcamp Study of 30 Weeks

In order to figure out how gaming affects a person’s brain, a researcher needed to find a “blank canvas”. A group of 68 adults were recruited into the study and had no prior experience with video games; they had never played anything digitally, been involved in any form of e-sporting and had never played on-line with groups.

Once they had completed the baseline assessments (for their brains) they assigned all the adults into two groups to observe the differential effect that two styles of gaming would have on them:

The E-sport (Athletes) Group - All participants in this group played the MOBA game “League of Legends” (often referred to as “LOL”); the game is fast-paced and extremely competitive).

The Strategists Group - All participants in this group played the slower, turn-based strategy game “Arkham Horror” (a card game).

To monitor what was occurring in their brains, researchers fitted each participant with an EEG (electroencephalogram) cap to allow scientists to scan each participant’s brain in real time while it “learned/played” the new forms of digital worlds over the period of the study (getting to the mastery level). The electronic measuring devices provided a method of monitoring electrical brain activity in real-time.

Outcomes for Gaming & Brain Capacity: A Major Boost

The first major outcome of the study was a major benefit for gamers as a whole. After the completion of the 30-week trial period, both participants reported substantial gains in their cognitive abilities regardless of whether they played the extremely fast-paced MOBA or the slower-paced card game.

Individuals who participated in both groups experienced improved abilities in the following areas:

1. Greater Ability to Maintain Focus (ability to stay on task without being distracted by other noises or irrelevant thoughts)

2. Improved Memory (greater ability to store, retrieve and retain previously acquired data)

3. The Ability to Make Decisions More Quickly (a greater ability to evaluate a situation, analyze the options available, and confidently make a choice much more quickly than prior to the trial)

By participating in complex digital systems, they provided their brains with extensive workouts. In addition to this, the analysis of the data revealed an obvious clear winner.

How League of Legends Players Dominated Other Player Types

Both games improved players in some way however the brain images clearly showed that the League of Legends Player's out performed the cards players on a number of very specific and highly desired areas of brain function; visual memory and spatial attention.

When considering the gameplay of LOL; this makes complete sense.

The Importance of Spatial Attention in Gaming: Due to the skill level of the players in fast paced games they can’t afford to only look at the center of their screen; but are also constantly looking at ‘back’ to the mini map (top right corner) for enemy flanking movements, keeping track of their health bar as well as four other locations that their teammates will be located at all times; therefore causing you to use your mind to continually process large amounts of spatial data all at the same time during gameplay.

Retaining Images and Responding Quickly: Finding out where you last fought against an enemy is key to your success as you need to guess where the enemy may be (when you can't see them), and how quick you will be able to hit the enemy when you see them.

In many cases the player is forced to develop their mind around disorder. The amount of decisions made in a minute is insane; all while working with other teammates through different methods to do something further (do a coordinated attack). The card game players had a lot of time to work out their moves, they could look over the board and come up with a plan. League of Legends players were forced to play at a fast pace, if they waited they would die. This fast pace hindered any physical training the players would receive, and in turn, created resistance training for their visual/spatial brain networks.

The "Offline Plasticity" Phenomenon

This was possibly the most astounding finding in this 30-week project was that after the gaming was over.

This was confirmed as the scientists brought the League of Legends players back to test them again 10 weeks after they had last played a match, when they had not played a game for 2 months (60+ days). Based on this time without playing, one would think that they would have lost all the cognitive benefits they had gained from the 30-week experiment.

However, they were wrong.

The researchers found that the players' brains continued to show the same benefits from neuroplasticity (the brain's ability to create new neural connections through change/growth or via the formation of new neurons, etc.) as when they were playing the game. This means that the mental improvements made by the players during the experiment did not only stick with the players, but the players also continued to create and work on building new neural pathways while they were not playing and were in an offline state.

The best analogy is weight training; you lift weights to break down muscle; however, the muscle grows after you have stopped and are at home recuperating from the last workout. Therefore, the intense cognitive load placed on the players to play League of Legends acted as the workout, while they continued to build faster and stronger connections by building additional neural connections after the study and experiment were completed.

A Few More Words

Not exactly a NEW concept, but...

The science of this new study really took the cake when it comes to showing just how much gaming can help you perform real-life jobs. Experienced professionals in various fields including surgeons have been using "gaming" as a tool to improve their skills for years; however, there probably was not enough evidence to convince the majority of their peers that video games could be an effective form of skill development until now.

One major study that was published back in 2007 on the impact of video gaming on the performance of surgical residents showed impressive results based on the impact of video gaming (how many errors a surgeon made due to not having an eye-to-hand coordination).

The study in 2007 was conducted to compare the performances of surgical residents in a clinical environment who played video games compared to other surgical residents that did not. The amazing results came in the form of an average 37% difference in error rates between the two groups of surgeons, with video gamers making fewer mistakes than those who didn’t (fifty-four vs. thirty-six total errors). Additionally, average surgery completion time for gamers was significantly shorter than that for their non-gaming coworkers.

Using a video game controller requires micro-movements that coincide perfectly with micro-precise movements to manipulate laparoscopic instruments. Laparoscopic surgeons must learn to navigate bodies with 3D spatial awareness from video games. This training has been shown to increase the safety and efficiency of surgery by 37% when performing procedures where someone's life is at stake. Consider how playing video games enhances your ability to drive, complete a spreadsheet at work, and problem-solve throughout your daily routine.

Flipping the Script: Video Game Use for Improving Cognitive Functions

We can no longer consider video game play only from the perspective of "mindless entertainment." Of course, these types of digital games have a lot of value in providing enjoyment, a method of stress-relief, a diversion from day-to-day life, and a means to play with friends through the internet.

However, there also is a significant amount of added value associated with playing modern video games.

Modern video games can be viewed as intricate problem-solving simulations. They feature barriers to mastery that require not only working with others as part of a team, but also managing varying resources, developing quick reflexes, and developing longer-term strategies. The most recent studies show that whenever you log into a high-energy, high-stakes gaming environment, you are essentially working out your brain as you do in a traditional gym.

Other cognitive-play activities, such as crossword puzzles, chess, or learning a new language to maintain your cognitive ability, are not viewed as being of lesser value to developing your cognitive abilities because they are different modalities. Complex video game play certainly should fall into the same category of cognitive enhancement.

Applying This to Your Life

So, does that mean you should quit your job and start playing video games for 14 hours a day to become super-smart? Not likely. Like everything in life, moderation is important. Here are some ideas from this research that you can use in your daily life:

Don't Feel Guilty About It: If you want to play video games for 1 to 2 hours after work, don't feel guilty. You're not wasting time when you play games, you're using gaming to support your visual and spatial memory.

Challenge Yourself: To receive the maximum benefits from gaming, you must push yourself outside your comfort zone. If you usually play low-paced and low-stress games, try playing something that is fast-paced and requires immediate reactions. Force yourself to adapt to a new and chaotic digital environment.

Play with Friends: Games that require teamwork and communication add entirely new dimensions of cognitive load on top of your individual game play. You must manage your gameplay while working with other players to achieve complement your game play.

Balance is Key: Playing video games provides a great cognitive workout; however, in order for your brain to perform at its best possible level, it must also have physical conditioning, proper amounts of sleep, and healthy nutrition.