Do you think that video games have a negative effect on the people who play them? Or do you think that they can be a fun pastime?
There’s been a lot of discourse on how video games affect players, and rightfully so. We’ve discussed video game addiction here at Plugged In. And in our 2026 Parents’ Guide to Technology, we noted that both the World Health Organization and the American Psychological Association now recognize “gaming disorder” as a mental health condition.
And lest you think I’m taking an opportunity to wag the finger at all you gamers out there, please understand: I love video games. So this is a good reminder for me, as much as anyone, that an obsessive relationship with video games can result in some serious consequences.
But the influence of video games is not solely doom and gloom.
With all the negative press around games and how they can contribute to our own problematic behaviors, you might have missed a new, positive development that video games are responsible for:
Travel.
Leveling Up Travel
If anything, you’d probably think that a love of video games would lend itself to getting out of the house less. But it seems that’s not always the case.
Instead of resigning themselves exclusively to digital worlds, gamers are increasingly looking to explore the real-world locations that inspired their favorite games or were even replicated in them. One study found that “players’ game experience has a significantly positive effect on their perception of tourism destination image and intention to visit.” For instance, if a gamer has a positive experience exploring the streets of Paris and Paris-like cities in games such as Assassin’s Creed: Unity, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and even Pokémon Legends: Z-A, he or she may be more inclined to visit the City of Lights.
And with some games pushing toward photorealism and accuracy, a player’s gaming may also double as a virtual visit to real-life locales. A slew of social media users have shared their (often humorous) experiences of traveling with video game fanatics, finding that their travel partners are often uniquely equipped to navigate New York City, Rome and other vacation spots after exploring them in video games.
This development has not gone unnoticed by tourism boards around the world. In fact, some have even created marketing campaigns to coincide with Triple A gaming releases that highlight their country. And two game developers were even named “tourism ambassadors” by Japan’s Tsushima Island after their popular 2020 game, Ghost of Tsushima, inspired travel to the remote locale.
Experiencing Reality
Just as Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy inspired a generation of moviegoers to put New Zealand on their travel bucket list, so too are video games influencing the way the next generation of gamers are choosing to travel. And that’s a good thing! Aside from the joy that comes from exploring God’s creation, studies have shown that travel comes with positive benefits.
Research indicates that traveling can be linked to improved physical and mental health, enhanced creativity and reduction of stress. Travel can provide individuals with a greater sense of the world around them, exposure to unique perspectives and the development of empathy.
Mark Twain once wrote, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness … Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.”
I love that quote, and it feels particularly relevant here, because many might worry (and not without reason) that a passion for video games could, in its worst manifestations, result in someone “vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” But the unexpected irony of this game-driven tourism is that some video games are simply making their settings look too good not to be experienced in real life.
And that’s a positive development.
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