Can being good at video games help you with playing guitar?

Were you a true “Guitar Hero” back in the day? Those skills might give you a leg up when it comes to actually playing guitar over other non-musicians. 

According to a 2016 study by the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, people who played music video games like “Rock Band” and “Guitar Hero” outperformed non-musicians with their musical listening skills, including perception of melody, tuning, tempo, and rhythm.

The study looked at three groups: musicians who had formal music education, non-musicians, and music video game players. All of the groups took a Profile of Music Perception Skills – a test of basic musical listening abilities. 

The results showed that both musicians and music video game players scored higher than their non-musician peers. 

It wasn’t clear from the results whether music video games help sharpen musical skills, or if those who are good at the games simply have more natural musical abilities. But there’s a good chance that if you could beat “Through the Fire and the Flames” on expert in Guitar Hero, you can learn guitar in real life! 

Fret Zealot is great for music video gamers who want to make the leap into real-life instruments. The Fret Zealot app has hundreds of step-by-step video lessons so you can learn anywhere, anytime, and the optional LED attachment makes learning more visual – and much faster. Get started today.