Oxford University study finds playing video games can contribute to positive wellbeing

Very credible research. I was about to joke with "who funded the reserach" when I read the title. I smiled when I read the first paragraph.

You can stimulate the brain in many ways. I love to make maps for Portal 2 on Steam. Not to play them, but to design puzzles around a theme. I did the same with maps for Door Kickers (an indie tactical top down shooter).
Learning the editor was more fun than playing the game. Becoming fluent was even more rewarding. Design of the maps was awesome. Creating maps was enthralling.

You can do origami, you can learn graphical design, you can learn programming, you can learn web-design, you can play musical instrument, you can learn a language or you can do crosswords.

Funny research. It's like doctors sellouts recommending a drug/medicine (because they were paid to do so).

I could have told them that decades ago.

TheGillesMuller said:Hahaha thats true, I'm from Brazil and the people here are crazy

Try living with a psychopath literally screaming at Fifa through your wall for 8 hours a day, during a lockdown. Not so good for my wellbeing.

Gaming in general is superb though.

No Sh*t

Showing this to my wife....

Agree.
It's just an activity. If you overdo it, it can have negative effects. If you don't, it can have positive effects.

Sponsored research. Reminds me of how coke and pepsi funded research saying sodas don't contribute to obesity.

Some people have literally no life outside of gaming and no relationships to speak of. The proof is all the guys who play magic the gathering and games nonstop to the point their existence is nothing but an escape.

I just hope tax dollars didn't touch this research, because it's ridiculous.

Ostrowidzki1989 said:It’s ridiculous that a study found that people can be happy playing games? What’s next, you’re going to say it’s ridiculous that a study found that burning fossil fuels is bad for the environment?

Christoph 5782 said:Thanks for contributing.

I must admit I laughed when the study author suggested 4 hours/day of Animal Crossing - that's quite a bit. Looking briefly at his study data though, it looks like well being and time played are fairly steady for PvZ, and the effect appears to kick in almost right away. Animal Crossing shows increasing well-being with longer playtime, which makes sense given the objectives in the game; even still, positive effects show up almost right away.

Surprised Among Us was not one of the tested games, due to its social interactivity

Halo 2 on legendary does most certainly not contribute to a good wellbeing

Rista B said:My work colleagues legit believe this

Say it ain't so...

Positive wellbeing?
Redundant.
What does negative wellbeing look like?

Macksly said:Yeah, Regret and Gravemind on LASO comes to mind - I’m pretty sure I shaved a couple yrs off my life thanks to that!

Self reported data ..

Omniscient Al said:They use it as a synonym for "health".

Good games incorporate a 'fun factor.' Naturally, having fun improves your mental outlook and contributes to a sense of well being.