A new study commissioned by UK global market-information group TSN Technology has found that social games and gaming platforms such as the Nintendo Wii have a positive impact on children and their activity levels.

More than half of the participants felt that gaming encourages bonding between a child and their peers, with nearly two-thirds of teenagers' parents echoing the same sentiment. In addition to helping kids make friends, the study shows that social games support physical activity - two-thirds of parents believe the Wii gets their kids to exercise, with a fifth of young adults considering an end to their gym memberships if they played their Wii regularly.

Even though this might sound suspiciously like a Nintendo press release, it just happens to be yet more positive (and free) press for the mainstream-adored console, which looks to further support the marketing push (and sky-high sales figures) leading to the U.S. release of Wii Fit. Theres a bright side for every gamer here, though. Looking past the study's obvious Wii-love, statistics like these support the idea that games can be helpful and good for children. It also shows that the public is becoming more and more receptive to the concept of "video game" than ever before, which can only mean continued revenue and growth for the future of the video gaming industry. Any gaming news that doesn't blame senseless violent acts on video games or paint the youth as lazy and unresponsive is good news in my book. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to killing people in GTA IV.