While the same researchers had previously found that games improved visual acuity and peripheral vision, the ability to improve contrast sensitivity is significant, given that it was previously held among the scientific community that it could not be improved. CSF ability is often affected by old age or amblyopia commonly known as lazy eye. Previously, it was only possible to ease the symptoms via glasses or surgery, rather than address the root cause by improving the performance of the eye itself.

The research focused on 13 individuals split into two groups, playing video games for a total of 50 hours over nine weeks. One group was given action games, including Call of Duty 2 and Unreal Tournament, whilst the other played non-action games which do not require such precise gameplay actions, such as The Sims.

Those in the action group showed a 43 percent improvement in CSF compared to those in the non-action group, whose average was 11 percent. More startlingly, the effect was said to last for months, even after the games themselves had stopped being played.