Games that are popular or involve social mechanics can help with making friends by giving access to the community that forms around the shared experience.

Gaming conventions, online multiplayer sessions, and competitions all help players meet new people and make friends with a common interest.

Research indicates that playing fast-paced computer games can help the player read faster and more accurately.

The intensive situation awareness and management needed when playing fast-paced first person shooters seem to improve gamers' ability to deal with visual and auditory distractions simultaneously.

Developing multi-tasking may help productivity in general. This will spill over to the real-world applications, at home, and in the workplace.

Research indicates that the brains of people who started playing Mario regularly had an increase in gray matter in areas responsible for memory, strategy, fine motor skills and spatial navigation.

Research found that shoot them up players had a boost in their ability to discern subtle changes in the brightness of the image, one of the first visual skills to diminish over time. 

The researchers believe that video games could be used in the future to help as an aid to correct bad eyesight. 

Some games are educational or designed with problem-solving, critical thinking and reading comprehension built in. But it’s unclear if computer games improve general intelligence, although they seem to help teach and reinforce these new skills.

Treating life like a computer game could improve your general quality of life. If you think of yourself as a level 1 character you might be able to identify areas in need of improvement.

Work in those abilities and keep track of your progress. Gamify aspects of your life and use the strategies you've developed in games in real-life to hone your skills and reach your goals.