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Not sure where to put this since I guess this is only watchable by the UK people, but there is a Panorama program regarding addiction to gaming. I also used search and found a lot of blog posts and closed threads, so perhaps the closed part answers the consensus of Team Liquid on the matter.
For people outside the UK, the BBC program Panorama is usually a very accurate portrayal of what ever they decide to investigate (be it corruption or Scientology and so on), this is because they have no reason to add bias, so when I read the quote below, it seems they've already reached a consensus that gaming is an addiction.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00wlmj0
There is the quote regarding it:
As pester power kicks in and the computer games' industry launches its latest products on to the Christmas market, Panorama hears from youngsters who've dropped out of school and university to play games for anything up to 21 hours a day. They describe their obsessive gaming as an addiction. Reporter Raphael Rowe, meets leading experts calling for more independent research into this controversial subject, and reveals the hidden psychological devices in games that are designed to keep us coming back for more.
So does Team Liquid think games are addictive and should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school?
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On December 03 2010 07:49 unoriginalname wrote:Not sure where to put this since I guess this is only watchable by the UK people, but there is a Panorama program regarding addiction to gaming. I also used search and found a lot of blog posts and closed threads, so perhaps the closed part answers the consensus of Team Liquid on the matter. For people outside the UK, the BBC program Panorama is usually a very accurate portrayal of what ever they decide to investigate (be it corruption or Scientology and so on), this is because they have no reason to add bias, so when I read the quote below, it seems they've already reached a consensus that gaming is an addiction. There is the quote regarding it: Show nested quote +As pester power kicks in and the computer games' industry launches its latest products on to the Christmas market, Panorama hears from youngsters who've dropped out of school and university to play games for anything up to 21 hours a day. They describe their obsessive gaming as an addiction. Reporter Raphael Rowe, meets leading experts calling for more independent research into this controversial subject, and reveals the hidden psychological devices in games that are designed to keep us coming back for more. So does Team Liquid think games are addictive and should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school?
Yes I think games are addictive. I also think preventatives are called parents.
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On December 03 2010 07:53 muse5187 wrote:Show nested quote +On December 03 2010 07:49 unoriginalname wrote:Not sure where to put this since I guess this is only watchable by the UK people, but there is a Panorama program regarding addiction to gaming. I also used search and found a lot of blog posts and closed threads, so perhaps the closed part answers the consensus of Team Liquid on the matter. For people outside the UK, the BBC program Panorama is usually a very accurate portrayal of what ever they decide to investigate (be it corruption or Scientology and so on), this is because they have no reason to add bias, so when I read the quote below, it seems they've already reached a consensus that gaming is an addiction. There is the quote regarding it: As pester power kicks in and the computer games' industry launches its latest products on to the Christmas market, Panorama hears from youngsters who've dropped out of school and university to play games for anything up to 21 hours a day. They describe their obsessive gaming as an addiction. Reporter Raphael Rowe, meets leading experts calling for more independent research into this controversial subject, and reveals the hidden psychological devices in games that are designed to keep us coming back for more. So does Team Liquid think games are addictive and should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school? Yes I think games are addictive. I also think preventatives are called parents.
Since this particular case regards youngsters dropping out of school I agree with what the above poster said, parents are the best preventatives. This isn't as serious as other addictions though, as parents can easily regulate how much their kids play, in a worst case scenario they can just sell/hide whatever console/PC the child is playing on.
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You can do anything too much and call it an addiction, that doesn't make it an addiction. Unless their is an actual imbalance of chemicals it isn't really. There isn't a physical dependency to games as far as I know; these people should learn to balance their lives. If some one knits 21 hours a day would you say they have a problem too. Also as everyone else has said parents should be showing their kids how to balance their lives.
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yes it's an addiction,but it's one of the easiest if not the easiest to get rid of.
Play sc/wow 20h/day
Find a gf/sports team
Stop video games
Do heroin for 3 years
Find a gf/hobby
Sell her/it for more heroin.
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And that makes it the "easiest" why?
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I don't think games are addictive, people who need to play them in an addictive manner are just filling some hole in their life. It can be said for many other activities as well.
Kids who are socially inept , afraid of failure, or aren't motivated to face life will procrastinate from what's important in any way possible. A game doesn't have nicotine, you can't say it is addictive because doing so ignores the real troubles an individual may be facing.
The only reason this subject gets attention is because video games have a bad stigma in today's society. I knew socially akward kids when I was younger who would literally sit and read harry potter all day, including re-reading. But no, there's no problem with those kids! They are reading!
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calling for more independent research into this controversial subject, and reveals the hidden psychological devices in games that are designed to keep us coming back for more.
Finally someone who sees things from my perspective.
