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World of Warcraft release revives concern over games addiction

Kayleigh Katz

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World of Warcraft, which creates a vast interactive world for the gamer to explore, has grown into one of the most popular of all online games. More than 11million people worldwide are registered as players.
But the popularity of the game has led many experts to have concerns over the extent to which youngsters are developing unhealthy addictions.
Dr Richard Graham, a child psychiatrist at the Tavistock Centre, said: "Some of my clients will discuss playing games for 14 to 16 hours a day at times without breaks and for those the consequences are potentially very severe.
"The problem with World of Warcraft is the degree it can impact and create a socially withdrawn figure who may be connecting with people in the game and is largely dropping out of education, social opportunities."
Some of the childen referred to him even failed to attend appointments because they were playing the game, he told the BBC.

more at link...

Are video games too addictive? Should we be concerned? Maybe this is the wrong crowd to ask. :mrgreen:
 
Are video games too addictive? Should we be concerned? Maybe this is the wrong crowd to ask. :mrgreen:



It's cool, Bkhad hasn't been around lately :lol:

I personally think some children should spend too much time on the computer or playing video games. When it gets to the point a child is overweight, unhealthy, or getting lazy- action by the parent is probably necessary. If they are just playing to have fun and it's not overcoming their life- I don't see the problem. Myself, if it was my child, I would limit their computer time and make sure they have plenty of outdoor and athletic activity to help fill their time.
 
My problem isn't with video games, it's with reality.
 
I think as technology in the realm of video games improves, so will the addiction to them. I really liked the idea of the Nintendo Wii because at least that got gamers to get off their asses and engage in at least some physical activity. If only we could find some kind of a constructive use for video games where a person could actually accomplish something while playing them. However, I'm hardly one to speak as I sometimes spend a significant amount of time playing them.
 
World of Warcraft, which creates a vast interactive world for the gamer to explore, has grown into one of the most popular of all online games. More than 11million people worldwide are registered as players.
But the popularity of the game has led many experts to have concerns over the extent to which youngsters are developing unhealthy addictions.
Dr Richard Graham, a child psychiatrist at the Tavistock Centre, said: "Some of my clients will discuss playing games for 14 to 16 hours a day at times without breaks and for those the consequences are potentially very severe.
"The problem with World of Warcraft is the degree it can impact and create a socially withdrawn figure who may be connecting with people in the game and is largely dropping out of education, social opportunities."
Some of the childen referred to him even failed to attend appointments because they were playing the game, he told the BBC.

more at link...

Are video games too addictive? Should we be concerned? Maybe this is the wrong crowd to ask. :mrgreen:

We don't play because we have no life; we play to escape the lives we have.

My dad drinks, my sister spends a lot of time on the phone, my stepmother uses chat rooms....I Debate Politics and play WoW....we all have a vice.
 
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"But the popularity of ________ has led many "experts" to have concerns over the extent to which youngsters are developing unhealthy addictions."

This is how it always starts, isn't it? Good-natured concern from parents turns into doom-and-glood analysis from "experts" turns into a legislative crusade to "save the children" turns into another law which further curtails our liberties.
 
Some of the childen referred to him even failed to attend appointments because they were playing the game, he told the BBC.
:mrgreen: I loved that one.

Video games are a form of escapism. When I was younger, I read pulp sci-fi ad nauseum. Trust me, there was very little actual content in those books to be much of an improvement over modern video game storylines. Yes, games are more addictive, but that is largely because they are more engaging, social and participatory than reading a book or watching television.

I do think parents should be cautious about how their child uses the game. One thing not mentioned in the article, is that WoW comes with parental controls. If the account is in their name, they should be able to monitor and limit the playing time of their child fairly easily.

I think Blizzard is actually ahead of the curve and have been trying to head off these concerns for a while now. There is no incentive for them to have someone playing 14 hours a day. In fact it probably costs them money in server maintenance. All they need is the monthly subscription.
 
There is no incentive for them to have someone playing 14 hours a day. In fact it probably costs them money in server maintenance. All they need is the monthly subscription.

Play-time is exactly like viewership for TV: the more interest they can show advertisers is more money in their pockets.

The monthly subscription is just gravy.
 
