Letter: Brands must realise gaming opportunity

Marketing

02/04/2008

I enjoyed Andrew Walmsley’s article on digital media (“Video games can teach us all a lesson”, 19 March).

It was refreshing to see the link between gaming and learning being expressed in a positive manner. For many years now some people have been all too ready to condemn computer gaming as a pastime that breeds bad habits and/or does not stimulate the brain.

A cursory glance at the video gaming industry shows Nintendo at the forefront of next generation platforms with the Wii console and the handheld DS; indeed, this company’s success has directly addressed the age-old views of the anti-gaming fraternity outlined above.

In the past, computer games have been seen as recreational tools for teenagers that alienate them from society, but now, with online gaming networks bringing millions of people together in virtual social communities, the opportunity to use games and gaming platforms to better engage with young people cannot be ignored.

Parents are now playing video games with their children, and a school in Scotland has even run a trial in which pupils played brain-training games on the DS for 15 minutes every morning before lessons for 10 weeks. The reported results included improved concentration and maths skills.

The medium has only started to flex its muscles with the casual games market and the integration of gaming, the internet and broadcast.

Like it or not, computer games are now an integral part of our society and surely should be embraced, as opposed to marginalised as a fringe activity. I think the case needs to be made more strongly by the games industry.

There needs to be a proper debate with relevant stakeholders about the effects of video gaming on society, otherwise the reactionary and overwhelmingly negative aspects of violent gaming will forever tarnish any of the long-term positive benefits.

Ray Mia, Channel Head, Pulse

 

Read Andrew Walmsley's column: Video games can teach us all a lesson