Playing videogames can improve your driving skills

Americans are being urged to pick up a controller — with gaming experts at Playcasino.com saying the right video games could sharpen the exact skills that keep you safer on the road. It won’t replace driver’s ed or your state’s driver’s manual. But a growing stack of peer-reviewed studies suggests targeted gaming can improve lane-keeping, speed control and split-second decision-making — the bread and butter of safe driving.

Study links gaming to steadier lane-keeping

A new analysis in the Journal of Clinical and Translational Science compared young adults who game more than 10 hours a week with lighter gamers on a professional simulator. After controlling for age, sex and mileage, the high-gaming group spent 4% less time out of lane — a small but statistically significant edge in lane discipline. The difference didn’t show up on every metric, but it’s a real signal where it counts.

More research points the same way

A 2023 study in Transportation Research Part F found people with action-video-game experience held steadier lanes, kept more consistent speeds and showed greater spare cognitive capacity during a 40-minute simulated drive — even when distractions were added. In plain English: gamers had more bandwidth left over to deal with the unexpected.

It’s about skill, not just hours

In 2024, a Scientific Reports team tested 116 drivers and showed that action-game proficiency (how well you play, not how long) predicted all-round driving performance — speed control, lane maintenance and spare capacity — while time spent gaming predicted only lane keeping. Train the skill and you train the driver.

Why Mario Kart helps

Action and racing games force your brain to fuse visual information with precise motor control at speed. That visuomotor control is foundational to real-world steering and correction. A well-cited program in Psychological Science even showed as little as 5–10 hours of action-game training can improve these control systems — and specifically tighten lane-keeping under crosswinds in a driving task.

Hazard perception is already ‘gamified’

Safety bodies lean on game-like methods where the evidence is strongest: hazard-perception training using short, video-based clips of developing dangers. Reviews link better hazard-perception scores with lower crash risk, which is why you’ll see similar tools in many U.S. driver’s ed and defensive-driving courses — even if they’re not part of every state’s licensing exam.

How to use games as a training aid

Playcasino.com's experts say the sweet spot is short, regular sessions and “clean driving” goals — smooth lines, stable speed, eyes up — rather than sheer lap records. Do that a few times a week, then bring the composure to the car. And leave a buffer: don’t leap straight from a high-adrenaline session to the ignition. (Yes, parents — it’s one time gaming can be “homework”.)

Games to play for safer-driving skills

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe — rapid visual tracking, steering corrections (Switch)

Gran Turismo 7 / Forza Motorsport (2023) — braking points, smooth pace (PS5 / Xbox / PC)

F1 24/25 — precision lines at high speed (multi-platform)

Assetto Corsa Competizione — realistic physics, gentle inputs (PC/console)

EA WRC / DiRT Rally 2.0 — car control on low-grip surfaces (multi-platform)

Trackmania — pure timing and line discipline (PC/console)

Asphalt 9 / Real Racing 3 — bite-size mobile drills for reaction time (mobile)