Persuasive Essay

Video Games... Harmful or Helpful?

Are video games harmful or helpful to children? There have been laws to make it that minors can't buy video games that are above their age rating. Most of these laws have been blocked. All video games have to go to ESRB to get a rating, before being sold in public. A research showed that playing action video games for about 2-3 hours a day, after about a month your eyesight will increase by 20%. But people don't want their kids playing games because most kids don't know the difference between real and fiction until about age six. I think that video games are helpful to children because, they improve eyesight over time, improves reflexes, some get people to exercise.

Video games improve eyesight and hand-eye coordination. After playing action games for 2-3 hours a day, your eyesight will increase by 20% after one month. Video games also improve hand-eye coordination since you're usually looking at the screen while pressing buttons. You are soon able to know where your hand is going to go without looking at them. Along with knowing where to go with your fingers, you know what you’re going to do with them. Are you going to hit it multiple times very quickly, or just a couple times? Kids who play video games regularly know where they're going to reach along with speed and other dimensions.

Some video games get you to exercise. Games such as Dance Dance Revolution (DDR), make you burn calories to play the game. Since you are constantly dancing around trying to hit the arrows when they get to the top of the screen, you’re usually working up a sweat. Some songs are faster than others making you dance like crazy. Some are slower which are more relaxing for older people, but still get you active. One of the newer consoles, the Wii made by Nintendo, always makes you active. The controller has motion sensors in it that tell the console where you’re pointing the controller. So if you’re playing baseball, you really have to swing the controller, to get a home run.

Video Games help your reflexes and timing. In most games, you have to press a button or do something on the spur of the moment to stay alive. For example, if a monster is coming at you your first instinct is going to be killing it. But then you have to decide what weapon to use. Sometimes you take so long it is reached you before you could get to it. This makes your reflexes better so that you can act quicker. If someone accidentally kicked a ball at your head, you could instinctively catch it or dodge it. Gaming also improves your timing if you have to hit buttons at the precise button. In DDR, you have the hit arrows exactly when they hit the top of the screen, or else they don’t count. Your reflexes and timing will improve after playing video games.

Some video games are harmful to younger kids who don’t know real from fantasy. The parents should also look at the rating the game got and decide if their child should be playing the game. Video games are helpful not hurtful, because if they are scary for younger children, it is the parents fault for not looking at the rating and approving the game to play. Also the parents should be monitoring how much their child is playing so that they don’t play excessively.

Video games are good for your mind, body, and even social life. There are games where you have to play with a friend and do cooperative play. This can build friends and teamwork. Good for your body if you are playing the Wii, or DDR. And good for your mind if you are playing strategy games such as Tetris. Video games are important to the future because they might find a new way to teach kids about certain things. They already have games that are educational and help kids learn about different topics.