About three months ago, my mother discovered the despicable Words with Friends. Days when she usually sat down to read a book, she laid with her phone or the iPad and tapped away, game after game. She and her colleagues would instant message during the game, telling each other about the things distracting them from their game. I would turn from the piano and there she was, pointer finger poised above the touch screen. Two months later, she was introduced to Scramble with Friends. The same result had me questioning the purpose to such games. Are they really considered intellectual if you really aren't learning anything new? The words you come up with you already know, and it's not like you look up new words just to fit your (almost there) triple word score.
My mother, like myself, is an avid reader. We can spend hours flipping pages. However, are these "intellectual" games really healthy for you if they take time away for something that is proven to stimulate the brain in a good way?
I believe these games, like you said, are only something you play when you want to pass the time. It does nothing to improve your vocabulary unless you are so competitive as to open a dictionary and actually start looking for words with letters you can use. This kind of dedication is most likely not the case for the majority of the players, for most would use the words they already know, or me who uses an anagrammer.
ReplyDeleteAlthough it does help stimulate and exercise our brain to use the vocabulary we generally would not use, those words are already in our word bank. We learn absolutely nothing. These games are only for entertainment with friends and should not be used as a way to expand one's vocabulary. Opening a book and reading it has so much many more benefits than competing with a friend in a game, although the latter is agreeably more enjoyable.
I agree with you both, and I'd like to point out that in these games, you don't even lose a turn if you start 'shooting in the dark' with the letters. There is no penalty for trying every possible word combo. The 'intellectual' games have many ways to mentally slack off. Although quite enjoyable, the only games I find actually mind building are quiz/strategy games such as chess or go, if one does not use the 'hint' button, that is.
ReplyDeleteThis was one of the main questions in the article we had to read by Sam Anderson. He is constantly describing these new games as 'stupid games'. Through the article he describes how games have evolved from big arcade machines, to game consoles, to handhelds, and, now, people can just get all their games from the apple app store. I think most people like to believe that games involving words are intellectual games, when in reality they are a distraction and are probably just a waste of time.
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