Andrew Gillett 1013658 Computer Games Design 14/12/2013

University of Wolverhampton

6AD002

Dissertation

Digital Media

How Do Digital Games Positively Affect Society as a Whole?

by

Andrew Gillett

1013658

2013/14

Computer Game Design

Faramarz Amiri

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Andrew Gillett 1013658 Computer Games Design 14/12/2013

Abstract

This dissertation is the product of a study to investigate whether or not computer/video games can be considered to have a primarily positive effect on people and society as a whole, in contrast to popular media portrayals; and demonstrate that their existence causes more good than harm in terms of health and the development of skills.

The study examines arguments for and against the prospect of games serving a purpose and observes examples of their use beyond simple entertainment, primarily in schools, work training, and medicine. It also explores the uses of entertainment itself, and the origin of games to assist the argument.

The results are found to indicate that games are dangerously addictive but otherwise harmless, and in moderation are extremely valuable in terms of learning, therapy, and scientific discovery for much the same reason: an unparalleled propensity for being mentally engaging in a safe environment.

CONTENTS PAGE

1. Introduction 3

2. Chapter 1: Where Did the Concept of Games Come From? 3

3. Chapter 2: How Can Games Be Used in Schools 5

4. Chapter 3: Do Commercially Produced Games Have Educational Value? 7

5. Chapter 4: Games in Work Training 9

6. Chapter 5: Is the Educational Merit of Games Exaggerated? 10

7. Chapter 6: Physical Health Benefits of Gaming 11

8. Chapter 7: Mental Health Benefits of Gaming 12

9. Conclusion 14

10.References 15

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IntroductionSince the conception of computer games, they have been frequently argued to have negative consequences for children’s development, and to be unhealthy; being responsible for increased aggression and violent behaviour (Chalk, 2013; Kain, 2013). Usually these claims are poorly substantiated, and it has been argued many times that computer games are merely the latest victim of a trend to turn new developments into scapegoats for violent crimes (Renée, 2013). Games would not be the first form of entertainment media to receive this treatment, as the same comments have been levelled at genres of music in the past (Heep, 2007).

In this dissertation, I would argue however, that videogames may well be positively contributing to society in ways that have been tremendously overlooked by the most vocal opposition to computer games. Specifically, I believe computer games to be serving the purpose of aiding the education of children and adults alike.

Chapter 1: Where Did the Concept of Games Come From?In spite of claims opposing computer games, many schools have in recent years been making use of them as an education resource (European Schoolnet, 2009, p.5; Mackay, 2013). To understand the thought behind this decision, it may be useful to take a look at how and why the concept of a “game” was invented.Unfortunately, this is impossible, as it is unknown what the first game even was. This is because games have been recorded as having existed for millennia, with the ancient Egyptian game of Senet dating back as far back as 3500 B.C. (Andrews, 2012). Senet is by no means a simple game, involving a set of pieces, a board, and dice. Considering the existence of vastly less complicated games such as Noughts & Crosses and play-fighting, it seems impossible that a game like Senet would be one of the earliest in existence. This would suggest that games must have existed for even longer, though how much longer is certainly unknown, and presumably unknowable.

While the origin and therefore intended purpose of games (or even why entertainment exists) cannot be traced, it is not difficult to find information that may provide an answer. That is that humans are far from the only species to have developed games.

Games have been observed being performed by creatures of all descriptions. The majority of these (such as kangaroo boxing) appear to serve no purpose. The reason why kangaroos might fight one-another despite a lack of any grudge or anything to compete over is a straight-forward one: to obtain fighting experience.

