Video Games: More Productive Than Real Life

Most of us have been the victim in this scenario: You’re playing a video game, and someone you know (usually a parent or partner) leaves and returns later in the day to find you in the exact same place, still playing that video game. Then, instead of commending you for your commitment, they proclaim “Have you really been playing that thing all day?!” They try to shame you, emphasising that they spent their time doing grown-up things and just being generally superior. But they are wrong.

What can you do in a day of real life activities? Pay some bills, do a bit of shopping, get coffee with a friend, etc. That’s about it. What can you do in a day of video game playing? Rescue a princess, prevent an apocalypse, solve crimes, annihilate a terrorist organisation, and much more. Take Skyrim for example. In a single day of Skyrim playing, you can save a town from a dragon, battle wolves on mountain peaks, and solve a ghost problem. That’s a hell of a lot more than just buying some new socks and cleaning your kitchen.

So, next time someone walks in on you playing a game and says “Have you really been playing that thing all day?!”, you look them in the eye and tell them every single thing you’ve achieved in that game. Then, when you’ve told them everything, calmly ask them:

“What the fuck have you done today?”