Online golf games are considered to be a lot of fun, but strictly speaking they fall into the desirable category of electronic learning games. The first one of this kind was the historic, popular and never-forgotten “Tennis for Two”, which was launched all the way back in 1958. With the help of an oscilloscope, Tennis for Two simulated the side view of a tennis court in the simplest fashion. It worked. People got hooked. The next best thing after that was “Space War!” which some players might still remember from their youth. Computer games have of course come a long way since then and our modern-day online golf games, tennis games and space wars are super-sophisticated in comparison to their ancestral games.
It is only a recent development that computer games are considered beneficial to the player, rather than being seen as a time-wasting tool, a pastime for grown-up kids or an escape from reality for those who can’t hack it in the real world. The attitude has changed. New research shows that playing games such as online golf games, computerised tennis games etc. can hone the player’s skills in a way that board and social games never could. In his book “Everything Bad Is Good for You”, Stephen Johnson analyses computer games versus traditional games in how they affect the players’ analytical ability, as well as their adaptability and flexibility. Not only does he point out that in order to play a sophisticated computer game to any degree of enjoyment, the player must first learn to use the controls, determine the sometimes complicated objective of the game and learn how to achieve game success, players also have to come to grips with navigating complex systems and paying attention to peripheral events. This requires a high level of concentration, focus and memory.
Scientists have taken this view and transferred it to a more serious environment. A recent study has proven that laparoscopic surgeons can improve their surgical skills by playing video games. Their accuracy and speed shows to have improved by almost 30%. The bad news in the study, however, is that only regular players will benefit from the skills they learn. This seems to be the ultimate excuse for all those time-wasters, sofa-poopers and can’t-hack-it-in-the-real-world dudes to settle down in front of their screens for an uninterrupted day-long session of online golf games, tennis or space-wars.
