I don't have studies to back it up, but my anecdotal experience with growing up with video games is that it's not a good use of your youth if you take into acco

I don't have studies to back it up, but my anecdotal experience with growing up with video games is that it's not a good use of your youth if you take into account the opportunity cost of doing other things. I noticed this once I stopped playing them, and I didn't even play them that often to begin with. Of course, I'm sure there are plenty of examples where video gaming led a kid to having a fulfilling life (even ignoring the sample who actually turn it into a professional career), but in general it feels as though games are not the optimal conduit for this as the skills gained by playing them are generally not transferable to anything else other than titles in the same genre. The boost in mental acuity comes at the price of many hours spent. They say time enjoyed isn't wasted but I've found that there are different types of enjoyment and some are more rewarding than games in terms of pound for pound satisfaction. Looking back, most of the time I spent gaming yielded relatively few memorable moments and periods of personal growth, and all of these were actually more about the people I played games with than the hobby itself. As I said, it's all anecdotal, but I think worth investigating all the same. That said, I'm sure the author's kid will be fine as he seems to be a smart lad. I also wonder how he would fare against "I Wanna Be the Guy", although I hope the guy doesn't put his son through that!