Casual Gaming: Potential Stress-Relievers

So you’re in the middle of Chapter 4 of your thesis, which is due tomorrow. It’s 1:30 in the morning, you haven’t gotten any sleep for three days, and everyone in school keeps saying that you’re starting to evolve into a zombie. With caffeine as your life source, you struggle to type paragraphs based on Althusser’s concept of ideology, but at this hour, you feel like your mental processes are slowly going down. It doesn’t help that your thesis adviser is known as the ferocious dragon lady, who will bite your head off if you don’t churn out a decent copy of your first draft first thing in the morning.

You glance at the clock and decide to take a break. Break here means a thirty minute dose of Zuma.

Apparently, more and more people turn to casual games for relaxation. So if you think casual games are lame, think again. A recent survey conducted by Real (a casual game developer) shows that casual games are definitely a way to unwind. Curious on the said survey’s statistics? Here’s a quick look of some of the research stats:

Women over age 40 who play casual games:

• 67 percent play casual games at least four times per week
• About half (47 percent) play every day
• About 60 percent or more would rather play a casual game than talk on the phone, knit or do other projects at home (such as building or painting)
• About 50 percent would rather play casual games than go to a movie or spend time cooking

Men and women ages 18 and over who play casual games:

• 64 percent do so as a way to unwind and relax
• 53 percent do so for stress relief
• 42 percent cite the activity as a way to keep his/her mind sharp
• Among those with children, 75 percent see educational benefits for their children who play casual games

According to Jennifer Louden, best-selling author and lifestyle expert, “It’s a wild concept, but I see this trend as a way for women and men to establish mental balance and embrace a healthy form of comfort,” Louden said.

So it seems that there’s more to casual games than a lack of gore, violence and special effects. Next time you feel drained, you might want to give these stress relievers a try. But probably not until you’ve finished that very important draft.

So you’re in the middle of Chapter 4 of your thesis, which is due tomorrow. It’s 1:30 in the morning, you haven’t gotten any sleep for three days, and everyone in school keeps saying that you’re starting to evolve into a zombie. With caffeine as your life source, you struggle to type paragraphs based on Althusser’s concept of ideology, but at this hour, you feel like your mental processes are slowly going down. It doesn’t help that your thesis adviser is known as the ferocious dragon lady, who will bite your head off if you don’t churn out a decent copy of your first draft first thing in the morning.

You glance at the clock and decide to take a break. Break here means a thirty minute dose of Zuma.

Apparently, more and more people turn to casual games for relaxation. So if you think casual games are lame, think again. A recent survey conducted by Real (a casual game developer) shows that casual games are definitely a way to unwind. Curious on the said survey’s statistics? Here’s a quick look of some of the research stats:

Women over age 40 who play casual games:

• 67 percent play casual games at least four times per week
• About half (47 percent) play every day
• About 60 percent or more would rather play a casual game than talk on the phone, knit or do other projects at home (such as building or painting)
• About 50 percent would rather play casual games than go to a movie or spend time cooking

Men and women ages 18 and over who play casual games:

• 64 percent do so as a way to unwind and relax
• 53 percent do so for stress relief
• 42 percent cite the activity as a way to keep his/her mind sharp
• Among those with children, 75 percent see educational benefits for their children who play casual games

According to Jennifer Louden, best-selling author and lifestyle expert, “It’s a wild concept, but I see this trend as a way for women and men to establish mental balance and embrace a healthy form of comfort,” Louden said.

So it seems that there’s more to casual games than a lack of gore, violence and special effects. Next time you feel drained, you might want to give these stress relievers a try. But probably not until you’ve finished that very important draft.