No Pain With Game

My friend Marwan keeps telling everyone about the educational and therapeutic effects of computer games. He's addicted. Let's say I'm a bit sceptical. I always thought that games were sloth-inducing, violence-promoting excuses for a real life. But it seems he may have a point. A few months ago it was reported that games

can be used in the classroom to help children learn concepts such as critical appreciation of narrative structure or character development which they might otherwise study in a novel.

I'll have to ask him about the parallels between Baldur's Gate and the multiple narratives of Faulkner's As I Lay Dying. And now comes this: advice that a hefty dose of computer gaming can help patients overcome their pain. The report says that

children distracted in a virtual world of guns and mean monsters experienced less pain that those given only painkillers.

Perhaps that's why Marwan always goes round with a grin on his face.