Play-time is exactly like viewership for TV: the more interest they can show advertisers is more money in their pockets.

The monthly subscription is just gravy.

Why do you say this? Has WoW been advertising products since I quit playing?
 
Why do you say this? Has WoW been advertising products since I quit playing?

The first 2 things that come to mind are BlizzCon last month and the Wrath of the Lich King expansion last night.

On BlizzCon, you got a unique mount if you signed up for a dish service before BlizzCon began.

Well, you have to give a **** about the game to want the mount, and to get the mount you had to sign a 2 year contact with (I think it was) DishNetwork for a new service....how much of that contact do you think Blizz got?

Enough to make the effort profitable, that's for sure.

WotLK.....$40 a pop....sold out across America....nuf said.


...and then there's the Collectable Trading Card Game based on WoW (OMG, go to e-bay and search "Spectral Tiger")....and a Miniatures game...commercials on the main WoW web site....

You want your Character’s name changed? $10.
You want your Character moved to another server? $10.
You want to play in the Arena? $30 (+subscription).
 
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Play-time is exactly like viewership for TV: the more interest they can show advertisers is more money in their pockets.

The monthly subscription is just gravy.
I'm not seeing any evidence of playtime being a direct indicator of revenue. There is a correlation I'm sure, between playing the game a lot and spending more money but I don't see it demonstrated that Blizz is directly using this as a metric to drive revenue or that they have any motivation to push people to play for insane amounts of time.
 
I've never played WoW and have no idea what the big deal is.

I've seen small crowds of teens playing it, I think. But maybe they were playing something else - it had some kind of playing cards involved.

They all had pale skin and looked like they had never been laid.
 
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This dude plays 36 WoW characters at the same time.

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I've never played WoW and have no idea what the big deal is.
Part of the attraction to WoW is the addictive cycle of pretty much every RPG ever made: Kill enemies so you can get items for your character and level him up, then go to a different area with more powerful enemies and repeat. The goal (become powerful) is rewarding, and the means to achieve that goal (killing enemies) is fun. Some of the best items can take months to get, and it's a big sense of accomplishment when you finally get to put it on after so much effort.

Then there's the social side of the game. Some areas you can't handle on your own, so you have to join with other people to take down the tougher enemies, and that's usually a lot of fun. You meet some cool people along the way, and you end up chatting and grouping with them regularly. You can join a "guild" where members help each other out and can become good friends.

Die-hards like I was will join a "raiding guild," who'se main focus is to gather into groups of up to 40 people, called raids, and take down the game's toughest enemies. All for the best loot in the game, and of course bragging rights. :2razz:

Besides those general things, some people might have other specific things they get out of the game. Maybe they're just a number at their real job, but in WoW they're an officer or raid leader in the guild, and therefore somebody important. Some people's primary goal is to make as much gold as they can in the auction house, buying low and selling high. Or maybe they just like to order around hot demon chicks and listen to them slap their own asses.

I stopped playing because they only way I could improve my character was to raid, and the raids made it feel more like a job than a game. Plus the cartoony graphics got old after a while. I prefer Vanguard now.
 
Part of the attraction to WoW is the addictive cycle of pretty much every RPG ever made: Kill enemies so you can get items for your character and level him up, then go to a different area with more powerful enemies and repeat. The goal (become powerful) is rewarding, and the means to achieve that goal (killing enemies) is fun. Some of the best items can take months to get, and it's a big sense of accomplishment when you finally get to put it on after so much effort.

Then there's the social side of the game. Some areas you can't handle on your own, so you have to join with other people to take down the tougher enemies, and that's usually a lot of fun. You meet some cool people along the way, and you end up chatting and grouping with them regularly. You can join a "guild" where members help each other out and can become good friends.

Die-hards like I was will join a "raiding guild," who'se main focus is to gather into groups of up to 40 people, called raids, and take down the game's toughest enemies. All for the best loot in the game, and of course bragging rights. :2razz:

Besides those general things, some people might have other specific things they get out of the game. Maybe they're just a number at their real job, but in WoW they're an officer or raid leader in the guild, and therefore somebody important. Some people's primary goal is to make as much gold as they can in the auction house, buying low and selling high. Or maybe they just like to order around hot demon chicks and listen to them slap their own asses.

