[ad_1]
People today live in a fast-paced world, which can often lead to stressful lives. Whether it is caused by personal relationships, work, or other factors, stress is an unavoidable part of life that can impact a person’s physical and mental health.
Retro space invaders game – artistic visualization. Games are a proven method to reduce stress. Image credit: MasterTux via Pixabay, free license
Some research into the causal link between stress and illness has shown that high and constant pressure could cause or worsen physical and mental conditions. These illnesses include insomnia, depression, anxiety, cardiovascular disease, gastrointestinal disease, chronic pain, multiple sclerosis, lupus, psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, and common colds.
While stress may be unavoidable, plenty of methods exist to deal with and lessen it to improve a person’s quality of life. Some people exercise daily through morning jogs or going to the gym, which keeps the body physically fit and releases endorphins.
Other people take a less intense approach through mindfulness meditations, breathing exercises, and yoga classes, which focus primarily on mental and emotional endurance. Sometimes, turning off your brain and listening to music or watching your favorite series is best.
However, one of the most fun and effective ways to manage and relieve stress is playing a game that helps the player release tension and relax. This article will cover five games that have proven to be some of the best games to relieve stress and relax.
From virtual block-shaped worlds to creatively developed puzzles, these games are the perfect outlet for people to take their minds off daily worries and unwind. Whether you are after an immersive gaming experience or need a quick distraction, these are the games you want to play to take off the edge.
1. Tetris
Tetris is one of the all-time classics that has become massively popular since its invention by Russian game designer Alexey Pajitnov in 1985. The game’s mechanics are relatively simplistic and involve stacking and arranging blocks of various shapes and sizes to create complete lines.
While Tetris might appear to be nothing more than a simple video game, it has its fair share of advantages that reduce stress. These stress-relieving benefits include distractions from stressful thoughts, improved cognitive function, and the release of endorphins.
Distraction from Stressful Thoughts
Anyone who goes through life’s stressors needs a distraction now and then to take a breather. Tetris is an excellent first example because the game’s mechanics are still engaging for the player despite its simplicity.
Since the game drops random blocks, a game of Tetris requires the player’s undivided attention and fine controller dexterity for tricky block placements. It is a distraction that can help decrease stress response intensity while providing a sense of control.
Released Endorphins
Endorphins are natural mood-boosting and pain-killing chemicals found in the brain. Like with most games, playing Tetris can help release those endorphins, leading to reduced stress and a sense of well-being.
Improved Cognitive Function
Playing Tetris helps improve cognitive functions, which include problem-solving skills and spatial reasoning. Most people who strengthen their Tetris skills reduce their stress through a sense of accomplishment.
2. Solitaire
If you want a game that takes more critical thinking than Tetris but with simpler game mechanics than Minecraft, nothing beats a classic solitaire game. Solitaire is one of the few classic card games that has existed for centuries and is still popular today.
Almost all solitaire games are perfect for passing the time while also reducing a person’s stress levels. You can play solitaire games anywhere, anytime, on nearly any device if you have an app or internet access to play online.
The best solitaire applications have multiple game variations, so players can shake things up and not have to play the same game every time. If you want to take it easy, you can play Klondike Solitaire.
If you are bored with classic solitaire and you want to test your skills and the luck of the draw, Pyramid Solitaire, with its staggeringly low win rate, is the game you want to play.
Minecraft game on a smartphone screen – illustrative photo. Image credit: Mika Baumeister via Unsplash, free license
3. Animal Crossing
Animal Crossing is a charming social simulation developed and published by Nintendo. The game involves players building their virtual town, and the best part is, unlike other social simulation video games, the residents of this town are cute animals.
While the initial premise and overall aesthetics may seem like the game is for children, Animal Crossing has proven to have stress-reducing effects on adults. One excellent example is how the game provides a sense of predictability and routine. That can give a remarkably calming and relaxing effect for those undergoing stress.