My comrade, we must not relent at exposing video games for what they are...we also must expose the entire literary institution for employing similar insidious, profiteering tricks, hidden psychological devices to trick us into buying more of them, lascivious tricks such "emotional attachments" [to fictional characters] and the dreaded "Cliff Hanger". Burn the books of those doublespeaking, vehement self serving intellectuals once and for all.
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On December 03 2010 08:03 Judicator wrote:
And that makes it the "easiest" why?
holdthephonesum it up perfectly,video games *addiction* is just a hole in someone's life that can be filled by pretty much anything else.The same cannot be said about serious addictions.
Oh and there's no physical addiction,which is also important;)
Edit:@holdthephone:it's also true that you do not need a physical component to call something an addiction.Video games addiction is real,it's just nothing serious if *treated*.(stick his cock into the first vajayjay and hell burn his ps3 in no time).
You can compare it to gambling addiction,except gambling can actually be quite dangerous;)
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[B] So does Team Liquid think games are addictive and should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school?
there is already a device that exists. its called parenting. i love reporters gross generalizations and clever wording. just by saying addiction you will try and relate this to cigarette smoking or other types of drugs. the problem is its an obsession. like the guy who works on his car for 16 hours a day. or the guy who plays guitar instead of getting a job. there is no physical need to play a video game. a heroin addict can want to quit but will be unable as heroin is truly chemically addictive. Unless there is evidence of a gamer unable to leave his console/computer under his own will then the story falls flat. Society is simply uncomfortable with those that don't care to be apart.
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Video games are considered a vice, up there with drugs and alcohol. Kids can play sports in highschool and their grades will drop as they get caught up in the competitiveness and glory of it all -- but I have never seen an argument about kids playing sports.
And there shouldn't be. There is no addiction. It's a problem with the individual, and parents need to help sort those issues out. Turning off the computer isn't the way to solve the problem.
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[B] So does Team Liquid think games are addictive and should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school?
Yes. Its called improving the quality of the system as a whole so certain children don't feel the need to escape reality in order to find titillation.
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yeah video games are addictive so is food and music and television
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People who quickly dismiss this as having no physical basis just haven't looked into it enough. There are very real chemical effects created through gaming, including adrenaline highs, sense of accomplishment, feelings of superiority/inferiority, and more.
That's not to say it's necessarily an addiction. I think the word is grossly overused, but I would also point out that just because something isn't technically an addiction doesn't mean it isn't a compulsive, damaging, difficult to over-come behaviour. In fact I heard a speaker on the radio this morning saying the very same thing about sex "addiction".
As for those talking about parenting, that doesn't really apply to a large majority of gamers. Sure you hear stories about kids raging over their games, but I'd bet a large sum on adults being just as likely to develop gaming "addictions". The OP specifically mentions university. Hell, I dropped a whole semester and failed various courses due to a gaming problem. Parent's aren't around at that point, so it's a bit late for their intervention.
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If you were that distracted from school by games, you were probably going to hate your life if you stayed on a conventional path anyway.
Stack shelves and play Starcraft all day if you want. The majority of the most contented people I know do nothing but play Halo, eat pizza, drink beer and work in Tesco's (supermarket).
I mean I can name a number of things that are equally trivial and pointless that people fill their days with, but noone would call an addiction, like reading, watching movies, writing, drawing, building wooden housing fixtures, playing with car engines, talking to people, cooking, learning foreign languages (<3), shopping. Addiction is just a word designed to invoke a reaction in people.
Like declaring war on social problems, just media hype.
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I mean, of course they are, but anything that is very nice to do can be adictive. Without adictions, life is just boring.
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I wouldn't consider games as addictive. I like them, but liking is not the same as an addiction. I raided in WoW before starting University, and then I realized I couldn't do both, so I stopped raiding and ended up quitting WoW for a year (I was plain bored to be honest).
Maybe it does account as an addiction, but can you get bored of an addiction and then quit?
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Reinforcement and reward through a Skinner Box type mechanism is a deplorable way to get people to continue to play a game. It's also how many popular MMOs function like WoW and Farmville.
The biggest issue facing MMO developers right now is how to get people into the Skinner Box mindset before they lose interest in the game. I dunno anyone who's played a game like WoW for a few months and then dropped it. They either play for a bit and move on because they see the grind or they get hooked into the reward system and stay there far longer then they should have.
Note: This is also why achievements are retarded.
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I predict the next General forum thread to be titled: "Is video game addiction a disease?"
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Let's turn a promising thread into a debate about petty semantics.
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WoW is a great game if you can balance your time spent on it. As with anything in life...
