Gaming is well known as a fantastic leisure activity and an outlet for blowing off steam. But if you ask parents, the majority will lament the role of video games as a waste of time, distracting their kids’ attention from schoolwork, sports, and social activities. Same for bosses who may not be happy when learning an employee is gaming during the workday.
However, that stereotype is getting a massive update as people increasingly realize gaming can be now a viable path to a bright future filled with exciting opportunities. The growth of esports (competitive video game playing), in particular, has been explosive. In fact, the esports market is on track to surpass $1.5 billion by 2023.
Gaming as a Path to College Scholarships
The most talented gamers are scoring esports scholarships as elite colleges field esports teams and attract premier players the same way they try to reach athletes for swimming or baseball teams. Currently, there are more than 170 collegiate varsity gaming programs in NCAA Division I.
While video game design degrees have long been popular, colleges are now beginning to create esports programs. The University of California Irvine launched its esports program in 2016 — the first of its kind for a public university. Its pillars include “competition, academics and research, community, entertainment, and careers.”
When Work Becomes Play
Most people might not automatically connect video games with soft skills, but the new generation of gaming is about a lot more than sitting in isolation, pushing buttons to earn a high score. In fact, today’s games rely on heavy doses of flexibility and critical thinking, two of the top 10 skills that employers are looking for in 2021.
While career options abound for gamers in video game development and marketing, this new realization of the additional benefits of avid game playing is opening doors for game enthusiasts in a wider roster of industries, such as manufacturing, law, and education.
The Gamer Environment
Knowing more about the skills nurtured by video game playing and the possibilities inherent in gaming success can make many reconsider their resistance to supporting a gaming hobby. So, whether you are the gamer, or you know a casual player or one intending to make a career path out of gaming or video game design, sprucing up the gaming den could be more of an investment in the future than you might have thought.
In fact, where gaming equipment was once dismissed as a waste of money, now it’s easier than ever to see its value, particularly when you compare it to buying actual sports equipment.
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