Animal Crossing is also unique as a social simulation video game in that it gives its players a sense of community. Within the game, players can visit the towns of other players to interact with each other’s residents. That can be an excellent exercise in socialization while also being a great way for the player to take their mind off their problems in the real world.
There are four ways Animal Crossing helps reduce stress levels for its players. These include escapism, social connections, meditation and mindfulness, and a sense of accomplishment.
Escapism
By design, Animal Crossing is unlike the typical video game that rushes you from one objective to another. The slow-paced game encourages players to be patient, explore, and take their time to enjoy the world they are building.
If you need a break from a fast-paced life, Animal Crossing can help you escape your real-life stresses, even for a moment. Its slow-paced gameplay and nature-focused activities make it an ideal way to relax and destress from your everyday routine.
Social Connections
Whether you are an extrovert or introvert, human beings are social creatures by nature, and isolation can lead to high-level stress. Because of that, humans need to socialize occasionally to maintain a healthy mental and emotional state.
As mentioned, Animal Crossing provides a multiplayer mode that enables players to visit each other’s worlds and interact with each other’s citizens. That is a healthy way to introduce a sense of community and social connection that can help decrease feelings of isolation.
Meditation and Mindfulness
Even if a player is not interested in the social interaction aspect of the game, Animal Crossing is still an excellent video game for single players. Many players agree that the game can be an excellent exercise in meditation and mindfulness.
That is because it encourages the player to focus on their tasks and surroundings in the game instead of fixating on other things or problems.
A Sense of Accomplishment
Despite its slow pace and virtual vacation vibe, the game still provides players with various goals and tasks. These include building relationships with other residents, improving their own homes, and collecting items.
Like with most video games, accomplishing each task gives the player a sense of satisfaction and puts them in a better mood, which reduces stress.
4. Minecraft
If you have been around YouTube and Twitch, you have likely heard of Minecraft. It is a sandbox-style video game masterpiece created by Markus “Notch” Persson using the Java programming language and developed by Mojang Studios.
Minecraft is a special kind of video game in the sandbox genre that enables players to explore and create their own virtual worlds. In some aspects, the game shares similarities with Animal Crossing.
However, many distinguishing characteristics in Minecraft separate it from Animal Crossing and other games that involve building your own world. One key difference is Minecraft’s design and overall aesthetics, combining three-dimensional graphics with intentionally blocky and pixelated character and background designs.
Another critical difference is that Animal Crossing drops the player into their own town, where they have friendly neighbors to interact and trade with to build their village. On the other hand, Minecraft drops the player into a randomly generated map with nothing but resources for gathering and crafting, animals for livestock, and hostile enemies.
On paper, the game’s object is to gather enough resources to craft armor and weapons to defeat the Ender Dragon. However, most players forego this end-game objective and find creative and fun ways to build their settlements in their respective worlds.
Some more creative players turn their Minecraft world into a more interactive virtual Lego playroom. Minecraft can be an excellent way to relieve stress for most of these creative players because it promotes escapism, mindfulness, and a sense of accomplishment, like Animal Crossing.
Additionally, Minecraft celebrates the creativity and spatial reasoning of all its players. That is why it is one of the best games to relieve stress and exercise the brain.
5. Journey
If there is any game that was developed in the last decade, which could elicit emotions through character movement animations and overall visuals, it is Journey. It is a unique indie video game released for the PS3 through the PlayStation Network in 2012.
Many game players agree that the game provides a meditative effect that relaxes the player and helps reduce stress. The game achieves this feat through beautiful and calming visuals, a reflective and soothing soundtrack, social interaction with other players, and the freedom to explore an open world without preset objectives imposed on the player.
Journey is not a game about winning or meeting a certain goal but about simply being.
Play for Extra Lives
Research into work-related stress has shown that approximately 120,000 people lose their lives each year due to work-related stress. While it is important to be diligent with your work, it is critical that you do not make your work your life, or it could cost you just that.
Give yourself a break now and then, pick up a game, and relieve your stress. That second life you jump into whenever you play on your Smartphone or Nintendo Switch might just be adding years to your life.
[ad_2]
Source link