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Kangaroo Boxing (Robinson, 2006)

If a kangaroo were to not practice boxing with its peers, it would not know how best to fight in the event of coming across a genuine threat, and would likely be killed. By learning and honing its physical capabilities, the kangaroo can prepare itself for combat in a low-risk setting, with other kangaroos nearby to help if it somehow doesn’t go well. This of course, does not merely apply to kangaroos, but is a crucial part of the natural world. Bears, lion cubs and various other mammals have been seen engaging in these acts in their natural habitats. Animals will even expose weak areas and lower defences without fear in these fights, proving that they are indeed play (Flanagan, 2010)

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Ninja bears (Flanagan 2010)

It isn’t just fighting either. Horses have been known to play games of tag (Perin, 2012), crows have been observed inventing games to play with random pieces of man-made rubbish (Thomas, 2010). Even insects have been witnessed taking part in activities seemingly serving no purpose other than to have fun (De Coven, 2010).

Considering that the genetic distance between humans and other mammals is far smaller than that between birds and insects, it is safe to assume that play is no less meaningful to humans than to any other creature. Furthermore, as evolution favours the strong species, it seems unusual that so many hundreds of creatures would exist with time-wasting ingrained into their genes. The only logical assumption is that play is serving a vital purpose to all creatures. The majority of these “games” are low-risk play fights, which help them to be prepared for having to defend themselves against attackers in later life (Dugatkin, L; Rodriguez, S; 2008). Even those that aren’t fights are often highly physical, which may potentially build up stamina and strength. Considering that these games are virtually identical to those of children in the playground, there can be no distinction between the human concept of play and that of other creatures.

Chapter 2: How Can Games Be Used in SchoolsSo in what way are games used in schools to teach, and how can this be proven to have an educational value? With the exception of sports, most human games are non-physical, and certainly computer games aren’t (with the odd exception such as Wii Fit and Dance Dance Revolution, neither of which being used in schools), so how are they even the same thing as playground games and the similar activities witnessed in nature?

The answer is stimulation. If a person enjoys something, they are interested and will have higher concentration, enabling more effective learning than is possible from non-mentally stimulating (or “boring”) experiences (BBC News 2002). This explains all games being used by all users, human or otherwise. It also explains how followers of a television show can often quote specific scenes word for word and keep track of a long running plot; as due to their interest it sticks in their heads, and they have a greater motivation to go over the show again which will help them to remember.

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Another such example would be the success of children’s educational shows such as Sesame Street. It is possible to teach children by appealing to their interests, as colourful and comedic puppets.

To summarise the European Schoolnet study in 2009; from a survey of 528 teachers already use digital games as part of their teaching. This was proven true for foreign languages, literature, mathematics, history and geography. Teachers report a positive impact on student motivation, resulting in progress in personal, intellectual, and social skills (Wastiau, Kearney, Van den Berghe, 2009).

There have been conflicting reports which hint at games being less effective than many suggest in terms of teaching skills, with some suggesting that they do not by nature of being games teach, and implying they are inferior to lectures (Clark, 2013). This is highly inaccurate and misleading in the face of the actual evidence referred to in said studies, which merely state that games “should be used as adjuncts and aids, not as standalone instruction.” (Hays, 2005).

In response to Clark’s claims, Boller (2013) points out that the same studies alluded to more frequently clearly demonstrate the efficacy of games at teaching, and if anything suggest a higher propensity for learning among those taught via games than those who are not, showing an inherent superiority in comparison to less mentally stimulating teaching methods, such as lectures and slide-based presentations. Certainly if a student were already interested in the subject being taught, such methods could be as or more effective. Similarly, humour could be used to the same end. Regardless, unless a learner’s brain is engaged, nothing will be learned. As there is no guarantee of this, any method proven capable of attracting concentration (play included) used effectively could contribute to the teaching process.

A more accurate statement on games as ineffective teaching methods is that they are not guaranteed to teach useful information or whatever a teacher may be attempting to get across simply by virtue of being games. However, there has never been any argument otherwise. A game is not guaranteed to teach in the same way that it’s possible to learn nothing from a lecture. If the delivery is poor, so is the understanding students will take away from it. A lecture on economics that derails into a lengthy and uninteresting tangent on potatoes for ninety percent of its allocated timeslot is highly unlikely to teach economics effectively.

