Blamed for... The death of The Great Outdoors
"My concern is that young people are simply not going outdoors or to natural areas, but are instead playing video games, going on the internet or watching movies." Those are the not-entirely-damning words of Oliver Pergams, a research assistant professor in biological sciences at University of Illinois who found a link between the rise of home entertainment and the decline in visits to US National Parks.
Pergams used a variety of fancy data capture tools and confusing linguistics to arrive at his conclusion: "Many of the variables were highly significantly correlated with this decline in national park visitation," Pergams explained. "Multilinear regression apportions which variables are the most significant in affecting the outcome." Right.
Verdict: Videogames - guilty or not guilty?
Guilty. Having foregone the opportunity to venture into the wilderness in favor of staying indoors and shooting make-believe people in videogames on more than one occasion, we know there's some truth in Pergams research. But if the good professor could only see the beautiful vistas and landscapes that PCs and consoles are capable of creating nowadays we bet he wouldn't be so hasty to dash out for his next national park visitation.
On a serious note kids, The Great Outdoors isn't just a clever name - it really is great. There are trees and clouds and birds and everything, all spectacularly rendered and working in real-time. It's a sandbox, open-world adventure that's well worth checking out. We give it 4/5 acorns.
