People have been playing board games and card games for centuries. They allow people to spend time with friends and family, entertain themselves and participate in generational traditions. Yet many people have stopped these traditions in favor of playing video games or other screen-based activities.
Learning how to play games has a plethora of benefits, both social and mental.
Playing games helps people interact with each other. While some games can be played alone, most are meant to be played with others.
Getting groups of friends together for cards or board games can be a fun, relaxing way to spend time together. “Board games help me to wind down and connect with people who are close to me as well as help me to build connections with new people,” explained junior Rithik Vijaykumar.
Mentally, playing games can help people improve their memories and their cognitive abilities. These games require substantial amounts of strategy, and they usually contain many unique rules that players must remember. When the games are played in teams or with partners, players improve their teamwork skills as they work together cohesively.
Junior Carter Cox has discovered card games help him to work well with teammates. “One way playing games has helped me is learning strategies and problem-solving as a team. One of my favorite card games is a partner game and I have learned to strategize and work as a team which has helped me a lot,” asserted Cox.
Games can also provide benefits for keeping unique cultural aspects from being forgotten. By playing traditional games from different cultures, people can pass on important parts of their past.
For example, New York teacher Alisha Merrill created a board game to bring awareness to her Native American heritage and to break stereotypes people have about it. Merrill was able to get her game uploaded onto PBS, allowing many more kids to play.
While video games have many of the same benefits, playing card or board games are far better for mental health. Video games can be addictive, and spending too much time in front of screens can have harmful effects on one’s health. Also, playing video games can have adverse social effects as people are able to hide who they are, preventing genuine connections from being made.
This adds to the social benefits of board games as they force people to focus on the moment at hand. “I think that playing card games and board games helps me build connections with others because when we are playing them no one is focused on technology or anything like that and everyone is just enjoying the company of each other,” expressed Cox.
Learning to play board or card games may seem complicated, but they provide many benefits. This includes forming connections and developing mental skills. While many of the same benefits can be received through video games, it is important to continue the tradition of physical games.