Clark’s essay in 2013 makes an ongoing allusion throughout to the rules and structure of a game contributing to irrelevant mental load, distracting from the learning process. This suggestion has also however been mounted at class-based learning (Kapp, 2013); as a classroom environment will often feature countless (and I speak from a position of experience), constant distractions. Students will often deliberately distract each other, and purposefully will not concentrate. This is precisely where games provide an advantage. As the mind is engaged by play (BBC 2002); the desire for learners to distract themselves decreases, as a result of their learning activity being more entertaining than any disruptive behaviour one might think to attempt.Even should Dr. Clark and her peers be interpreted as suggesting only a minority of very well-designed games specifically designed to teach are by any stretch of logic useful in that regard, once again there is evidence to the contrary.

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Chapter 3: Do Commercially Produced Games Have Educational Value?

While there are countless games designed for the specific purpose of teaching, there is a strong argument to suggest that actually an equally significant learning process is being undertaken by players of commercially designed titles lacking in any specific intention to educate in the first place.

Valve President Gabe Newell has declared that he sees no distinction between “educational” releases and commercially designed titles, claiming that Valve’s game Portal 2 is about science. He says that the game is about spatial reasoning, learning physics, and problem solving. President Newell is of the belief that the concepts of a game designed to educate and a game designed to be commercially successful are not mutually exclusive.

“A lot of times [the label] 'educational games' is a way of being an excuse for bad game design or poor production values." (Gilbert 2011)

A Portal 2 test-chamber (Parekh, 2013)

Indeed, many claims suggest that players have been positively affected by games in terms of learning. Kyollo (2010) refers to games such as LittleBigPlanet being used to teach children to be “flexible, adaptive workers”, strongly suggesting that (at least in Kyollo’s opinion) games are very much capable of influencing children’s learning. In 2011 a pack was developed for the sequel to the aforementioned title specifically for use in schools (Jackson, 2011).

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LittleBigPlanet characters using their surroundings with creativity and ingenuity. (PC Magazine, 2011)

This is a genuine instance of a game designed as a commercial venture proven to have educational properties, and developed further to push these to their potential. It is most certainly not alone, either.

For a game to function, it is a basic requirement that it teaches the player how to do it; whether by tutorial, or by trial and error. Regardless of what the game is, this is a learning practice that is always happening for its duration (Gee, 2004, p.1).

In order to see how efficient games are at teaching first-hand, I attempted to investigate whether or not I could learn from a game myself by playing Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, a game I had not played before. Predictably, the more I played, the better I became at the game. Afterwards however, it became clear that the experience had affected me beyond the boundaries of the game itself. Ace Attorney takes place in a courtroom setting from the perspective of a defence attorney, and pressures players into presenting evidence to the court to back up claims, or it will be impossible to win (Bowskill, 2006). Following playing the game, I found myself unconsciously finding evidence to substantiate every claim I made, or not saying anything without solid evidence to back it up. Despite years of being told to do this in schools, all essays I had written until to this point had been sorely lacking in citations, and simply being taught to use evidence in the context of a game with no real world consequences tremendously improved my ability to write.

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Phoenix Wright viewing evidence (screen-grab)

This is possibly only to be expected. It’s no secret that Phoenix Wright requires critical thinking to play (Mazzara, 2012; Squires, 2010) and as Gee (2004) said, games teach the audience how to play them. It has even been said that Ace Attorney is close to an Edutainment title, “by building its core mechanic around reading comprehension and deductive reasoning” (Bettenhausen, 2007). I will admit that Ace Attorney encouraged me to think outside the box in terms of where to look for evidence, and inspired the design of my major project. Therefore, I cannot deny on a personal level that I have been taught and influenced by a computer game.

Others have also found that they have improved at various skills by playing games, which are not designed specifically for that purpose. It is a logical conclusion then, that the process of playing games can always be a learning exercise.

