You’ve heard it all before. Online gaming is bad for you. It’s killing your brain cells. It creates bad habits. But let’s look at it differently. There are plenty of reasons why playing games can benefit your cognitive abilities.

From developing problem-solving skills and dexterity to detecting and preventing early-onset dementia, gaming skills have a lot of overlooked benefits.

Gaming Develops Cognitive Skills

Whether you prefer to spend time playing video games, bingo or poker at the best online casino in India, you need to figure out gaming strategies and concentrate as you hone your skills. It’s this level of concentration that develops those problem-solving skills and mental agility as you think about your next move and improve your winning chances.

If that’s not enough to get you excited about gaming, there’s more. Regularly playing online casino and computer games improves your reaction times and dexterity. Take bingo as an example. When you play bingo, you need to listen to the caller and quickly mark off the numbers on your card (or follow the fast-paced session online). So, you’re mentally alert to keep tabs on whether or not you’re on a winning streak.

It’s the same with video games – you need fast responses to deal with and react to new situations.

Video Games Boost Memory

Gaming improves your memory. When you’re playing, you need to retain different pieces of information in your mind all at once. For instance, when you play a video game, you need to remember locations, where you need to navigate to, items to pick up and other useful points to help you progress.
As for playing online casino games, some strategies include remembering cards that have been dealt, or which slot machine combinations will give you a payout.

There are plenty of ways the memory is stimulated when you play games, and this can be beneficial to your memory and your motor skills, especially if you’re in the early stages of dementia or even if you’ve suffered a stroke.

Gaming Goes High-Tech

Medically, video and casino games are proving to assist with memory and cognition. So, what’s next?

Live dealer games, virtual reality, mobile gaming – we’ve seen a lot of new advancements in the past few years, and one of the next gaming innovations we’re likely to see soon involves Elon Musk’s Neuralink prototype.

For gamers who have suffered a stroke or who battle with motor coordination, the new technology could allow you to play your favourite games without any type of controller. A monkey’s already done it.

In a video released by Neuralink Pager the Macaque Monkey is introduced. Pager has been implanted with the chip on either side of his brain. With a little motivation in the form of a banana smoothie through a straw, Pager is shown playing basic video games.

At first, the monkey uses a joystick to play and calibrate the chip. Then, once he gets the hang of Pong, the joystick is removed, and Pager plays the game by thinking about where he wants the digital paddle to go.

Just imagine looking at your computer screen to spin the reels on a slot machine or reveal your winning poker hand.

It may all sound a bit Back to the Future-like. But it’s 2021, the technology is here, and we are already relying on it in the healthcare industry, so why shouldn’t we use it to stimulate memory and coordination?