Parents often wonder if there are any benefits to playing video games. The answer is, maybe. There are some studies out there that do support some gains relative to problem solving, maybe some improved visual acuity, hand/eye coordination. On the whole, the big upside is that parents know where their kids are at, instead of wandering around at some kids house or somewhere else; whether that's considered a gain or a positive, have to be pretty careful about that. A kid can hole up in his room for eight hours playing video games, so they have to be careful about that. On the whole, the research shows us that there aren't significant gains to cognitive improvement or social development, that we would ever say, "You need to play video games to improve your development or maturation." On the hole, I don't think so. The point is that it's recreation, and anything done to excess is going to be a problem. The golden questions parents want to know is; how long is too long and how long is too much. I always tell parents, and even my own kids, thirty minutes is the cutoff. When I watch my own kids, I see where they can start to get engrossed to the point where other things don't matter as much. Who wants to do chores or homework when they can play video games? I always cut it off at thirty minutes, occasionally, on the weekends, I might let them go for on hour. That is my professional, as well as, personal opinion.