"Let the Games Begin"

   I have never really been into online games, and preferred burying myself in a good novel. Video games have always seemed pointless, and I considered reading the healthier choice. On the other hand, my brothers love video games. I always told them that playing too many video games would turn their brains to mush, but I don't think that now, not after watching Jane McGonigal's presentation, in which she talks about how games can make a better world. Video games can utilize a person's creative power, but can they really improve our world? Jane McGonigal showed a picture in her presentation of the face of a gamer on the verge of an "epic win". Urgency and excitement were displayed on the gamer's face. Jane talked about how gamer's will try over and over again to achieve something, to get to the next level. In games, McGonigal believes, that we can be our best. In games, people face obstacles and puzzles with an "I can do it" attitude, with excitement and passion. When faced with real world problems, though, people know there are real consequences, so they tend to feel overwhelmed or depressed. What if the world had more gamers that faced the world with the same attitude and creativity that they face their games with?

      Jane McGonigal says that the average child living in a culture were online gaming is popular spends about 10,000 hours gaming before they are 21! Think about this, a child will spend 10,080 hours in school before graduating! These gamers are becoming really good at what they do, but what is that? Jane tells us exactly what the 500 million gamers around the globe are getting good at. She explains that gamers are becoming experts at what she calls "urgent optimism", which is basically extreme self motivation. Then there is "social fabric". Playing games together, despite who wins, will bond the players together. She talks about how a gamer is happier working hard at their games as apposed to just relaxing, this is what she calls "blissful productivity". All of these things combined create "super-empowered hopeful individuals". These are people who will stop at nothing to achieve the goals set for them. If we could only face the world the same way we face games, we would be unstoppable. Sometimes people draw lines and limit themselves when confronted with the issues of reality because they don't believe in themselves in real life like they do in their virtual lives. Games can open our minds, pulling those crazy, creative  ideas and solutions from our brains that have been locked away. Just imagine, if all those passionate gamers out there could channel their passion into the world, to face it and say "we can do this". Although I can't honestly say I'll ever be able to chose any game over a book, I can say that, as Jane McGonigal portrays in her presentation, online gaming can, and possibly will, change the world for the better.