Forget the moral panic, gaming and impact games can stimulate mental wellbeing
No matter how much you enjoy gaming, chances are you’ve felt a nagging sense of guilt about playing at one point or another. Maybe it’s the result of having your parents tell you to get outside and play when you were growing up. Or maybe it’s just a societally-induced sense that spending a couple of hours immersed in a virtual world every day might not be the best thing for your mental health.
While there are always risks involved in allowing any hobby to become an obsession, we now know that much of the moral panic around gaming has been overwrought. In fact, a growing body of research shows that gaming can actually be very positive for mental health. It’s also becoming increasingly clear that those effects can also be magnified through the potential of impact games.
How the metaverse could impact employee mental health
We’re spending more time online than ever before in both our professional and personal lives. This could be set to increase even further with the introduction of the metaverse.
A much-hyped concept, the metaverse is, in simple terms, a virtual world for gaming, socializing, and even interacting with businesses. Meta calls it "the next evolution of social connection", with tech businesses scrambling to create virtual spaces for users. But what impact will these new digital spaces have on people in their working lives?