This is a touchy subject, but on my mind a lot lately because of my job developing a children's educational MMO.
First off, some stories to get you interested:
My experience:
"In 1999 in my freshman dorm, before MMOs really made a splash, guys who, for the first time, had no one telling them what to do, would spend hours on starcraft, warcraft, worms, and other games, all through the Local Area Network playing with their friends in the dorm. I saw many a friend fail out of school, lose scholarships or lose girlfriends because of his addiction to video gaming.
Next came in 2001, I had a roommate who played "Everquest." He too seemed normal at first-meeting, but then revealed that he was skipping classes and work to play the online game. He went through swells of resistance though, once even bundling everything up and throwing it in the dumpster swearing never to play again. 2 weeks later he had bought a fresh copy and re-installed it on his comp. He too had trouble with girls, whether caused by the game or as a catalyst for driving him into the game I'm not sure."
The experience of a friend:
"I remember meeting my roommate two years ago. He was sitting behind his computer with a headset, journeying with his comrades through a lava-filled cave. We chatted superficially while he played. He was a really cool guy and seemed completely normal at first.
Days passed, however, and I realized that my roommate spent all his time playing this game. He wasn't taking any classes and wasn't working. He played the minute he awoke until he was physically exhausted and forced (by his human frailty) to go to bed. He seldom took showers and ate mostly cold cereal for all his meals, all while playing. This continued until the semester was over.
Now I have new roommates in a new place. But the story doesn't end here. One of my new roommates is a World of Warcraft guru (aka, addict). He too -without exaggeration- puts in eight-to-ten hour days of playing! From Monday to Sunday, the moment he awakes he fires up his computer and enters the matrix. From what I understand, inside this world of 'ones and zeros' he dominates with power unmatched -inside he is as Achilles or Hercules. Outside, however, he is a hygienically challenged, cereal eating, one-class taking, jobless, single gamer."
Here are some extreme outcomes illustrating this problem:
1) Guy dies after playing for 86 hours straight
2) Another death from Internet Gaming
3) Starcraft addiction causes death
My real question, though, is about the encroachment of these problems into the childrens' gaming arena. These kinds of addiction are being seen in increasingly younger kids. Last year, a report from the China National Children's Center, a government think-tank, said that 13 percent of China's 18 million Internet users under 18 were Internet addicts.
In my opinion, there are 2 (responsible) extremes to the issue:
1) Harness and embrace the appeal of online gaming to educate kids about the dangers and teach them that anything that dominates their time at the expense of other good things can lead to an unhealthy balance in their lives.
2) Shelter them completely from the problem until they are old enough to make informed and responsible decisions on their own and are less likely to fall prey to the glitz and glamour of the industry.
What do you think?
itsjms
Geez man, didn't think people would actually put their own life off for video games. This is very interesting and informative article you have written here. I think it's ridiculous to throw your life away for pixels? or gaming respect? I guess. I'm not sure really what they get out of it. Besides to one day wake up a realize they have nothing. I mean come on, they actually skipped school and WORK? Just to play some stupid online game. This could be a serious issue. And needs to be resolved.
You are also correct on the kids thing. More kids ARE starting to play more and more complicated games at a younger age. I remember super mario for the NES/ That was what I played when I was little and it was simple and I wasn't to good. But now there are 5 year olds on halo 3 and other online games and such that are much better than me. Its out of control. Thanks for writing this. It was interesting to read and respond to.
-James
BoMToons
Thanks for the thoughtful response.
I know, it is really crazy, but sometimes it sucks in even the most "cool" and "normal" people you might know. I know I can easily get addicted to games which is why I avoid playing most of the big ones like the plague.
Instead I got addicted to MAKING games...maybe not much better?