Chapter 4: Games in Work Training

One such example of computer games unintentionally assisting in the improvement of skills was discovered by neuroscientists at the Iowa State University. Their studies showed that surgeons performed better and were more accurate at the operating table when they regularly played computer games (Bilton, 2013).

Games (digital or not) have an intrinsically high capacity for teaching, at any level. That neuroscientists and I are able to take as much from a game as a school might is proof of this claim. Games are sometimes used intentionally in the training of staff. They encourage concentration, lead to social interaction, energise trainees, and provide (as with the kangaroo boxing) a risk-free environment to practice practical skills taught in the training; granting an opportunity to help skills sink in that otherwise might not (Miller, 2012).

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Of course, the primary difference between this instance and the neuroscientists is that games covering the same skills as the training are not the same as mainstream commercial titles, and must be developed around the task at hand. While this may discourage the use of computer gaming, it reinforces the fact that play serves an important purpose in learning.

The military is one career path in which games are especially used in training. An example is how to use a rifle. Games can give recruits practice at marksmanship by allowing the use of a dummy rifle to shoot at targets on a screen. It is miles safer and less expensive than real physical training (Ask, 2012). The US military believes so strongly in computer game-based combat training that it was prepared to spend £28.5 million on an upgrade to a game training program. In spite of the huge difference between playing something on a screen and actually fighting in real life, it was proposed that the technology could train soldiers in various tactical scenarios and environments, evaluate the decision making process of leaders and enhance teamwork (Rundle, 2012).

A role in which games are used for with immense success is piloting. As it would be very expensive to use actual planes, games based on being in the cockpit of a plane have been commissioned by the US Navy (Blain, 2007; Rundle, 2012). Through aiming to achieve superior times on missions, pilots are able to develop in much the same way children can; with motivation, reward, instant feedback, and practice.

Chapter 5: Is the Educational Merit of Games Exaggerated?

While plenty of evidence has been provided to demonstrate the positive impact games have on skill development, it would be irresponsible to disregard the risks to fun-based learning. In particular, the addictive quality of digital games has dangerous consequences.

When a person finds something entertaining enough to sustain an interest and learn from it, there is a high risk of them not wanting to stop and do something else. For instance, many schools worldwide have begun implementing Minecraft as a compulsory part of educating students. Minecraft may be frequently suggested to have huge educational merits, but is also highly addictive. Even when not playing the game, children often watch videos of the independently produced title on the video sharing website youtube (Bilton, 2013).

Minecraft

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Furthermore, computer game producing company executives are only too eager to claim educational value to their products, apparently especially those from specifically “for profit” companies (Gilbert, 2011; Jackson, 2011).

Although this suggests gaming may be highly addictive, it does not mean it is useless in education. While playing games in excess could be harmful according to the above data, it is also harmful to live exclusively on milk. This does not change the fact that it is rich in calcium and part of a healthy diet.

Chapter 6: Physical Health Benefits of Gaming

Although games by this reckoning deny exercise and can contribute to an unhealthy lifestyle and obesity, games have also provided a solution to this problem themselves. Computer games have been produced which require the body to play. While this alone is not enough to market games as being healthy, games do provide clearly defined motivation and reward systems, as well as instant feedback and increasing difficulty while repeating skilled processes. This allows a very visual measurement of progress, which could be (and is being) used as an inexpensive virtual coach for a daily exercise routine.

This is the premise of Nintendo’s Wii Fit, a game that features an in-built Body Mass Index over time measurement system to give players feedback. The game uses the “Wii Fit Board”, a peripheral device players stand on to perform exercises, which gathers the BMI reading and detects the player’s posture’s centre of balance. The game also provides guidance on burning calories (Berger, 2009). Keeping up to date with technology, the Wii Fit series now includes Wii Fit Plus and Wii Fit U, featuring new additions to improve the Wii Fit functionality.

