this post is for Fran and the rest of you out there who have yet to discover the infinitely extending benefits of ddr. if you follow the link below, you can read a bit about how ddr and in the groove (which i’m actually unfamiliar with) can boost your brain power, or at least, help you to concentrate. it turns out that rhythm and timing games, such as these, involve multiple regions of the brain and there are links between playing them and increased reading and math fluency in kids (though there aren’t too many studies out there, as you’d imagine).
http://www.smart-kit.com/s142/how-ddr-and-itg-can-boost-intelligence-the-ultimate-brain-gym/
in terms of reading and dyslexia, i was playing ddr the other day and realized that i had switched the two mats (i play on double mode, which uses both mats at the same time). this switch meant that each mat corresponded with the opposite side of the tv screen. while i didn’t play this way, it made me think about how challenging reading would be if you were dyslexic, as you would constantly have to be translating doubly — before you could get words into meanings, you’d first have to identify the positioning and meaning of letters (if my understanding is wrong, please let me know, though). in regards to ddr, if i would have played this way, i’d have to not only translate arrow into foot movement, but i’d again have to translate this movement onto the opposite pad…which sounds too difficult to try, but if i do, i’ll let you know how it goes. i’m sure my brain would def get a good workout, maybe moreso than my body.
also, though i won’t explore it here, i wonder how addiction may be understood as it relates to ddr and the brain regions that it involves…perhaps more to come on that, or def. chime in with your thoughts.
on another note, here is someone playing on two pads in case you’d like to see what it looks like (mostly for entertainment purposes). hope you enjoy:
Having never played DDR, I am not qualified to say how addiction may work with that particular game. However, addiction and video games is a subject I know all too well. As a result, I have often thought on the subject.
For me, a video game is only as fun as its ability to addict me. The more addictive, the more bang I get for my buck. I find that two things are important for creating an addictive game: repetition and variation. Games like Sim City 2000, Diablo I+II, and many others all have the same feature: they encourage repeated behavior. In Sim City 2000 you build from the ground up with the same 50 tile-types with the same rules. Diablo I+II both require the endless hacking at the same enemies, over and over (though the terrain and the enemies are randomly generated). The repetition in DDR is obvious; players leap about on one or two mats on the floor.
The second feature is what brings it home: variation. Once the player’s memory has become proficient at streamlining what is repeated in a video game, where the game varies outside of those constants becomes the main attraction. Sure, hitting a monster is always the same movement (click and hold on the monster), but that it can drop any item and that my character has been improved since last I fought this type of creature offers the variety. Every one of my cities begins with a four way intersection with a Police Station, Hospital, School, and Fire Station on each corner. But the way the rest of the city unfolds is different, and therefore satisfying every time. DDR may only have a limited number of songs where you leap in similar looking ways on the mat, but the variety of settings, difficulties, and human error all add a bit of variation.
It is my opinion that the interplay between repetition and variation is key for my addictive behavior. As the same neurons are fired over and over, if the variation is not substantial, the game gets boring. Those neurons have done all of the efficient network that game has to offer, and therefore can learn no more. If, however, each new neural firing is accompanied by a variation in the action those neurons continue to improve: therefore you continue to “learn” (even if not in the more heady meanings of the word). If there is still learning to be done, I am still amused (as learning is always satisfying). That’s my theory, and I’m sticking to it!