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Using Video Game Skills to Improve Your Career

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Even though millions of adults in the U.S. regularly play video games, there are still some unfortunate stigmas surrounding gamers. Some people still view gamers as lazy or unmotivated. 

In reality, nothing could be further from the truth. 

While some video games are more stimulating and strategy-based than others, almost every game requires some kind of skill. If you’re an avid gamer and you’ve been doing it for a long time, you might be able to use those skills in your career. 

No, that doesn’t mean you should drop everything and start gaming for a living (even though that’s a reality for some people!). But, there might be ways to introduce the skills you’ve developed while gaming into your current career or that you can include on a resume when you’re hunting for a new job. 

So, what are some of the most desirable career skills that gaming can help with? Hit the pause button, and let’s cover a few. 

Soft Skills and Personal Growth

Many times, when people are looking for a job, they focus on hard skills. Those things usually come from years of experience or education. Hard skills can improve productivity in almost any career, and allow you to do specific job tasks extremely well. 

But, it’s often easy to overlook the importance of soft skills and how they’re connected with personal growth. Your soft skills are what will keep you from becoming stagnant in a job. Some examples of soft skills include: 

  • Strong communication skills
  • Teamwork
  • Adaptability
  • Problem-solving
  • Flexibility

Look at that list again. 

How many of those skills do you pick up through gaming? Whether you’re on a team working with other players around the world or you have to figure out very specific solutions to win a game, it’s all about utilizing your soft skills. Personal growth is incredibly important whether you’re looking for your first job post-college or you’re trying to move forward in your existing career. Give yourself room to explore, and use your soft skills (even the ones learned through gaming) to make the most of your career. 

Strategic Planning

We just went through a pandemic that put thousands of businesses across the country out of business. So many more had to temporarily close their doors, lay off employees, and cut back on other expenses just to stay afloat. Now that things are returning to normal, those businesses that managed to survive need to have a plan in place for the future. 

If you’re a gamer, you could be someone at the helm of strategic planning. Playing video games requires you to formulate a plan from start to finish, but it also requires you to change those plans based on unexpected situations. Video games promote your ability to think ahead and also on the fly, so you can develop a strategy that works no matter where you are. 

Similarly, your gaming skills can also make you a better leader. Multiplayer games require leadership if you want your team to be successful, and you might find yourself naturally falling into that role every time you play. 

Leaders tend to be organized, have strong communication skills, and understand the impact that their actions might have on those around them. They also have to inspire others to follow them and trust them. The best part? You don’t need an avatar to be a great leader. Those are skills that you can take beyond the screen and into the workplace to find a management position. 

Where Should You Be Working? 

As you can see, certain gaming skills can be used in a variety of different industries, including: 

  • Business
  • Marketing
  • Retail
  • Foodservice
  • Healthcare
  • Real estate

Maybe you already have a job in one of these industries and you’re not fully using your skills. Sometimes, it can be hard to make the connection between what you’ve picked up through gaming and how you can apply it in the real world. So, take some time to consider the skills you think you have, and how they can move you forward in your career – whether you’re already working or applying for a different job. 

But, if gaming is truly your passion, you can utilize the skills you’ve developed over the years within the gaming industry, itself. That doesn’t mean just playing games (although, again, that’s always a possibility!). There are so many careers within the industry that can combine your passion and your skills. Video game development companies are always on the lookout for writers, graphic designers, animators, audio programmers, and so much more. 

The more avid gamers are willing to make the most of their skills, the sooner the stigma surrounding video games will fade away. If you’ve never considered the skills you’ve harnessed as a gamer, take the time to think about how they might help you move forward in a career you love.

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Gaming

Shift Up unveils the intriguing details behind the physical packaging of Stellar Blade for the PS5

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It appears that many

are eagerly anticipating the launch of the highly anticipated PS5 exclusive, Stellar Blade. Shift Up, the developer, has shared a lengthy video showcasing the “secrets” found in the physical box of the game for PS5. From what we can gather, these secrets include a reversible cover/dust jacket and a download code for cosmetic items.

We must clarify that while we do appreciate the variant cover, it may be more appealing than the game’s standard art. However, it is not something we would typically classify as a “secret.”. However, what’s interesting is that Shift Up has confirmed through the comments section that this will be the case in all regions. Additionally, the visually striking action RPG will remain uncensored worldwide.

It’s refreshing to witness a developer going the extra mile for physical collectors, and it’s evident that the developer is determined to leave a favorable mark in the console realm. Stellar Blade is set to make its highly anticipated debut this Friday, April 26th, exclusively on the PS5.

