It's 10 pm. Do you know where you and your loved ones are? Here is a collection of experiences from those who live / have lived with an obsessive MMOG gamer and from those who have lived the experience of obsessive MMOG gaming.

Tuesday, June 29, 2004

A couple of new emails:

"As I read the entires on this site I began to cry. I always knew there was something missing in my relationship with my boyfriend of nearly three years, but I would always make excuses. I would tell myself that I need to think of these players as real life
friends. Now I realize that if he spent this much time with real life friends, we'd have a more obvious problem. He plays as soon as he gets home from work until very late hours, only stopping to watch his tv shows (our "quality" time). As soon as the shows end, he's back playing, forsaking friends, family and me. Once while we were intimate he ran off to his game, because he was afraid of what was happening. I also lie to myself and others by saying that I am glad he plays, because it keeps him occupied while I study or do my own thing. That's not true. I love him, and I have begun to realize that I do not feel loved back, no matter how much he says he does, because I will always feel that game comes first. He tells me that I knew what I was getting into, because he played before we were together. I now see we can never have a future, for I don't want my husband or the father of my child to be this way, and I am a fool to think things will change."

"I am a newly wed. We just had our one year anniversary. When I go out ( I still have my own life) many people always question me " Where's your husband at?" After so many times hearing the same question, lying to people, I finally spoke the truth. " He's at home playing on the computer (Everquest)." I'm so jealous of the game. I hear him laugh and smile with the computer but not with me. It's hard to hold a serious conversation while he's typing away on the game. First thing he does in the morning is log his character on. First thing he does when he gets home, he checks the EQ chat room or board messages. The second most asked question since we have been married is "when are you going to have kids?" I don't want kids right now. He neglects me, his family and few friends he has left. He's doesn't help me around the house as much as he should. He's too busy gaming. He doesn't go out much because he's playing EQ. He cuts family time short or doesn't visit family because he doesn't want to (but has a scheduled raid). I picked up a second job because I'm bored at home. I feel so alone, even now that I'm married. He feels bad, I know he does. We will have our fights about the game (if its not EQ, its another game). He always says " I promise I won't play as much. I don't play as much compared to so and so. Whatever ....(and gets really defensive)." I've learned to cope with it."

Wednesday, June 09, 2004

"Thank you, thank you, thank you for creating a Blog about Everquest addiction. I feel so alone because people don't believe that video game addiction is a real problem.

I'm seperated from my husband. He destroyed our marriage with Everquest. He lost his job and I had to support him and my baby boy. He refused to get a job and neglected his household chores. I was working 12 hour days, coming home and doing all the cooking and cleaning. He would spend all day on the computer and take caffeine pills to stay up all night. We couldn't make ends meet so I considered getting a second job, but my day job wouldn't let me. I had to kick him out of the house.

He knows nothing but his own needs. He ignores our son, works just enough to pay for his constant computer upgrades and has all but abandoned his family. What's even worse is that his mother and sister also play Everquest and they enable and even encourage his addiction. When I was in my second trimester, working full time and desperately in need of help around the house, he refused to lift a finger. I took on a second job while I was pregnant and he sat on his fat ass playing Everquest with his family. I contacted his mother and begged her to talk some sense into him or at least log off herself once in a while, but she refused.

He still contacts me and has the nerve to ask me for money. I don't see the difference between him and a barely functional alcoholic or narcotic drug addict. I've lost so many years of my life to support his addiction and since we share a son, I'm stuck with him the rest of my life. He has the nerve to try to get our son interested in video games. Over my dead body!"

Thursday, June 03, 2004

I found this story by pure chance.



It makes most sense if you start reading in the chronological order, with the part dated "3/22/02". If you don't want to read it all (it's quite long), he states in essence that she played over 100 hours a week and lied to him, her friends and family about how much she actually worked and what else she was actually doing.