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I’ve oftentimes thought about why gaming is such an important part of my life. Is it because I grew up with it? Possibly. Is it because I love tech and it’s an extension of that? Maybe.

But I don’t think either characterization really captures why I love gaming and why anytime I have some free time, I immediately push my computer aside, turn my HDTV on, and start playing with my Wii, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, or the countless consoles that have littered my past.

In reality, I love gaming because it’s an escape into a reality that can only be possible in the world of video games. It’s not just a place where I can be entertained–though I am quite often–and it’s not even a place where I can waste the day by immersing myself in a virtual world.

Video games create a world that’s free from stress, and although some like to say they ruin our children and will ignite a wave of violence unlike anything we’ve ever seen, they’re not nearly as violent as the “real world.” If I wanted to look at the horrors of our society and see the worst human beings for what they really are, I wouldn’t play a video game. Instead, I’d do a simple Web search and learn anything I’ve ever wanted to know.

I have a serious problem with people who look at gaming as the root of all evil in this society. “Kids learn how to kill!” they say until their voices lose their thunder. “Look what these video games show our children!” they continue the next day.

But why don’t they look through their reality distortion field and realize that video games can provide a lot of good for most people?

Granted, video games will not solve the world’s troubles, but countless studies have shown that although a massage may relax you more effectively, video games can provide therapeutic relief as well.

Information Solutions Group found video games can be therapeutic to kids with ADHD. Another study from PopCap Games found video games reduce stress and can reduce the effects of depression.

The simple fact that anti-video game zealots don’t understand is that video games can be a haven for some people. It’s easy to say that the content is violent or sexual, but I can say the same about the news I watch on TV every night and the movies I pop into my DVD player after that. Video games provide a retreat and there’s no way to downplay that.

And perhaps that’s why I think everyone should embrace gaming. It’s not that I’m so obsessed with it that everyone should play. Instead, I believe that people should embrace gaming because it’s an industry that provides superior entertainment value to films and never forgets that there’s more to life than life itself.

Check out Don’s Digital Home podcast, Twitter feed, and FriendFeed.