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Gaming

Here are all the patch notes for the new PS5 firmware update that adds the community game help feature

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Sony has recently launched the newest PS5 system software update, which is always an exciting occasion for avid PlayStation fans. With a size of slightly over 1GB, you can download and install it right away. As always, the question remains: What exactly does the update bring to the table?

According to the official patch notes, there have been some notable improvements, particularly in the area of game help. We are introducing an exciting addition to our platform: the Community Game Help feature. This feature enhances the PS5’s Game Help system by providing you with gameplay videos from fellow players. Players have the option to choose whether or not they want their gameplay videos to be shared using this feature.

If you’re concerned about it, you can now hide your Remote Play connection status as well.

Presenting the complete patch notes:

  • Game Help has been enhanced with the addition of Community Game Help features
  • Within Game Help, players can find Community Game Help hints in supported games. These cues come from gameplay videos that other players have shared.
  • If you’re up for it, you have the option to contribute to Community Game Help by giving permission for your gameplay video to be automatically recorded and included in the feature after it’s been reviewed
  • If you want to join in, navigate to Settings, then Captures & Broadcasts, followed by Captures, Auto Captures, and finally Community Game Help. From there, simply choose the option to participate. Users have the option to unsubscribe whenever they choose
  • During Remote Play, players now have the option to hide the persistent message “Remote Play connected.” that appears on their game screen. To ensure a seamless gaming experience, navigate to the Settings menu, then proceed to the System section. From there, locate the Remote Play option and activate the Hide Remote Play Connection Status feature
  • The system’s software performance and stability have been significantly enhanced
  • The messages and usability on some screens have been enhanced

While not the most groundbreaking update, the Community Game Help feature has the potential to be intriguing, contingent upon the number of games that offer support for it. What are your thoughts on the latest update? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.

 

 

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Geek Culture

In the TV show Fallout, would the “rule of thumb” really work?

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Walton Goggins’ character, who plays someone in the first episode of the new TV series Fallout on Amazon, mentions a “rule of thumb” when it comes to nuclear explosions.

According to the character known as “The Ghoul,” he learned in military school that if you raise your thumb and extend your arm toward the blast, you can tell if you are going to live or die. According to the rule, some Americans will be safe from the radioactive fallout if the mushroom cloud is smaller than their thumb. If the mushroom cloud is bigger than their thumb, they won’t be as lucky.

Many other survivors will probably ask you why you’re giving a mushroom cloud the big thumbs up. Is it worth it?

The idea has been looked into a bit thanks to the Fallout video game series, which caught the attention of physicists in their first year at the University of Leicester. They had heard a false rumor that the show’s mascot, Vault Boy, was giving a happy thumbs up to show support for the thumb rule. They wanted to find out if the rule was true.

The team looked at smaller blasts that would fit with the setting of the show and chose a 15-kiloton blast, which is the same size as the blast that happened when the US dropped “Little Boy” on Hiroshima. The first thing the team did was figure out how far away you would have to be from the mushroom cloud for your thumb to cover the blast. They came up with a number that was about 12.6 kilometers (7.8 miles).

“Assuming the detonation occurred on the ground, the radius for avoiding all burns is 4.67 km [2.9 miles] away from the blast center, and the radius for radiation sickness symptoms is 1.56 km [0.97 miles],” the team said in their paper. “This would mean that you would be safe from the initial blast effects of radiation and burns.”

Even though you just saw a nuclear explosion nearby, that doesn’t mean you are safe. And that’s before you worry about nuclear winter. The radiation coming at you from the wind should be your main concern.

“Assuming an average wind speed of 24 km/h, the fallout would reach you within approximately half an hour if you were to be standing directly upwind.”

Getting caught in this wind will give you enough rads to make you sick. One more rule, though: run like hell. This might help you lower your dose.

“This investigation showed that if a 15-kiloton nuclear bomb was to detonate and your thumb extended at an arm’s length just covered the blast, you could survive most negative radiation effects by running laterally in the direction of the wind for a minimum of 1.65 km [1 mile] in half an hour, given that you are standing directly upwind from the blast,” the team said.

But this only works for a blast much smaller than the weapons the world has now. And even for smaller blasts, the rule probably won’t help because of the radiation that is released into the air and the fact that the wind can change quickly. Ruth McBurney, who is the executive director of the Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors in Frankfort, Kentucky, told Inverse that “shelter is the best thing to do if you think you might be in a place where fallout might be present or coming.”

More plans call for temporarily taking refuge in whatever is available, and then moving to better nearby shelters about 30 minutes after the blast. There are, of course, official rules about what to do during a blast. In short, you should stay inside and away from windows, wash your hands, and wait for more instructions. Please don’t condition your hair while you’re doing that.

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