"I am a recovering EQA. It started about 2 years ago. I had just gotten married and was leaving a bad job after several years of suffering. My wife encouraged me to go on unemployment and pursue the field that I really cared about. She said she would take care of us financially while I made the transition. Everything was looking hopeful... My wife's brothers introduced me to EQ. They called it evercrack. I laughed it off as a ridiculous notion. Little did I know what lay in store for me. After quitting my awful job, I felt my body and mind unclench slowly. I realized that I was so unhappy before and was looking foward to relaxing for a month or two before I aggressively began pursuing new work. Thats when I started playing EQ. It started off as an hour or so a day and steadily grew. After two months, I was playing at least 8 hours a day. I would go to bed at the crack of dawn, get a few hours sleep, wake up, and then play some more. When my wife came home, I would make dinner, spend time with her until she went to bed, then get back to the game. Eventually, the time I spent with her decreased. If it was a raid night, I didn't see her at all. At first she didn't really think there was a problem. Her brothers were EQ vets but they didn't play anymore. Two months passed and I didn't start looking for work. Fast forward to one year later. Still no job but I've created quite a character in the EQ world. By this time I've been flat out lying to my wife about how I spent the days looking for work. When my savings ran out, things came to the eventual climax. I am not lying when I say that I had no idea I was addicted to this game. My wife confronted me and I felt like a cornered animal. I got defensive and said some things I should not have said. But being the amazing woman she is, she didn't give up on me. She helped me realize what had been going on. I had literally escaped into a fantasy world where I thought I was somebody of quality. I dreamed about EQ every night. When the server went down, I honestly felt like I was going to die. My marriage came so dangerously close to ending. My health suffered as well. I stopped exercising and doing any of my other hobbies, like reading books, making music, etc. I stopped seeing my friends as well. Now things are much better. Our marriage is flourishing once again. I am doing things that I used to do. I'm slowing getting my life back. But I have to say once in a while, I feel the pull. I feel it calling me. That game was so intoxicating. But I resist the urge. It's not easy and I wonder if it will get easier. That game is evil. It almost ruined my life and my marriage. Please for god's sake, make your husbands stop playing. I feel like I have blinked and two years have passed me by. And what do I have to show for it? A marriage on the mend and pieces of an old life. My wife did not deserve what I put her through. I failed her and it kills me to think that I almost lost her forever. Because of a stupid game....

On a side note - someone told me that the tradeskill system in EQ is based on a highly addictive model of risk and reward."