Video Games: From the Basement to the Boardroom

I can fondly remember my first interactions with video games – first the Commadore 64 and then on Nintendo and SEGA.

We crowded round them at the house of the lucky kid in our neighbourhood and all dreamed that we might own one someday. Remarkably for my brother’s generation everyone did seem to own at least one, if not more, and now video games are used everywhere – from the basement to the boardroom.

Parents have moaned for years about games and the lack of positive effects of games for users but there is a significant body of research out there that shows it can improve reaction times and aid memorizing of key information.

Pilots train on simulators (which look ostensibly like games to me!), NGOs build games to teach users about democracy and how to help fight climate change and many sports have games that help test tactics. It is remarkable how extensive the applications for video games have become, and developers are increasingly finding new and innovative ways to apply their technologies across all sectors.

A few weeks ago we had one such innovative company visit the British Embassy here in Washington. We helped UK-based Games Serious Group (SGIL) showcase their “video games based learning” technologies.

Their video games employ science and technology that can be used for a wide range of business purposes. SGIL showcased one staff training platform where questions were asked in game show format and participants were rewarded for correct answers.

It was an out of the box training that turned what could have been an otherwise dry topic into something fun. The best part is that research proved that the training significantly improved knowledge retention amongst participants. I wish I could have had training from some of the gaming heroes from my childhood – dare I say I would have learnt more quickly!

The UK and the US can justifiably lay claim to be at the forefront of video game development, with the UK being Europe’s largest video game market and the third largest in the world. The UK Games sector grew 7.5% between 2009 and 2012, and total sales of console video game software amounted to £1.45bn.

Favourable tax credits announced at Budget 2012 in the UK for video games, animation and high-end television production sectors lend support to the view that this is a trend that will be continuing. These tax credits are key in attracting new investment, companies and highly skilled staff to the UK, and are encouraging companies to explore the boundaries of how we both use and define video games.

Perhaps as a perfect demonstration of the elevated status of the video game, last November the Museum of Modern Art in New York opened up an exhibition that featured fourteen iconic video games.

Although there were strong critics of the idea of housing Tetris a few floors away from a work by Damien Hirst, the exhibition demonstrates how we are still pioneering new standards and definitions for this medium. It also goes to show that the applications for this sector are enormous – they can be seen as recreational, as a learning platform, and, if you are so inclined, even an art form.

With all of the burgeoning developments in this field it is clear that we are a long way from “game over” in figuring out where this exciting sector will take us and I am proud that the UK is at the frontline of the action.