Whether it’s video games or tabletop card games, they both give so many people an outlet to their stress. When the pandemic hit and people were forced to stay at home, gamers said that it was a good way to engage with people you could no longer see in person.
According to a European study with Statista, 25% of gamers in the U.K. reported that playing video games had positive mental health effects during the pandemic.
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Even after the pandemic, it still serves as a great way to make friends and meet likeminded people.
“They get to come in, meet all of these different people and have one shared experience that they really like playing games, playing competitively,” said Luke Miller, Captain of the Behrend League of Legends team.
“Being able to play a game and be into something like that is definitely a way for some people to meet new people because it’s instant common ground that you have with somebody. So you can sit down and be like hey, never met any of these people before, but I know how this game works,” said Eric Bell, owner of Gateway Games.
On top of that, there is some serious money to be made in the industry, which the world economic forum estimates to be worth $321 billion by 2026.
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“If you have those skills to even go professional player, or just to be a producer or caster, it creates opportunities for those who like gaming but aren’t particularly good like myself, to actually stay in the field of doing what you love and actually being successful with it career wise,” Miller explained.
Between broadcasting, social media, computer science, marketing and more. Opportunity is plentiful for those passionate enough about gaming to pursue it as a career.
