Music and Gaming

Almost every person who plays games nowadays, specifically LoL and Smite type of games, listens to music while doing it. So why do we always listen to music? It seems that if we don't, something is out of place, like our brain is missing that one part of the sensory complex. So what does our brain react like on music? Well here's an example of a highlighted MRI scan, the red showing higher activity.

Image Courtesy of Audiology.com's article on Tinnitus Management

This shows us that your brain is a lot more active while listening to music rather than relaxing, but does this help our gameplay? This is an interesting concept that is being questioned on both sides. The reason being that our brain is more active while listening to music, but does that take up some of the brain that we use to play games and improve our reactions? Here we can see an image from This is Your Brain on Music: The Science of A Human Obsession showing us how different parts of the brain work.

Image Courtesy of  TheAbysmal's Wordpress entry

So do we gain a hightened sense of the game, or are we distracted by the extra sensory input? The common argument is that different parts of the brain are being used for different aspects of life, but there is always some overlap. This can lead to different outcomes such as being more creative with plays or changing your build since music has been proven to improve your level of creativity.

Music can also help you learn what your style of play is based on your taste in music, and knowing how you play is one of the keys to improving your play. A study by Adrian C. North shows that different genres indicate different personalities overall. 

Image Courtesy of Belle Beth Cooper's blog

So I'm interested in trying this idea out. This will obviously require quite a few games but if you guys think it makes a difference, make a comment about it!