As for games being potentially addictive, I dont think there's anything to argue there. Some people are more vulnerable, same as some people are more prone to alcoolism. There's no need for an external chemical source, the brain builds itself a reward system. Maybe the fault lies in the person rather than the product, but then all those companies doing market research usually try to target these vulnerabilities.
Naysayers needs to read about neuroscience a bit more, should be common knowledge by now.
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I'm rather torn on this subject. I was a hardcore WoW player in high school and, while I still play on occasion, college took over my life pretty much within the first month of attending. Not social partying life, but just doing my work and getting good grades. Part of me wishes I could play tons of games and get good grades, but I know that's just not possible, and so I made my choice. (I -just- got out of philosophy class, so if this sounds very much like Sartre, then that's why). And the reality is, those people made their choice. I don't really mind that they chose to do that, maybe 21 hours a day is a bit much, I'd like to think of them as the people who prefer to game over advancing in a career. And I don't think there's really anything wrong with that.
If they ARE playing 21 hours a day then they have bigger problems. But it's not video games fault. There is a possibility that they could have become engrossed by something else, like gambling. Instead, they're on video games. These people need help, and not "stop playing video games forever" help. They need time management help, and help finding a lifestyle that satisfies them. Video games can be a part of that, but I think everyone can agree that there needs to be something else in a person's life. Focusing on JUST one thing I think is a problem. I'd say the same thing to a CEO who works 21 hours a day as I would to a person who plays video games 21 hours a day. What that is? I dunno, but the point is fixation on just one thing for most of, or all of your time is a problem.
Going through high school, WoW was pretty much the only thing that made me feel good about myself. Top DPS with my gnome rogue, having people be friendly to me, and feeling overall useful. Nowadays, I replaced WoW with getting good grades and feeling good about knowing a lot of chemistry and physics. But the feeling hasn't changed, I get that feeling "Man, I'm awesome" when I get a good grade, or get top DPS on a boss, or win a close Starcraft match. I think the people who are "addicted" to video games just need to find another activity, along with video games, that give them that feeling.
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Almost everything can be an addiction. Usually its enjoyable things, like drugs, gambling, buying things, sex etc. I don't really think there is anything interesting about this. Parent your children and live a balanced life. /thread
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On December 03 2010 08:03 clementdudu wrote:
Play sc/wow 20h/day
Find a gf/sports team
Stop video games
Do heroin for 3 years
Find a gf/hobby
Sell her/it for more heroin.
pretty hilarious. However I'd never sell my videogame following for some sport... bleh. E-sports > MMA > everything else.
I believe videogames can be addictive just like almost everything fucking else at some point it takes personal responsibility/parenting. I do not believe further regulation of videogames is necessary.
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Kids cannot drop out of school in the United States without parental consent, so that kid was doomed from the start for having terrible parents.
Dunno what England does about this sort of thing :/
Addiction to video games isn't as bad as say heroin though.
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yes. video games are addicting. it can really eff up a person's life. big time. i remember cases of kids dying from playing too much wow in pc cafes because they forgot to eat or whatever. gaming is so easy to get addicted to because we don't need to put much effort into playing games. you literally sit down, put your right hand on your mouse, left on the keyboard or both on a controller and bam! you can go at it for hours and would think only 5 minutes passed. I used to play FPS games like 6 hours a day after school in middle school but stopped once i started playing football. I played like 6 hours a day when sc2 beta came out but had to stop because i got part time job. You set your entire mind on what you're playing and thats why its addicting. You get your pleasure from playing and people are addicted to that pleasure of playing games. Recently, I've found myself addicted to making hip hop beats and just the other day, i literally sat at my computer and midi controller for 13 hours working on 5 different beats.
A lot of older people think gaming is bad is because they don't see the results. When we play games for hours, we say how we ranked up from D+ to C- or from platinum to diamond or whatever. People who don't play look at what we're doing and are like "Oh, they're just wasting their time, not doing anything productive". Playing games doesn't really make you better off at anything other than being good at that game. People just don't see playing games as a productive activity. They would rather see this generation study or go outside or play some sport. People don't generally hate on those who are addicted to studying because they know thats a productive activity. They don't hate when a guy/girl is playing basketball all day because that kid might end up becoming the next Lisa Leslie or Michael Jordan. They look at games and theres nothing at the end of the horizon (except in korea where you can make six figures playing sc). They don't see the viability of games as a stable future. Even when you play basketball and might not be good, people are like, well, he's getting exercise and thats productive. Gaming is still not widely accepted as productive. People will stop saying gaming isn't addictive when we see sc2 on TV on a daily basis. That might be when this generation has their kids and we might even encourage our kids to play sc2 or sc3 whatever the game will be.
oh crap this was long post...
