Developing your English with videogames

If you enjoy playing videogames, we have good news for you: they are EXTREMELY useful for English practice. Different types of games will offer different benefits, but what is important here is that videogames are fun, we tend to play them for a long time, and they offer context for the language we are studying.

Having fun while you learn is a great way to improve your English faster and more effectively. When we have fun, our brain is filled with chemicals that make us feel relaxed and happy. This is a good state for your brain to learn. Videogames can help with that. While you are focused on the game, you are passively learning (this means learning without trying) the language being used in it, even if you are not paying too much attention. And because we tend to play games for an hour or more at a time, we do a lot of this kind of learning that requires little effort.

Videogames offer a context, too. There is often a story to follow, puzzles to solve, dialogues to listen to or read, places to find, mysteries to solve, etc. This gives us several contexts with which to learn English. And in English, context is extremely important. The same word can have a completely different meaning depending on the context. Also, learning a new word may be the only way you are going to solve a tricky puzzle, so it gives you motivation, which is also great for learning.

Of course, if you play games that use very little English, like Tetris, learning will be somewhat slow. Go for games that include plenty of language. We have suggestions.

Old school RPG

Games like Undertale, Stardew Valley, the Final Fantasy series and the Diablo series offer a lot of opportunity for reading practice and vocabulary learning. They involve a great amount of objects and actions, and infinite possibilities for story and character development. This means you can spend a long time playing them and learning new words, increasing your reading speed and developing your language skills while enjoying the game.

Historical settings

Games with historical settings like Skyrim, The Witcher series, Red Dead Redemption, etc, can offer a wealth of history related vocabulary. Remember that reading and listening tasks which are related to history could appear in your IELTS test. They also offer maps, which can be useful for you to practise navigating them: some listening tasks in the IELTS will contain a map and you will listen to directions.

Games involving modern maps and objects

Games like Resident Evil, Tomb Raider and Uncharted usually include modern objects and a well-developed plot, providing the player with a lot of useful vocabulary, exposure to grammar rules and collocations. These games also have a lot of dialogue, so you can practise your listening skills. They often involve maps and plants of outdoor and indoor locations, which can also be helpful with IELTS tasks involving maps.

Puzzle games

Solving puzzles makes your brain more active, which is useful for more effective passive learning. If you brain is engaged in a task, you automatically learn more, even if the language part is not related to the task you are doing. Games like Portal 1 and 2, Superliminal and The Stanley’s Parable are great examples of it. They also use a lot of language and humour, which is great to keep you motivated and engaged.

Did you like our suggestions? Then get the controller and happy learning!

What are you going to play? Let us know in the comments!