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.

Sunday, July 03, 2005

"My story is not about EQ but is similar..is about City of heroes..this game came out about 3 years ago and i remember hearing all this voices inside my head inviting me to buy it once i bought it and i entered to a new gaming experience i was mesmerized...i started to play first was 2 hours then 3 then 5 then 8..i coulda spend the whole day sitting on my butt in front of my pc forgetting about my family completely...i stopped playing for a while..i deleted the program threw away all my guides and i swore not to play anymore..but months later i started to hav' this dreams where i was flying and i was jumping big heights ..it was the game calling out to me..i started to play again..i said to myself "i can controll it" but i couldn't!!..i remember thinking about this all day at work..in my dreams ,my priorities were to level up my character and not my wife and my 2 babies..my son used to look at me in a "daddy i want your attention" way...i even had the idea of leaving my family and move somewhere else w just my PC and play all night long without having my wife in my back begging me to stop playing this horrible game and wake up from my trance...but one day after been playing part of the day and the entire night she asked me to leave our home and the divorce...then i realized that i was about to loose everything that really mattered to me all for just a stupid game!!. I came to my senses..and i woke up...how stupid i was..all the time i wasted...my eyes ruined, my nerves destroyed, my back swollen,i kinda ended up w part of my brain burnt up because of this.. and my family almost destroyed...if you are reading this and you are addicted to this game get outta ther before is too late the power of God is the only weapon against this instrument of the devil that it has only one purpose: 'RUIN YOUR LIFE'."

9 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Nice try, but City of Heroes came out around a year ago.

Jul 4, 2005, 6:54:00 AM

 
Blogger J said...

Good point - I'll ask the person about it.

Jul 5, 2005, 3:24:00 PM

 
Blogger J said...

Doh, forgot to add this: If I don't hear back from said individual, I'll remove the post.

Jul 5, 2005, 3:32:00 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm not saying that this guy wasn't addicted to some MMORPG...but it wasn't City of Heroes 3 years ago. (grin)

I play World of Warcraft as a nice balanced hobby...instead of watching TV. My wife likes that it keeps me around the house, I still get my Dad stuff done and I put the game down when my kids want attention. In fact, during the school year, I don't login until their homework is done and they are settled in for the night.

You can play these games without wrecking your life. Again, if you took the time I spent gaming and had me watching TV or going to the bar with neighborhood cronies or playing fantasy baseball...99.9% of the people wouldn't say "boo". But because it's a computer game, there is a social stigma.

Jul 6, 2005, 4:42:00 AM

 
Blogger J said...

I don't think that's the issue here. I also believe that balance can be achieved - if someone is fully aware of the ramifications of not being balanced.

MMORPGs players have a tendency to spend more time online than the average person. A study that concluded that only 15% of gamers could be considered "Internet addicts" at the same time noted that "The average MMORPG gamer (addicted or not) spends 20-25 hours per week just playing MMORPGs, and an additional 10-15 hours per week in other Internet use. In other words, MMORPG players are spending 4x as much time online as non-gamers." (from Slashdot).
Would I spend this much time watching TV each week? Not bloody likely :)

It all comes down to how much time the person spends away from reality and in virtual existence.

Jul 6, 2005, 7:24:00 PM

 
Blogger J said...

Oh, forgot to add that: I don't think computer games have much social stigma attached to them - and that's exactly the reason why people have been able to get away with playing 70-80 hours.
All these recent reports from Asia may change that though.

Jul 6, 2005, 7:44:00 PM

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

We're going to need to "agree to disagree" on the social stigma thing...or at least admit that it can be a stigma depending upon peer groups/local associates.

I'm a 38 year old professional. I get looks from people when I tell them that one of my hobbies is computer gaming...and yet two people in cubes next to me have their walls decked out with NFL stuff and golfing posters. No second thoughts from people about this.

As far as comparing to time spent watching TV...based on listening to discussions and the "knowledge base" of my peer group, a good majority of people are spending quite a few of their evenings completely absorbed in Prime Time. (8-11 PM)Anyone remember "Must See TV"? (grin)

People spending 70-80 hours a week doing any single thing (even working) are either obsessed or have the luxury of massive free time. Although if I had that luxury, I would probably spend a greater bulk of it boating/fishing rather than playing WoW. (grin)

Hmmm...that's what my grandparents did when my grandpa retired. Moved to a coastal community (where they had vacationed) and spent their waking hours fishing, crabbing and hanging out on the water. Were they obsessed or just lucky/blessed?

Jul 7, 2005, 7:53:00 AM

 
Blogger J said...

I remember the few times I was sick and would veg out on the couch watching TV, and let me tell you, I was getting cabin fever being cooped up all day :) Yet I had absolutely no problem playing Everquest 12 hours in a row. I find that I don't have the stamina for that anymore - is it age, awareness or just plain physical discomfort?

"Must see TV" - now if someone was to do this every day, it would certainly be called obsession! Actually, aren't there people obsessed with reality TV these days. Ugh.

You're right, social stigma is in the eye of the beholder. I look at football fans and WWF fans more weirdly than gamers :)

Jul 7, 2005, 4:08:00 PM

 
Blogger J said...

Here is the poster's response:

"i apologyze..you are right, CoH came out around july 04.. i never said i played the game for 3 years i just got the release time wrong...sorry"

Jul 9, 2005, 6:03:00 AM

 

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