When most people think of gaming, they think of the stereotype of teenagers sitting in front of a TV, looking zombie-faced, holding controllers, and dodging their heads from invisible bullets.
The reality is that games span across various genres, from action and adventure to racing, role-playing, simulation, sports, and strategy. The process of choosing which game to play is more about your personality than the game itself. Everyone is different. The game you may enjoy depends largely on your age, gender, the culture where you live, your education level, and much more.
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In fact, the demographics of gamers are much more diverse than people think. According to TechJury:
· The average age of gamers is 34 years old
· Almost half of gamers are women
· 67% of parents play video games with their kids every week
· People with higher education are more likely to buy games
· More than half of overall video game purchases are for mobile games
What does this all mean? It means that video games aren’t just for kids. It means there’s very likely a video game out there for you. And it’s a game that will help you relax and enjoy doing things that actually interest you.
So, let’s take a look at a few steps you can follow in choosing the perfect game you should play.
What Helps Your Brain Relieve Stress?
Just look at the available game genres on the Steam store, and it’s easy to see why people get overwhelmed with all of the options.
For some people, the fast-paced nature of action games and the need for hand-eye coordination can feel overwhelming. For other people, the brain-numbing, slow-paced nature of strategy games might seem extremely boring.
But maybe adrenaline-fueled action helps you shed the anxiety of your workday. In this case, an action game may be perfect for you. Or maybe the intense focus of solving a puzzle helps you forget about that stressful 3 pm meeting at work. Then a strategy game is exactly what the doctor ordered.
It comes down to what activities help you to relieve stress and anxiety. And to determine that, you need to turn to psychology.
According to an article from Verywell Mind, stress and anxiety boils down to facing situations in which you feel you don’t have the resources to cope with.
So, it stands to reason that if you choose to play a game genre that requires skills you’re especially gifted at, it’ll reinforce your confidence, reduce your stress, and make you feel more positive about your own abilities.
Therefore former military folks play first-person shooter games. College professors play strategy games. And football players play sports games.
Game Genres and Require Skills
The game you choose needs to capitalize on your natural gifts. It shouldn’t make you feel deficient in the required skills. If you’re a gifted problem solver, you may choose a puzzle-solving simulation game like Age of Empires or a strategy game like Gemcraft.
he following are the most popular game genres, along with the skills that they capitalize on:
· Action-Adventure: Creativity, logical thinking, pattern recognition, and problem-solving Like AVGN (Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures)
· Fighting: Fast reasoning, self-confidence, hand-eye coordination, and quick decision making
· Shooting: Performing under pressure, team management, fast reasoning, and quick decision making
· Arcade/Platform: Fast reasoning, spacial recognition, hand-eye coordination, and time management
· Puzzle: Logical thinking, problem-solving, pattern recognition, and organization
· Racing: Fast reasoning, spatial recognition, hand-eye coordination, and quick decision making
· Role Playing: Problem recognition and solving, communication, decision making, time management, and organization
· Simulation: Creativity, problem-solving, decision making, and organization
· Sports: Fast reasoning, objective focused, hand-eye coordination, and performing under pressure
· Strategy: Logical thinking, problem recognition and solving, organization, and time management
· Survival: Creativity, problem-solving, organization, fast reasoning, and quick decision making
As you can see, many skills cross into multiple game genres. This is why one person may enjoy several different game genres.