This idea I drafted back in October of 2010, when my son was but half a year old, after reading this news story about a child who wrecked his parents’ car:
The sheriff said the boy told him that he had trained on video games such as Grand Theft Auto and Monster Truck Jam.
Obviously it was not enough.
We take our kids to play soccer, learn the piano, and while we all hope for futures in the World Cup or concert halls, why not also prepare them for the inevitable demands with electronic interfaces? Stockbrokers must assess visual stimuli from multiple sources simultaneously, and drone pilots distinguish viable targets with the split-second timing. Someday online brain surgery may require not only a steady hand, but the ability to predict and compensate for dangerous lag spikes.
Those of us fortunate enough to experience the technological advances in the recent past have seen firsthand how the challenges went from manipulating the single bright LED of Mattel Electronics Football around slightly darker ones to the 1080p screens on phones, from blocks with only a few extra pixels to make them look like tanks to virtual immersions onto photorealistic battlegrounds. But just as I reel at the prospect of English education from text messages, so, too would my boy be deprived of basic gameplay skills by eye candy and story modes.
The Physical Game Priest (Focusing on handhelds & accessories)
Reflexes: The Chinese Whac-A-Mole® keychain that turned up from somewhere
Burst Strength: Shooting Watch, for button-mashing
Endurance: Time Crisis
Balance: Wii Fit
Stamina: Dance Dance Revolution
The Fighting Game Priest (SNES only)
Memorization: Mortal Kombat II, for Fatalities
Combination: Street Fighter II, to cross-reference special moves and combos
Execution: Killer Instinct, for both chains and Fatalities
The Inventory Priest
Resource Management: Resident Evil, where you learn to conserve shotgun shells
Resource Allocation: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, where every little thing in the universe has its place (or in the alternative, Trekma)
Rhythm:
Hand-Eye Coordination:
Pattern Recognition:
Environmental Awareness:
Adaptability to Novelty:
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