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Video games is an escape from reality or just the very nature of your life. You could do that in various other "recreational" activities that are deemed OKAY by society. Sure limit the amount a child plays thats called teaching them restraint, otherwise play as much as you want. If you let it overwhelm you don't play the game blame yourself as this would have happened with any hobby you did in your spare time. I've seen people throw there life away because of a gym addiction, sure it may seem like it's better but if you forsake everything and everyone else in your life for it same shit different pile.
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I have a co-worker who's marriage went from relatively happy to the brink of divorce very quickly because of World of Warcraft.
I don't think everyone is prone to it, but some games do try to trick your mind into thinking you've actually accomplished something, making it very important to you, when you are supposed to be just having fun.
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People need to stop throwing the goddam 'A' word around like it's that simple. Can video games if obsessed over damage your life and prospect? Obviously, the same way most leasuirely activities can.
However, anyone who's ever known anyone with a proper addiction should really find the comparison insulting. Being stupid and throwing your life away to play WoW is just that, stupid. Starcraft 2 doesn't give you the DTs the way alcohol does (it gives them in a different way  ) WoW does not leave people shaking in a pool of their own vomit when they quit, or hallucinating and wanting to off themselves the way hard drugs do.
Psychological addiction is not physical addiction, and somehow psychological addiction seems to have achieved the same social boogie man status that physical addiction has, which is absolutely a load of bollocks. Psychological addiction is simply a personality flaw.
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Nothing is "addictive". There are only weak personalities that add value to trivial things.
For instance if you are fat you are surely addicted to food. Is "food" in itself addicted? No. Does your organism produce endorphins (the enzyme that makes you feel "elevated") while you are eating? Yes.
So anyone with decent logic will conclude that this whole paranoia of "addictive" things. is implying that everything that makes us feel "good" is addictive (drugs, food, games). That is so wrong.
I once had 120kg and was addicted to food (now i am around ~65kg). Do i blame the food for being addictive? Hell no, i was nerdy boy that beating his friends at RTS and passing all subjects in high school with A's were my only goals. Food was a short-cut to get the endorphins going.
Then my latest addiction was cigarettes. I smoked one pack a day, for like 2 years. Now i can't stand the smell of cigarettes. Are cigarettes addictive? Hell no, i can't stand them now. My first aversion toward cigarettes and the smoke, has returned.
Will power guys... practice it.
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Video games are not physically addictive like cocaine, they could be psychologically addictive but anything can be. You could be addicted to stacking chairs or watching movies in the same sense. You can be "addicted" to anything you like. I think people who have habits of binge gaming do it because they have other problems not because they have a gaming problem. Its pretty much what scap was saying, people have problems so they habitually do something they like to forget about their problems or because it makes them feel good. They just need help finding whats wrong with their lives, and they need to learn self control. "just stop gaming" is not a good solution either. not doing what you like is not self control, doing what you like in moderation is. Unless you like cocaine, then you probably should stop
You can really see this in anyone, whenever i am frustrated i tend to log on to WoW for longer periods of time and spend lots of time on each of my characters. Whenever i am having a great week i tend to play on only one character that week and just do other stuff instead of playing on my alts.
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On December 03 2010 07:53 muse5187 wrote:Show nested quote +On December 03 2010 07:49 unoriginalname wrote:Not sure where to put this since I guess this is only watchable by the UK people, but there is a Panorama program regarding addiction to gaming. I also used search and found a lot of blog posts and closed threads, so perhaps the closed part answers the consensus of Team Liquid on the matter. For people outside the UK, the BBC program Panorama is usually a very accurate portrayal of what ever they decide to investigate (be it corruption or Scientology and so on), this is because they have no reason to add bias, so when I read the quote below, it seems they've already reached a consensus that gaming is an addiction. There is the quote regarding it: As pester power kicks in and the computer games' industry launches its latest products on to the Christmas market, Panorama hears from youngsters who've dropped out of school and university to play games for anything up to 21 hours a day. They describe their obsessive gaming as an addiction. Reporter Raphael Rowe, meets leading experts calling for more independent research into this controversial subject, and reveals the hidden psychological devices in games that are designed to keep us coming back for more. So does Team Liquid think games are addictive and should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school? Yes I think games are addictive. I also think preventatives are called parents.
It won't help when the next generation will be "parents" that are addicted to gaming as well, I think you need well informed guardians to prevent gaming turning into an addiction.
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I'm interested in gaming and playing them is my way of pursuing that interest. I guess in a way I am addicted to pursuing my interests. It definitely interferes with my life. If I wasn't so addicted to pursuing what I was interested in, I might be writing articles dissuading people from enjoying and being passionate about one of the largest industries in the world.
