It’s no secret that video games are fun. Whether you play the original “Mario” games on a GameCube, use a portable gaming device on your morning commute, or use video games to destress after a long day of work, there’s a game for everyone. You can even invite your friends to play your favorite video games together and foster a healthy, fun form of competition. 

While video games can be fun and come with a range of benefits, there is sometimes a negative connotation associated with playing them. Doesn’t playing video games just add to your “screen time”? Isn’t it bad for your vision? It may come as a surprise, but the answer is no. Playing video games can actually help improve your vision. 

This guide breaks down everything you need to know about how video games improve vision and how you can keep your eyes safe and maximize your fun while playing them. 

Amblyopia is a condition more commonly known as “lazy eye.” It’s characterized by weaker vision in one eye, causing it to move to either side rather than follow the other eye. Children can develop amblyopia from birth up until seven years old.

This condition affects vision in a few ways. For instance, it affects depth perception, results in poor vision in one eye, and can also lead to excessive squinting. 

It’s important to start treating amblyopia early for the most effective results. There are many treatments that help fix a lazy eye in children, such as surgery, using an eye patch, or even using glasses.

However, recent research suggests that playing video games can be more effective than some of these methods. While many assume video games are especially bad for children, video games can help improve your child’s vision and help fix amblyopia. 

Another example of how video games improve vision is that they can help improve peripheral vision. Our brains are constantly taking in all of our surroundings, even if we’re not consciously focused on them. So, when we’re outside shopping or at a restaurant, our brains are still processing all of the people and objects moving in our peripheral vision, even if we’re not specifically looking at them. This also takes place in video games. 

Think about it this way. Many video games are designed to give players a first-person perspective of the settings around them. When someone plays a first-person shooter game or something similar, the settings appear life-like, as does what they see around them.

So, if trees, other players, the settings, or animals are moving around in the background, the player will see this while playing. This exercises the player’s peripheral vision as the brain will process the moving images in peripheral vision. 

Why is this important? We use our peripheral vision every day when playing outside, at work, walking through the grocery store, and even driving. Peripheral vision can also benefit the ability to walk in a straight line and see at night. 

Video games are also known for improving “visual acuity” — the sharpness of details from a distance. This is because most fast-paced video games require players to move their eyes quickly from different points on the screen and focus quickly in order to win. This moving and focusing quickly exercises the eye muscles and can help improve visual acuity.

It’s normal to notice changes in vision as you get older. Due to the hardening of the eye muscles over time, it can become more difficult to focus on objects up close, and you may notice changes in your visual acuity. By playing video games, you can exercise your eye muscles and help sustain the sharpness of your focus for longer (not to mention the fun you’ll have).

Another way in which video games improve vision involves grayscale vision. Simply put, grayscale vision is the ability to discern different shades of gray. Poor grayscale vision is common, and not being able to discern various shades of gray isn’t harmful. However, it can pose some dangers such as driving at night, in fog and lead to difficulty seeing in certain conditions.

Until recent research, most assumed grayscale was a condition that couldn’t be fixed. Luckily, video game designers and developers are now learning how playing video games can help improve grayscale vision and are creating a game specifically targeting people who’d like to improve vision. In the meantime, driving at night can be helped with night driving glasses. 

As with any habit, the more you practice it, the more results you’re likely to see. The benefits of playing video games increase the more you play and train your eyes to improve things like grayscale, peripheral vision, visual acuity, and amblyopia.

Plus, video games are much more affordable than some of the expensive alternative procedures to help improve vision. So, set up your console, grab a seat, and have fun!

While understanding how video games improve vision can help you take advantage of this fun activity and exercise your eyes, there are a few things to know.

The games that help vision the most are high-intensity games and first-person perspective games. For instance, action games like “Call of Duty,” “Fortnite,” “Halo,” and “Medal of Honor” can help improve vision because of their unique first-person perspective, quick eye movements, and sharp colors. 

Non-action video games may not offer the same number of benefits as the games above, but they can still help improve amblyopia. You can still play “Pokemon,” “Animal Crossing,” and “Mario Kart,” but they may not help your vision as effectively as “Call of Duty.”

And of course, as game developers are learning more about how video games improve vision, they’re working on designing games that maximize these benefits. 

Wearing a pair of glasses while you play video games may help you play better. If it’s difficult for your eyes to focus on smaller text or details up close, a pair of reading glasses can help. These will make it easier to see words and details up close and make it easier for your eyes to focus.

Video games have many great ocular benefits, but scientists are starting to question the effects of being exposed to the potentially harmful blue light* emanating from digital screens. When taking potentially harmful blue light* into consideration, you may benefit from a pair of blue light glasses. These can help keep your eyes comfortable  while playing your favorite games.

Shop our Eye.Gear® Gamer Glasses here to find a style you love that helps filter 76% of potentially harmful blue light.* 

No matter who you are or what kind of games you like, video games offer many benefits beyond fun and entertainment. They can help improve vision over time and even fix things like amblyopia and strengthen grayscale vision. Plus, with Foster Grant’s® quality selection of Eye.Gear® Gamer Glasses to choose from, you can keep your eyes happy and comfortable. Grab your favorite game and get playing.

*Potentially harmful blue light refers to the 415-455 nanometer range of the visible light spectrum. The percentage represents the average amount of potentially harmful blue light filtered at 5 nanometer increments in this range. With the exception of Eye Gear™ Gaming Glasses, covered under U.S. Pat. No. 8,360,574. Other U.S. and foreign patents pending.

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Sources:

Lazy eye (amblyopia) - Symptoms and causes | Mayo Clinic

Could Your Child Play a Video Game to Correct Lazy Eye? | Cleveland Clinic

[Visual field and road traffic. How does peripheral vision function?] | NCBI

Action Video Games Improve Vision | Rochester News 

Effects of blue light on the circadian system and eye physiology | US National Library of Medicine