Using your brain and pushing yourself too much whilst studying at the level of a doctorate is a sure way to find yourself facing burnout.

This is when your body enters a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion as a result of prolonged stress. This is why it’s important to give yourself time in your studies for some much-needed relaxation. When you get back to your work after taking a break, your concentration levels and productivity will thank you. One of the all-time best ways to release your brain from the burden of work is to escape to the world of video games. We all know that some video games can be stressful – this article will explore some of the best games to play so that you can sit back and switch off entirely.

Why Play Video Games?

When you are completing your online DBA, it’s important to take breaks. Whilst there is evidence that says that video games can cause stress, there are also countless bits of research out there that support the benefits of playing video games, and recognise their ability to relieve stress. Whether you want to get together with your mates and score some big points in a shooter, or you want to relax and marvel over a visual spectacle, there is a game for everybody. 

Shut Up and Drive

Take a break and escape to the open world and put your foot down. A top pick would be Forza Horizon 4. The game, set in Britain, features a relatively open world mechanic where you can just drive at your leisure. If you want to take in the beauty of the Scottish lakes or enter some beautifully crafted race events, you are free to do so. The bonus of a racing line to guide you and the ability to rewind the game means that you don’t have to worry so much or concentrate on driving flawlessly. As well as relieving stress, racing games can benefit other cognitive skills, such as hand-eye coordination.

Simulation Station

When your life is stressful, sometimes it’s a good idea to take control of someone else’s life. Simulation games, like The Sims 4, let you play God as you build yourself a cool house and a successful life for your Sims. One benefit of The Sims is that it has a ginormous online community, and if you play on a PC you can browse the web for some very interesting mods to live out some of your more out-there fantasies. Although this game is known to draw people into its escapism, don’t journey too far down the rabbit hole – you still have work to do after all. 

Fun fact: Will Write, one of the creators of The Sims, got his inspiration after his house burnt down and he had to build his life up from scratch.

Thoughtless Fighters

Sometimes, all you want to do is button-mash and get yourself sunk into a fighter game. Notoriously, Mortal Kombat, which places you in a gruesome tournament amongst man, gods, and other beasts, will let you try to defeat your opponent and bag yourself a well-deserved win – and if you like graphic scenes then there’s nothing better than watching Scorpion tear a heart out on a string. Further, fighting games have been proven to give players a flood of positive emotions after gameplay. So, grab your controller and release some of that pent up stress!

Mindless Shooters

The chances are that you’ve played or heard of Call of Duty in one some way. From intense campaign modes, shrapnel scattered deathmatches and even shooting up zombies – there’s a Call of Duty title out there to suit any first-person shooter lover. Although shooter games are tarnished with a bad reputation, there is some evidence out there that shooters can be beneficial in healing after periods of hard work – which would put you in better stead to be more productive when you return to your studies. 

Swing into Action

A big part of playing videos it to lose yourself in a different world and let your worries sweep away. We’ve all more than likely dreamt of the day that we can finally become a superhero. Luckily, that dream is a little bit closer. Games like Spiderman allow you to suit up and clear the streets of crime whilst encountering famous villains from comics. The web-slinging games also allow you to just peacefully swing your way through New York City in a sandbox-style universe. Once you’ve finished fighting the good fight, you can make like Peter Parker and carry out your Doctoral responsibilities effectively.

Back to Basics (Tetris, Snake, etc.)

You don’t have to have a proper games console to kick back and relax. Sometimes it’s better to turn back the clock and play some classic games – like Tetris. You probably already know this, but the purpose of Tetris is to place a series of falling blocks in a grid to form full lines. Once a line is full, it vanishes and you receive points, and it comes with a catchy theme tune as well. The stakes in Tetris aren’t that high and the distraction from your work will have a lot of benefits. Interestingly, studies have shown that Tetris can help to decrease anxiety as well as stress.

Now that you know about some of the greatest options available for relieving stress, it’s time to put down your thesis and switch your brain off for a good few hours. Despite the amount of research and lists of best games out there, we are all different and will therefore react in various ways to different games. So, the best things to do is to buy a bunch of games and explore the things you like. And if you don’t want to spend a lot of money, both Sony and Microsoft provide subscription-based access to databases of over 100 games, so you’ll be spoilt for choice. The most important thing is to make sure that you have fun along the way.