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Ive got problems discussing any subject these days, im not trying to steal the thread, I just have to explain the bases upon why I think they way i do. Help me out here, if our purpose here is to perpetuate life, which is pretty much the only real morally right thing to do, then all decisions should directly or indirectly follow this rule. If our current way of life works against the continuation of life, then its path should be changed or destroyed.
Should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school?
IMO the Answser: Yes. Why? Because more stupid rules facilitate change. The more unecessary tightning of the noose, the more it enforces change or rebellion.
Knowing if advocating against addictive mmo`s and gaming in our society is the right thing to do, should be decided based upon 2 underlaying things
1. Does our Society perpetuate life?
2. Does gaming perpetuate society?
Imo, the answer:
1. No. if u think our society perpetuate life, then Id either call u a economist or a moron. Our way of life is not sustainable, and its just a mather of time before we are forced to change. Our cities are cancer infected upon mother earth smelly head, our economy tailored for the few psychotic. From a coward perspective we have come so far, but we endanger our future for a moment of lesuire and safety. We as a species are meth heads whos started losing teeth without accepting the problem. And im not better then anyone else.
2. Yes. Gaming in general pacifies people making them more managable, who would wanna start a rebelion when ur 5 rep from getting a +5 childmolestingdragonsteel epicsword of awsomeness?!
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Games are much more addictive these days. There are always lures to keep players involved longer than they would be otherwise. The worst are achievements. Another dumb one is prestiging in modern warfare, I genuinely do not understand what the purpose of it is other than to consume your time.
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On December 03 2010 14:31 gravethrasher wrote:
Ive got problems discussing any subject these days, im not trying to steal the thread, I just have to explain the bases upon why I think they way i do. Help me out here, if our purpose here is to perpetuate life, which is pretty much the only real morally right thing to do, then all decisions should directly or indirectly follow this rule. If our current way of life works against the continuation of life, then its path should be changed or destroyed.
Should there be preventatives in place to stop children getting so addicted they drop out of school?
IMO the Answser: Yes. Why? Because more stupid rules facilitate change. The more unecessary tightning of the noose, the more it enforces change or rebellion.
Knowing if advocating against addictive mmo`s and gaming in our society is the right thing to do, should be decided based upon 2 underlaying things
1. Does our Society perpetuate life?
2. Does gaming perpetuate society?
Imo, the answer:
1. No. if u think our society perpetuate life, then Id either call u a economist or a moron. Our way of life is not sustainable, and its just a mather of time before we are forced to change. Our cities are cancer infected upon mother earth smelly head, our economy tailored for the few psychotic. From a coward perspective we have come so far, but we endanger our future for a moment of lesuire and safety. We as a species are meth heads whos started losing teeth without accepting the problem. And im not better then anyone else.
2. Yes. Gaming in general pacifies people making them more managable, who would wanna start a rebelion when ur 5 rep from getting a +5 childmolestingdragonsteel epicsword of awsomeness?!
Gaming for pacification give me a break. If someone wants to rebel how would WoW stop them?
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On December 03 2010 07:53 muse5187 wrote:
Yes I think games are addictive. I also think preventatives are called parents.
I'd have to say hole in one.
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On December 03 2010 11:16 Usurper wrote:
Nothing is "addictive". There are only weak personalities that add value to trivial things.
For instance if you are fat you are surely addicted to food. Is "food" in itself addicted? No. Does your organism produce endorphins (the enzyme that makes you feel "elevated") while you are eating? Yes.
So anyone with decent logic will conclude that this whole paranoia of "addictive" things. is implying that everything that makes us feel "good" is addictive (drugs, food, games). That is so wrong.
I once had 120kg and was addicted to food (now i am around ~65kg). Do i blame the food for being addictive? Hell no, i was nerdy boy that beating his friends at RTS and passing all subjects in high school with A's were my only goals. Food was a short-cut to get the endorphins going.
Then my latest addiction was cigarettes. I smoked one pack a day, for like 2 years. Now i can't stand the smell of cigarettes. Are cigarettes addictive? Hell no, i can't stand them now. My first aversion toward cigarettes and the smoke, has returned.
Will power guys... practice it.
only half true.
addiction to stuff like food is made by the human. a person does X as a replacement of Y or cause of feeling bad or whatever.
addiction to stuff like cigs,cocain or whatever are induced by the substance. and some substances have quite harsh physical withdrawal syntomes which again has zero to do with the person or "willpower" or whatever.
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Anything can be addictive...including eating cheese...
If you don't think games have designed qualities to keep you coming back for more then you are naive...
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As others have said, a lot of things can be addictive if you don't moderate them. Doesn't matter whether you're a child or not, although at least in that case you should have parents? You know, who raise you and things?
