Name : Rindu Perkasa
Class : K2
Student Id Number :1300951
Discussion Essay
Advantages and Disadvantages of Electronic
Games
In this modren and full of new
invention era, everyone might like playing electronic games. Electronic games
are any kinds of games that use electronic devices. Electronic games are
created to entertain. They are designed as interesting as possible to give
maximal satisfaction. In another word, electronic games are something that can
be played with their own rules. There is no big deal about playing electonic
games, but most of nowadays kids even adult people addicted to spend their time
playing electronic games. Actually, electronic games give some advantages to
the palyers, but they will bring a number of disadvantages when they are played
upnormaly.
The first disadvantage of playing
electonic games is on health specially the physical health. There is no
significant movement that we do when we are playing them. Sitting for
hours can increase the risk of obesity, sleep disturbances, headaches, dry
eyes, carpal tunnel syndrome, muscular diseases, as well as skeletal and
postural disorders in kids. Other health effects include agitation, increased
heart rate, and high blood pressure. Still another health effect is damaging
visibility. When we are playing electronic games, we focus on the screen whose
rays consist of strong radiation. In addition, playing electronic games also
influences psychological health. This is caused by lack of socialize that the
gamers do. When they spend most of the time to play electronic games, they do
not have enough chance to socialize that determine their psycological health.
Players
of the electronic games have a big possibility become addicted to those games.
The games provide a high level of quick gratification. We are almost constantly
being rewarded, and when we lose, we can continue the games again since our
best progress easly. As a result, for childen who spends a lot of time playing
games will influence them to ignore their studies resulting poor academic performance,
cutting school, and dropping out of school. On the other hand, numerous deaths
have been reported from around the world because of playing video games for
hours, days, weeks, or months obsessively. In 2005, a 28-years-old man from
South Korea collapsed and died of cardiac arrest because of playing World of
Warcraft and StarCraft games for 50 straight hours. In October 2007, a teenager
from Ohio (USA) shot his parents for taking away his copy of the game Halo 3. A
Korean couple, in 2009, spent hours playing video games, neglecting their
3-months old baby, who died from malnutrition and dehydration. A 16-years-old
man from South Philadelphia (USA) killed his mother in the year 2010 for
confiscating his PSP.
Many
video games these days include weapons and an objects that involve killing or
having to injure someone. Of course, it would be terrible if a child killed
someone in the real world. According to Violent Video Games (2010), “Playing
violent video games can make some adolescents more hostile, particularly those
who are less agreeable, less conscientious and easily angered.” There are good
and bad games, and good and bad ways to use them (Chatfield, 2010). Blake
(2006) found that “When kids play these games and see their favorite character
commit some type of violent action, they want to repeat it.” Another negative
affect that video games have on children is that they can put a bad image of
women into their heads. Blake (2006) discovered that, “Women are not usually
used in video games, and when they are, their purpose is usually sex appeal.”
This causes children to think of women as just good looking objects to have
sexual relations with. The worse one is video games hook children as playing
and winning boosts their morale. The University of Calgary conducted an online
survey on children aged 9-15 years who play mature and violent video games
concludes that it has a direct relation with tendencies like bullying, becoming
abusive, beating, or clobbering siblings or peers.
Altough
elctronic games effect three main disadvantages, it also gives a number of
advantages. The first one is to practice
more and more in order to be the best. A study conducted by the University of
Rochester states that, "Gamers perform better in tests that involve focus,
speed, multi-tasking, vision, and accuracy than others or non-gamers." So,
playing video games can teach your children to concentrate, plan, different
strategies to reach their goal, perform multi tasks at the same time and learn
how to handle
complex situations.
complex situations.
Playing electronis games may play a
significant role in fulfilling several psychological needs of humans. It may enhance a child's motor coordination
and ability to think quickly and analyze a situation. Video games
require that the player can use a controller while looking at a television
screen. According to Impact of Video Games on Children (n.d), “This causes the
player to train their manual dexterity and can make it better.” Video games
have been proven to be much better for you than watching television. Manali Oak
(n.d) found that, “This is because video games are interactive; the player has
to think a little bit and analyze the situation they are in.” Playing video
games involves problem solving, planning, estimation and analysis of the moves
or actions of both you and your opponent.
According to
Manali Oak (n.d), “This affects the player positively by developing in him/her
problem-solving skills, analytical and estimation skills and quick
decision-making”. Video games can help learn lifelong skills. One of these is
resource management. Children might have to manage their time or things. Manali
Oak (n.d) discovered that when you play video games, “You learn to recognize
types of situations and react to them quickly.” Some children have social
disorders where they lack self-confidence. Playing video games can actually be
used in therapy for social disorders such as these. A child gets a sense of
participation, a sense of achievement. Children, after playing video games
begin to feel excited about their lives, they start feeling positive and
enthusiastic. Manali Oak (n.d) found that, “This enables them to defeat their
psychological disorders to a certain extent.”
In
conclusion, electronic games are fun and entertaining. We may decrease and
increase both of advantages and disadvantages of playing them. It dapends on
our wiseness. We absolutely may maximize the advantages of playing it by
palying educated electronic games when we does not have any important jobs to
do.
Adapted from
4.
http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Video_Games_Cons/
5.
http://arunnura.hubpages.com/hub/Advantages-and-Disadvantages-of-Playing-Video-Games