Wii Fit with its board (Decrême, 2013)

Sadly, Wii Fit is not without its share of flaws, and accusations have been levelled at the game, suggesting that it is unsuitable for children. Not for the usual reasons such as violent or sexual content; but because the BMI calculator is wildly less accurate at measuring growing children. The suggestion is that this may lead to perfectly healthy children believing they are overweight and developing insecurities (Mail Online, 2008).

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Wii Fit is by no means the first game to feature the use of the whole body, and there is choice. This is just as well, as Wii Fit was not designed specifically for entertainment. While it may be useful to have a game focused on exercise, if more computer games people play for fun are also physically active, the activity becomes healthier overall. A precursor to Wii Fit and its board is the Dance Mat used in titles such as Dance Dance Revolution. Dance mats are to be stood on by players. In the dancing games, arrows will appear on the screen corresponding to arrows on the mat. Players have to match their feet with the appropriate arrows to a rhythm, as the arrows appear in swifter succession. The act of placing one’s feet on the correct arrows resembles a dance, hence the name “Dance Mat”.

A Dance Mat used for Dance Dance Revolution (Konami, 2010)

The dance mat is far more than a means to entertain oneself however, and using the music is able to work on coordination, attention, and range of motion. Sufferers of Parkinson’s disease have shown improvement as a result of frequent use of this game (Marin, 2012), and by the very addictive nature of games themselves that supposedly makes them dangerous actually encourages frequent use and therefore frequent exercise.

Chapter 7: Mental Health Benefits of Gaming

Playing games is good for your mental health (Dykstra, 2013; Khedekar, 2012; Pinola, 2013; Kühn, Gleich, Lorenz, Lindenberger, Gallinat, 2013). As discovered by a growing body of researchers, the most adept gamers are capable of making decisions up to six times a second, which is four times faster than the human average. They also found that gamers could pay attention to six things at once without getting confused, as opposed to the usual four. These studies were performed independently of companies that sell digital games (Hotz, 2012). Unfortunately, researchers have been unable to replicate this positive mental development in educational titles, and it seems to be only the case in action games.

Games have also been observed to have uses in therapy. As they are designed to be enjoyable and stimulating, they can distract the suffering of people in physical or mental pain. Video game therapy has seen great success. Patients suffering from severe burns reported that when their wounds were being cleaned while playing Snow World, a game designed at the Georgia Institute of Technology, it offered more effective pain relief than morphine (Dykstra, 2013). On a smaller scale, I experienced this myself when I had to have an operation on my foot while conscious and with insufficient anaesthetic

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to stop the pain. By playing Kid Icarus: Uprising, a game featuring fast-paced action and careful aiming to hit fast-moving targets; although I could feel extreme pain in my foot, as my brain was occupied by the activity, I barely winced.

Though that is merely a single isolated instance and may say more about myself than the game, the application of computer games in therapy extends further. For example, computer games allow for the creation of virtual environments in which people may take part in sports such as golf without going outside. This can serve as a substitute to the activity itself, and may help injured, paralysed or very elderly enthusiasts; meaning that they are not prevented from doing the things they would otherwise be unable to. Additionally, sensor based consoles such as the Nintendo Wii enable physical activities without going outside. This can help paralytic people become more flexible (Khedekar, 2012).

Not only this, but researchers found that playing Super Mario 64 for 30 minutes a day for two months increased the brain volume in adults of the right hippocampus, right prefrontal cortex, and cerebellum. This means that games such as Super Mario 64 can help to counteract such mental illnesses as post-traumatic stress disorder, schizophrenia, and neurodegenerative disease (Pinola, 2013; Kühn, Gleich, Lorenz, Lindenberger, Gallinat, 2013).