I'm going to withhold further comment until this is actually aired, but my first instinct is "oh good, this old horse again". It's been proper beaten, but I guess we've got to do something for viewers (no bias, ha). And if that's the way they're going with this.. well sigh guys. Just sigh.
But who knows! We'll see.
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On December 03 2010 08:05 holdthephone wrote:
I don't think games are addictive, people who need to play them in an addictive manner are just filling some hole in their life. It can be said for many other activities as well.
Kids who are socially inept , afraid of failure, or aren't motivated to face life will procrastinate from what's important in any way possible. A game doesn't have nicotine, you can't say it is addictive because doing so ignores the real troubles an individual may be facing.
The only reason this subject gets attention is because video games have a bad stigma in today's society. I knew socially akward kids when I was younger who would literally sit and read harry potter all day, including re-reading. But no, there's no problem with those kids! They are reading!
This. ^
You nailed it xd!
I was kinda addicted but now that i got a gf i dont play so much anymore ^^
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Of course videogames can be addicting. Is every gamer addicted? No. But, I can say there are probably quite a few addicted gamers on this site.
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I think that everything is addictive, but I don't like to use the word addictive because it seems to try and get an emotional response. In the end we all want to feel good and when we find something that makes us feel good I think it's only natural that we would want to repeat whatever it was that caused it. I don't believe that there is a problem with this until we start to sacrifice and ignore important aspects of our life.
So is gaming addictive? Sure it is, so is just about everything. Is that necessarily bad? Well in comparison to other addictions I would say it is pretty tame, your not going to die from video game withdrawals. But I don't think anyone here would argue that there isn't a potential for damage, and personally, I don't think baning video games or limiting hours is going to fix the problem. In the end I'm still left wondering, what caused the addiction in the first place? And are we trying to treat the symptoms or the cause?
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Its a wow problem not a video game problem. I don't think I've ever heard of someone being addicted to games that was not wow or some other similar MMORPG type game.
As someone said earlier people have used wow to fill voids in their life or simply escape from life itself. I don't know if addiction is the correct word, but when this happens people play a TON, and everything else in their life suffers, so its pretty similar effects as being addicted to other things.
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Ehh... I've seen it happen, and I'm fairly addicted to games myself.
I remember during my freshman year of college several students who I knew who snowflaked out in their very first semester just because of WoW alone. And then some kids stayed in school... but still played WoW all day. My boyfriend's roomie in freshman year was playing wow 100% of the time if he wasn't in class. I don't think he slept, or *ever* left the room aside from going to class.
I'm not addicted to any one game in particular... but I spend a LOT of time parked on my ass in front of my computer.
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The issue with online games for most people is that they are a social experience. Some players become so involved in their virtual identity that they supplant their virtual-self with their real-world identity. MMORPGs are designed to reward players for spending time in the game, just as a single-player game is designed to reward you for playing. There is no difference between multi-player design and single-player design in this aspect.
Here is a better question:
How screwed up is society that people opt to spend more time in a virtual world?
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easy to get into an addiction, scenario helps it more so than alot of things
cold outside? games
rainy outside? games
EXTREME heat outside? games
cant sleep? games
sick/ill? games
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Any activity has the potential to become an addiction, if you do it too much, but calling gaming in general an addiction, is not accurate.
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Its addictive, just like anything that brings happiness/joy/pleasure/comfort.
Its just the course of nature
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I think people need to stop obsessing over that fact that someone chose to label video games with the adjective "addictive". Get away from the stupid semantic arguments over what is and what isn't "addictive" and just look at the straight, hard facts.
The point is that video games have seriously messed up some people's lives, and will continue to do so. Awareness needs to spread to the public about these incidents. Psychologists need to look into video games and explain why they are causing these detrimental effects (and I have no doubt that many already have started research in this area).
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I smoke cigarettes and i would give up games before cigarettes any day. Not because i choose to.. but because smoking is a powerful addiction.
Gaming is not an addiction, it's a preference of life. Fuck old people.
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On December 04 2010 01:56 Leviwtf wrote:
Its a wow problem not a video game problem. I don't think I've ever heard of someone being addicted to games that was not wow or some other similar MMORPG type game.
As someone said earlier people have used wow to fill voids in their life or simply escape from life itself. I don't know if addiction is the correct word, but when this happens people play a TON, and everything else in their life suffers, so its pretty similar effects as being addicted to other things.
There is this little game called Starcraft Brood War not sure if you have ever heard of it. Anyhow seeing as I've spent on average of 20hours a week playing it since 2001, I'm pretty sure that PLENTY of games are just as addicting if not more than WoW. WoW only had my attention a few months but scbw? Many years.
