Video games have gone a long way since its birth. In its early days, video games consisted of simple platforms or puzzle games. Now, these games take up to 100 Gigabytes of memory space due to its intricately designed character models, making in-game characters hyperrealistic, complex A.I. that allows them to make better decisions when going against an actual player and the environment has more detail than ever before.

Teachers do not seem like the type of people that play video games. A poll sent out by Magnet says otherwise. Currently, around 43.6 percent of the teachers polled are playing video games. A majority of the teachers play the classics like: Pac-man, Mario Kart, Tetris, Mario Brothers, Zelda and other puzzle games. Some of the newer games that they play are: Apex Legends, Fortnite, NHL, Madden, VR games and Call of Duty: Warzone. They have a lot of reasons as to why they play video games, but a majority of the teachers play to connect with others. Teachers play because they love to play with friends that are far away or to spend valuable time with their spouse or children by either playing with them or showing them who’s boss. Mr. James Dahlgren said, ”It’s a great way for us to reconnect.” Mr. Dahlgren is one of the best examples of this. Although he does not spend a lot of time playing video games, when he does, he usually plays video games with his friends. 

Right now, activities that can be done at home have skyrocketed to become the most popular way to kill time. A sample of OHS students are playing video games to kill time at home.  It was reported that 84 percent of the OHS students polled were currently playing video games. Younger people like to play different games than older people, as a majority of the students that were polled play high action games like: First person shooters, third person shooters, racing games, some classics, role playing games, free roam games and more. Name a game and there’s a chance that they have played it. A few games that the students are currently playing are: GTA V, Star Wars, MLB, Uncharted series, Rocket League, Crash Bandicoot and many more. The students play these games because they are action packed, require quick thinking and good mechanics to be good at. These are the games that some older people just don’t have the time to put into as they have more responsibilities.Senior Mason Saufferer said, “Video games made an impact on the way I made friends and how I communicate with others. It also helped build a friendship with all the friends that I have in real life as well.”

Although the students and the teachers have different tastes, both groups have one thing in common and that is to spend time with other people. Video games are a great way to connect with those that are far away. Whether they are next door or across the country, there is a way that they can play games together. That is the most valuable thing that video games have to offer.