Doctor Mario finds the cure for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and other mental illnesses

Though it is always possible results from tests have been fabricated by biased individuals with hidden agendas it is highly unlikely that this is the case. The hippocampus is the part of the brain responsible for emotional processing and memory. In the case of post-traumatic stress disorder, it appears smaller. A malfunctioning hippocampus is believed to prevent flashbacks and nightmares from being

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fully processed, meaning that anxiety is not reduced over time (National Health Service, 2013). Given that this has been known to medical science with no relation to the study in question, it is improbable that bias could be involved. Therefore, any treatment discovered to enlarge the hippocampus is indeed likely to combat post-traumatic stress disorder and other anxiety related mental debilitations.

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and Charité University Medicine St. Hedwick-Krankenhaus used MRA to measure volunteers who played video games with a control group who did not, and found “significant gray matter increase” in the players of computer games (Pinola, 2013). Having less grey matter is associated with aging and Alzheimer Disease, so an increase is possibly the solution to the treatment and preventing of AD (Gress, 2001).

A study is also underway to find out whether or not video games serve as effective therapy for children suffering from Cerebral Palsy. It has been theorised that games can elicit neuroplasticity: the ability for the brain to restructure, compensating for brain lesions and unlock potential through growing better neural connections. This is neuroplasticity requires motivation and reward, instant feedback, incrementally increasing difficulty of a task and the repetitive practice of skills (Biddis, 2012). In other words, the primary components of a video game referred to in chapter 6.

On top of this, video games have shown potential for rehabilitating victims of Strokes. A stroke involves the loss of brain cells, often resulting in permanently disabled limbs. However, patients who have received therapy occasionally show improvement. The game built for people who lost use in their hands featured a virtual environment, in which patients were able to perform tasks such as removing a cup from a shelf and putting it on a table, hammering a nail, and even playing the piano. With assistance from a robotic arm, volunteers attempted increasingly difficult tasks and over time were able to move faster (Society for Neuroscience, 2010).

Conclusion

Not only are games directly helpful to people suffering from Alzheimer’s, but also indirectly gamers themselves appear to be the key to bringing an end to the disease which affects 496,000 people in the UK (Alzheimer’s Society, 2012). Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s Disease, Huntington’s Disease and Mad Cow Disease are the result of misfolded proteins poisoning brain cells. Understanding how to correctly fold a protein is extremely complex, and scientists at the University of Washington spent years attempting to let supercomputers find the solution, to no avail (Doyle, 2010).

However, where supercomputers failed, a greater calculating force found success: Computer gamers. Biochemists and computer scientists at the University of Washington joined forces to produce the free computer game Foldit, allowing gamers to attempt folding themselves and receiving points for each successful fold, and enabling them to compete for point scores. The players proved superior to supercomputers for this research when required to perform “cognitive leaps of faith, long-term vision, or major shifts in strategy” (Doyle 2010).

The deep suggested relationship between players and success, as well as games and mental treatment makes for an interesting possibility for the future: games could be used to solve real, practical problems such as protein folding, while simultaneously effectively treating mental disabilities and offering therapy. At the same time they could well be teaching scientific, mathematical and/or potentially other skills to assist development. On top of that, a game could be teaching moral principles, benefitting the ability to think quickly and to touch-type, hastening reaction times and

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providing a release for pent-up stress in a completely safe environment. All of this within the space of thirty minutes each day (Pinola, 2013; Kühn, Gleich, Lorenz, Lindenberger, Gallinat, 2013; Hotz, 2012; Bilton, 2013; Kyollo, 2010; Boller, 2013; Wastiau, Kearney, Van den Berghe, 2009).

In my opinion, this vastly outweighs the negative side-effects of computer games, which are, for the majority as has already been stated, poorly substantiated (Kapp, 2013; Boller, 2013). The single exception being their dangerously addictive quality (Bilton, 2013); which could potentially result in neglecting physical fitness and other aspects of a healthy lifestyle. Provided that proper caution is taken in the use of digital games, they may contribute greatly to the health, intelligence and knowledge of all people; while at the same time resolving real problems. Therefore, digital games have an undeniably valuable place in society and once again, provided proper caution is advised over how long they may be played on average per day; encouraged by the government, media, and educational system.

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