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On December 04 2010 01:17 Fredoq wrote:Show nested quote +On December 03 2010 08:05 holdthephone wrote:
I don't think games are addictive, people who need to play them in an addictive manner are just filling some hole in their life. It can be said for many other activities as well.
Kids who are socially inept , afraid of failure, or aren't motivated to face life will procrastinate from what's important in any way possible. A game doesn't have nicotine, you can't say it is addictive because doing so ignores the real troubles an individual may be facing.
The only reason this subject gets attention is because video games have a bad stigma in today's society. I knew socially akward kids when I was younger who would literally sit and read harry potter all day, including re-reading. But no, there's no problem with those kids! They are reading! This. ^ You nailed it xd! I was kinda addicted but now that i got a gf i dont play so much anymore ^^
do you feel addicted to your gf?
would she call you clingy? make a note of trying to notice it. if you were addicted before you might have issues that will make you feel dependent or attach to her. Then again some kids just dont have much to do in life, or are bored and unmotivated, so they play games to busy themselves until something interesting might come up. A distinction should be made between this and addiction.
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A hobby isn't an addiction. It's not putting chemicals in your body and forcing you to do it.
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On December 04 2010 05:09 Duskbane wrote:
A hobby isn't an addiction. It's not putting chemicals in your body and forcing you to do it.
An addiction doesn't require chemicals, nor does any drug/substance "force you" to do anything.
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On December 04 2010 05:11 muse5187 wrote:Show nested quote +On December 04 2010 05:09 Duskbane wrote:
A hobby isn't an addiction. It's not putting chemicals in your body and forcing you to do it. An addiction doesn't require chemicals, nor does any drug/substance "force you" to do anything.
Actually addiction in the medical sense it does. You're not going to find doctors vouching for the 'symptoms' of your WoW addiction, the same way they will your heroin addiction.
But really, awesomely well throught through and totally intelligent point.
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On December 04 2010 05:14 kataa wrote:Show nested quote +On December 04 2010 05:11 muse5187 wrote:On December 04 2010 05:09 Duskbane wrote:
A hobby isn't an addiction. It's not putting chemicals in your body and forcing you to do it. An addiction doesn't require chemicals, nor does any drug/substance "force you" to do anything. Actually addiction in the medical sense it dose. You're not going to find doctors vouching for the 'symptoms' of your WoW addiction, the same way they will your heroin addiction. But really, awesomely well throught through and totally intelligent point.
Yeah because gambling, sex, and over eating are not addictions that are dealt with in the medical field. Also learn to spell and use the correct form of words, you come off as a dumbass.
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Ban all video games, problem solved. My logic is just as good as anyone else's who has posted in this thread. PS: This is totally not a troll post.
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On December 04 2010 05:15 muse5187 wrote:
Yeah because gambling, sex, and over eating are not addictions that are dealt with in the medical field.
They're delt with in a totally different ways, and saying otherwise is either stupidity or hyperbole. No one is saying psychological addiction doesn't exist, but it's not the same damn thing. There is no methadone as a perscribed medical treatment for over eating. What do you perscribe, giving them smaller cup cakes?
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On December 04 2010 05:17 kataa wrote:Show nested quote +On December 04 2010 05:15 muse5187 wrote:
Yeah because gambling, sex, and over eating are not addictions that are dealt with in the medical field. They're delt with in a totally different ways, and saying otherwise is either stupidity or hyperbole. No one is saying psychological addiction doesn't exist, but it's not the same damn thing. There is no methadone as a perscribed medical treatment for over eating. What do you perscribe, giving them smaller cup cakes?
If you care to point out where I said they are dealt with in the same way. Or are you just trying to start an argument? When you are done using the old strawman, we could of course discuss the things I ACTUALLY SAID.
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On December 04 2010 05:22 kataa wrote:Show nested quote +On December 04 2010 05:19 muse5187 wrote:
If you care to point out where I said they are dealt with in the same way. Or are you just trying to start an argument? When you are done using the old strawman, we could of course discuss the things I ACTUALLY SAID. Claim strawman Not point out why there is actually a strawman ????????? Profit?
You're arguing against a point I never made.
ninja edit has failed?
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like 5% of the population have a brain disease(addictive personality) that makes them get addicted to stuff much more easily than other people. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Addictive_personality
anyhow, from my experience of playing WoW i think its both a physical addiction and mentally addictve too. physically it increases your dopamine levels and you can feel that in your head, mentally its still addictive even after i stopped playing for enjoyment/to get high(couldnt get high from playing it anymore because i had no chemicals left in my brain), and only continued to play because the feeling of withdrawal was horrible, after quiting, even though i was 10x better looking and 10x better marks in school i still wanted to play WoW more than anything else because of the horrible feeling, which initially put me in an edgy state for 2 days or so then a depressive state for about 3 months after that.
