{"id":57042,"date":"2025-07-10T09:20:58","date_gmt":"2025-07-10T09:20:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world"},"modified":"2025-07-10T10:12:00","modified_gmt":"2025-07-10T10:12:00","slug":"gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world","title":{"rendered":"Gaming blurs line between real life and virtual world"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. <\/strong><\/span>Video games were once considered light entertainment or child\u2019s play, but today they\u2019re cultural institutions shaping careers, social habits and even psychological well-being.<\/p>\n

With augmented reality, the metaverse and virtual platforms growing rapidly, the divide between gaming and real life is narrowing, and experts say the shift is just beginning.<\/p>\n

Creating his ‘dream game’<\/b><\/p>\n

Eric Barone — known as ConcernedApe and the creator of the indie hit Stardew Valley — told Anadolu he started developing games after earning a degree in computer science and struggling to find work. Influenced by his childhood favorite Harvest Moon, he released Stardew Valley in 2016.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the world is so chaotic,\u201d said Barone. \u201cYou\u2019re looking for something that\u2019s de-stressing, not more stress.\u201d<\/p>\n

He called gaming a \u201ccomfortable escape\u201d for people overwhelmed by daily life and noted that \u201cas the world gets crazier and crazier,\u201d the demand for such escapes keeps growing.<\/p>\n

From racing games to real tracks<\/b><\/p>\n

For Jann Mardenborough, that escape became a profession. He began playing Gran Turismo at age 7 and eventually won the GT Academy, a competition which turned gamers into real-life drivers. His gaming skills landed him a professional racing career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was proof of that concept,\u201d Mardenborough said. \u201cI\u2019d done nothing, just PlayStation in my room with a dream of making it into the sport I love.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that his journey required \u201can obsessive level of determination,\u201d especially as a pioneer.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose who come after me won\u2019t have to try as hard,\u201d he said, noting that the pathway from games to sports has now been proven.<\/p>\n

Blurred line between games and reality<\/b><\/p>\n

As virtual reality and augmented reality become mainstream, the difference between games and real life continues to erode. Some games, initially designed as stress relief, now cause stress — yet many still prefer them over daily responsibilities.<\/p>\n

Mardenborough said gaming should not replace real-world experience but can complement it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love real life and this reality,\u201d he said, describing games as tools for entertainment or skill development.<\/p>\n

But he acknowledged that many young people now expect \u201cconstant validation,\u201d both online and in gaming environments, which affects their social lives offline.<\/p>\n

Games now deeply embedded in real life<\/b><\/p>\n

Research psychologist and author Rachel Kowert said gaming began as simple entertainment but has since evolved into a dominant cultural force.<\/p>\n

\u201cPokemon Go is a really good example of kind of augmented reality games, where the game is really taking you out into the real world,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Kowert described games as a \u201ccultural touch point,\u201d now shared \u201cacross generations, across groups, across communities.\u201d She noted that roughly one-third of the global population plays games, underscoring the scale of the shift.<\/p>\n

Barone expressed concern about the erosion of the boundary between digital and physical life. He warned that doing everything through screens \u201cwithout real human interaction\u201d can have negative social effects. While not advocating for people to abandon gaming, he urged reflection.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important to be aware of what these things are doing to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Mauritius<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mauritius. Video games were once considered light entertainment or child\u2019s play, but today they\u2019re cultural institutions shaping careers, social habits and even psychological well-being. With augmented reality, the metaverse and virtual platforms growing rapidly, the divide between gaming and real life is narrowing, and experts say the shift is just beginning. Creating his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":57041,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,9],"tags":[5126,6425,6424,6420,6419,6418,6421,241,6179,6423,6422],"class_list":["post-57042","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-miscellaneous","tag-anadolu","tag-barone","tag-digital-world","tag-eric-barone","tag-from-entertainment-to-addiction-the-world-of-gaming","tag-gaming-world","tag-jann-mardenborough","tag-mauritius","tag-playstation","tag-rachel-kowert","tag-stardew-valley"],"yoast_head":"\nGaming blurs line between real life and virtual world - Mauritius<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Video games were once considered light entertainment or child\u2019s play, but today they\u2019re cultural institutions shaping ca ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gaming blurs line between real life and virtual world\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Video games were once considered light entertainment or child\u2019s play, but today they\u2019re cultural institutions shaping ca ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mauritius\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-10T09:20:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-07-10T10:12:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/sites\/61\/2025\/07\/sm_1752125988.736638.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"864\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"486\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Gaming blurs line between real life and virtual world\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-10T09:20:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-10T10:12:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world\"},\"wordCount\":524,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/sites\/61\/2025\/07\/sm_1752125988.736638.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Anadolu\",\"Barone\",\"digital world\",\"Eric Barone\",\"From Entertainment to Addiction: The World of Gaming\",\"gaming world\",\"Jann Mardenborough\",\"Mauritius\",\"PlayStation\",\"Rachel Kowert\",\"Stardew Valley\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"miscellaneous\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mauritius\/all-news\/gaming-blurs-line-between-real-life-and-virtual-world\",\"name\":\"Gaming blurs line between real life and virtual world - 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