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Reader Response: Why Games Are Good For You

Steve Johnson writes in his article, “Why Games are Good For You” that “It’s not what you are thinking about when you’re playing the game, it’s the way you are thinking that matters” (Johnson 493). Though this is true for video games, I wonder if it can also be true for reading. This article showed video gaming in the educational light while trying to relate it to how we view recreational reading. As a lover of books this article had areas in which it tried to attack or change how I think about reading.

In the text Johnson tries to explain the relevance of video gaming by appealing to a hypothetical alternate reality. This is in actuality a logical fallacy called “hypothesis contrary to fact” where instead of using facts to create an argument, the speaker uses a hypothetical situations as a substitute. I perceived this example of an alternate reality as an attack on my beliefs. I don’t think there will ever be a point where we can view books as less educational than video games. Learning is almost always an accidental occurrence when playing a video game; it is not the main point. Reading on the other hand is an enjoyable and entertaining tool we use specifically to learn. This article did not only attack a way of thinking, but it also changed how I view video games.

Reading is still my favorite past time, but now after reading this article I understand the merits of video games as well. Johnson included an anecdote about him playing a video game with his nephew whom through the process learned quickly how the “tax rates in industrial areas can stifle development” (491). After watching a game played for a short time a seven year old could spit out a complex idea like that. I found this fascinating. But more than anything I was interested in how the author explained that games allow people to think differently and approach situations with different views. I liked that. The idea that what you learn isn’t as important as how you learn.

My overall reaction to this text was confusion. I didn’t know if someone trying to compare reading and gaming should offend me or if I should just go with it. I think I would recommend this article to people who enjoy video games, but also to people who think video games are a waste of time. Both would benefit from learning the virtues of gaming.