Study finds 'action' video games can improve vision

The other games don't decrease the quality of vision, they simply didn't show the effect that the action games did. It is only by virtue of being compared to the VGP group that the NVGP group seems worse - the NVGP group didn't show differences from baseline. So the NVGP group showed no effect and the VGP group got better in detecting visual contrast.

It's simple. Faster paced games need you to be very alert of your surroundings, and opponents are moving faster, so your eyes are going to be constantly moving. It's like exercise for your eyes.

Compared to a game like the Sims and even Fallout, you can take your time and focus on whatever you want to, for as long as you want.

It's like running on a treadmill vs. walking down to the shop. They're similar activities, but one is keeping you more active.

Maybe it's not so much decreasing as it is not enhancing...

I can even tell it's wearing Hanes underwear, don't know what the hell is wrong with YOUR peepers.

Psh, there is nothing wrong with the picture, I can see it clearly, its probably your eyes!

I was born legally blind and my vision has slightly improved over the years. I actually think playing games helped as there's a lot to take in with the FPS' and action games I play. In the end I think it depends on the individual and how their body adapts. My ass didn't improve, that's for sure. lol

This is a common fallacy when interpreting research findings - My experience doesn't follow the findings of the study, so it must not be true. This type of thinking made in the absence of the realization that an experiment is controlled while the real world is not. Many different variables influence each experience we have. Each individual variable either increases or decreases the probability of an outcome.

For example - your vision naturally degrades over the course of your life and there are many things you can do that will make your vision worse over time (e.g. sitting too close to the TV). Some things (and it seems that in this case games) can improve your vision. The end result will be a net effect of the positive and negative things as well as the natural degradation of your eyesight. Playing action video games will have only a small effect. So even if games have the effect improving vision better, you might not notice the effect and your vision can still get worse.

Even so, this is important information. It informs our knowledge of vision and also suggests that video games can serve as a potentially cheap therapy for those with moderately impaired vision. So don't be so quick to cast the idea out just because your are the "exception" to the rule.

I don't know why gamers are so skeptical of research. This is a pretty solid and well conducted study and the theory behind it is sound.

But how long are we talking here?

You were playing since you were a kid and are now...how old?

If you're 40, it sounds pretty normal.

If you're 15, yea, something's wrong with you.

I agree with pseth.

i wear a pair of placebos when i am experiencing eye fatigue from too much video editing / gaming.

It's a good thing I recently started taking No-Trollz (sugar pills) a few weeks ago, keeps me from going off in a fit of rage when trolls reply to my posts. Maybe try them before you act like a fool?

I almost feel like the opposite is true. Like many strenuous activities, your body gets stronger and more used to it over time. Eyes are made to focus on things for long periods of time. As long as you aren't pulling 18+ hours a day in front of a monitor, you'll probably be okay.

That would be a perfectly reasonable argument if they hadn't then gone and run an experiment - which can show causation.