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More or less anything can be an "addiction" (just like almost everything can be a carcinogen). It depends largely on the person engaging in the activity.
I wouldn't really call gaming in general an addiction. It certainly has the potential, though. Not everyone that plays games is compelled to keep playing and coming back, just like not everyone that drinks alcohol feels a need to keep drinking on regular basis/heavily. Smoking (and many drugs) is an even better (if not overused) example as just about anyone that smokes will suffer side effects if they try to just stop cold turkey.
Not every addiction is a physical addiction (like nicotine and many other drugs), as mentioned. Some are psychological.
Games (some more than others) certainly have the potential, and many game developers try to specifically structure and design their games in a way that will make people want to keep coming back (example: almost any MMO). Repeat customers = more business = just makes sense to make games that way. Even still, it's not as universal as something like smoking. Although some people may get addicted to certain games, other people can play those exact same games and have no trouble just walking away from them.
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Well it was on tonight. I'll spoiler the main points but I raged quite hard and lost all credibility in Panorama documentaries.
+ Show Spoiler +It opens with the launch of StarCraft 2, with the reporter conveying shock at how long the queues are at the midnight launch.
It then goes on about some teen who failed in college since he was playing Modern Warfare 2 for about 12 hours a day.
Then as inevitable as the fucking tides, the show takes a turn to talk about World of Warcraft, documenting two players with God-awful UI's, one who plays for 12 hours a day for 2 years and one who plays 20 hours a day.
Then it gets some psychologist viewpoints who's researching the field of video game addiction in the UK that video game addiction should receive the same awareness as alcohol or tobacco.
The reported then skips to South Korea where there is an anti-video gaming addiction camp set up, which offers activity to the boys and teens. The participants claim they only played the video games because there was nothing else better to do.
Then...
He makes the rage worthy criticism that playing video games at the internet cafe in Korea is not as worthy as going nightclubbing or drinking in the most eurocentric bias I have ever seen.
There is a brief bit where they show how Korea glorifies gaming with pictures of Korean StarCraft 2 players which I think was FireBatHero, Flash and I think Jaedong, but I could be mistaken.
So not content with labelling Korea as addicted to games without a counter argument, they give 2 extreme cases of video game addiction with the well known mother leaving her child to starve and announce there has been 12 deaths because of gaming addiction, not predisposing factors that led them to that addiction but simply "gaming addiction".
They then go back to the WoW player and the reporter gives a condescending tone for "online friends" and the teen says something akin to what the Korean kids said in that there is nothing else better to do.
Then finally within the closing minutes of the documentary it explains a 2 minute hypothesis about the base of the addiction, in that games use a "random reward" to keep people playing, which is a similar device to Fruit Machines so obviously must be generalizable.
Then even quicker than the 2 minute hypothesis, it gives a 2 second disclaimer from Blizzard about the fact that there are PARENTAL controls to monitor the amount their child can play.
It was an absolute farce of a documentary which agrees with my original post that they had already set an agenda for the outcome of the investigation into "addiction to games".
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Anything can be an addiction. I have friends who lost 5 years of their life to WoW; dropped out of school, now broke and nothing to show for it. There are also people who become addicted to marijuana, porn, food, and any number of other things, even if they don't have a chemical dependency. All types of addiction can be crippling.
Maybe it will get me flamed, but I definitely think there are people who are hurting their life by playing SC2 (or ANY game) too much. It does have benefits of course, but after some time, you'll look back on your life and wonder where those years went.
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I think just about anything can be addictive. The important distinction is between something that is addictive because of its chemistry and something that is addictive because it becomes a habit. I think the latter type developes because of a preexisting problem, be it depression or just a mixture of hormones and a lot of stress. I'll bet the vast majority of who become almost dependent on games are teenagers that are having a hard time at school etc and are looking for an escape.
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Hi, my name is Christian
(Hi Christian)
And I'm a game addict. I go by the name AddictedZealot, nicely shows my addiction. I've noticed that the game some how takes over my real emotions. I kinda suck at University right now, reason is because I play to much. When get into the gaming environment I start to forget my obligations, towards school, friends and even my family. I start to not care. It also ruins my schedule, I go to bed late. "Just one more last game".
So yesterday I uninstalled all that can be called games on my computer. I allready feel restless. I think this feeling is the first step to begin studying for real, getting the A's like I used to get. And hopefully someone might read this and say "Hey, that feels just like me".
Instead of gaming, I will study and read books (Such as Dracula, it's really good) and workout (that I already do, even though I played games, got to look good infront of the girls  ).
Thank you for your time. Have a nice day.
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EPT
