LONDON, Feb 25 — Whether it’s jumping at the right moment, choosing the quickest route or aiming with precision, Counter-Strike players know all too well that winning is a question of speed. And in this field, it seems that the most experienced players have a head start, making decisions faster than novices, according to a study conducted by the University of Sheffield.Could playing First-Person Shooter (FPS) video games like Counter-Strike make us sharper? So suggests a study titled “The Psychology of Counter-Strike” by researchers at the University of Sheffield, in partnership with esport organisation Endpoint. The research, carried out on 230 players of varying skill levels, reveals fascinating findings that echo those of the Canadian “Brain and Body” study, released in autumn 2024.Counter-Strike is characterised by its speed and intensity, where two teams clash on a map, requiring constant communication and lightning-fast decision-making. Professor Claudia von Bastian, Professor of Cognitive Psychology at the University of Sheffield, explains: “Counter-Strike is ideal for studying the impact that gaming has on our cognition as the fast-paced gameplay [...]. Players need to quickly grasp what is happening around them, juggle many different things at once and make decisions on what to focus on to help determine their success in the game.”The study showed that the most experienced players made decisions faster and acted with greater ease than novices. Faced with two choices, semi-professional and professional players outpaced beginners by an average of 88.94 milliseconds in their decision-making. This finding challenges conventional wisdom, showing that the more a player invests in the game, the more they develop advanced cognitive skills.The most experienced Counter-Strike players have developed a significant advantage in rapidly analyzing and adapting to complex environments. Their ability to make decisions and act in a fraction of a second is crucial to their survival in the game, a skill that could be transferable to other fields requiring rapid and precise decision-making.“Video games can give us a safe arena in which to examine and learn more about how our cognitive abilities respond to high pressure situations. By studying cognitive processing in this way, we could start to develop new ways to nurture and support the cognitive abilities of people who work in environments where they need to make rapid, accurate decisions under intense pressure,” says Claudia von Bastian.Skills that can be useful in other fieldsThis study opens up new perspectives on the potential benefits of video games in fields where the ability to make quick decisions is crucial, whether in healthcare, air traffic or financial trading.Eleanor Hyde, a PhD student at the University of Sheffield’s School of Psychology, said: “I’ve been playing video games for most of my life, and like many gamers, I’ve often heard people dismiss them as being a waste of time. However, as a cognitive psychologist, I’ve always wondered whether there is more to gaming than people typically think. First-person shooter games like Counter-Strike require players to engage multiple cognitive abilities at once and make split-second decisions under intense time pressures.”While this field of research is still in its infancy, the researchers are already turning their attention to another popular game, League of Legends.“It is well documented that video games can help people unwind, reduce stress and improve our health and wellbeing, but what we have seen in our research is that games like Counter-Strike can offer positive cognitive benefits as well. While this field of research is still in its early stages, we’re excited to expand our research to explore how different genres of games impact people’s psychology. For example, League of Legends, one of the most popular titles in gaming, has received surprisingly little research so far,” adds Eleanor Hyde. — ETX Studio