I stopped playing because they only way I could improve my character was to raid, and the raids made it feel more like a job than a game. Plus the cartoony graphics got old after a while. I prefer Vanguard now.

What is Vanguard like, and why on earth would that guy be playing WoW in 36 games at the same time?
 
You want your Character’s name changed? $10.
You want your Character moved to another server? $10.
You want to play in the Arena? $30 (+subscription).

It is 25$ to transfer servers. And no fee to play in arena. But yeah, they make BANK. I got out by selling my character for 700. At least I broke even. :roll:
 
What is Vanguard like, and why on earth would that guy be playing WoW in 36 games at the same time?

A variety of reasons where not needing to rely on others tops the list.
36x more efficient and 36x more in-game money at the price of paying 36x more.
Whatever floats your boat I guess. :doh
 
What is Vanguard like
Functionally, Vanguard is very similar to WoW. But the graphics are focused more on being realistic, instead of the goofy cartoonish theme in WoW, and that makes it a lot more immersive for me. Plus it expands on a lot of WoW's convenience features, and invents several of its own that make some inherent gameplay aspects less annoying or easier to work with. Players and guilds can build their own houses, and you can even build your own ship to sail around the oceans in. I was something of an EverQuest (EverCrack) addict back in the day, which was one of the games that spawned the whole MMORPG genre. In my opinion, Vanguard is everything EverQuest II should have been and more. Right now it just needs some wrinkles fixed and some more polish. An extremely buggy launch turned a lot of people off. They've done a great job patching it up since then, but it still has some quirks and problems that you have to be able to ignore to enjoy playing it.

and why on earth would that guy be playing WoW in 36 games at the same time?
1. Apparently he's trying to control an entire raid force himself.
2. Apparently he's also nucking futs.
 
Part of the attraction to WoW is the addictive cycle of pretty much every RPG ever made: Kill enemies so you can get items for your character and level him up, then go to a different area with more powerful enemies and repeat. The goal (become powerful) is rewarding, and the means to achieve that goal (killing enemies) is fun. Some of the best items can take months to get, and it's a big sense of accomplishment when you finally get to put it on after so much effort.

Then there's the social side of the game. Some areas you can't handle on your own, so you have to join with other people to take down the tougher enemies, and that's usually a lot of fun. You meet some cool people along the way, and you end up chatting and grouping with them regularly. You can join a "guild" where members help each other out and can become good friends.

Die-hards like I was will join a "raiding guild," who'se main focus is to gather into groups of up to 40 people, called raids, and take down the game's toughest enemies. All for the best loot in the game, and of course bragging rights. :2razz:

Besides those general things, some people might have other specific things they get out of the game. Maybe they're just a number at their real job, but in WoW they're an officer or raid leader in the guild, and therefore somebody important. Some people's primary goal is to make as much gold as they can in the auction house, buying low and selling high. Or maybe they just like to order around hot demon chicks and listen to them slap their own asses.

I stopped playing because they only way I could improve my character was to raid, and the raids made it feel more like a job than a game. Plus the cartoony graphics got old after a while. I prefer Vanguard now.

I would like to add that in raiding, when the group kills the boss, there's a moment before the raid leader walks up to loot the corps...anticipation of what the loot will be...it is EXACTLY like gabling.

I know there have been studies where MIRs were taken of gamblers. I would very much like to see MRIs taken while people play an RPG. To me, looting a boss feels exactly like gambling. The only reason I proffer raiding to gambling is because the feeling is stronger with raiding. My brain produces more dopamine when I play WoW then when I visit a casino, and so I play WoW more.

I picked up enchanting to I could disenchant items I couldn't use. In this way, every drop, even from mobs, gives a lil dopamine.

Also, when I was into Magic: The Gathering, the number 1 thing I enjoyed most about the game occurred when I wasn't even playing it.

I would buy a box of booster packs, go to a local hang out with a good friend who split the cost of the box with me. We would get a couple drinks and take our sweet time opening each booster pack.

Opening those packs felt exactly the same as pulling the lever at the casino, scratching the lotto ticket, and looting the boss.

When I was a kid the best part of Christmas was the early morning before and just beginning to open presents. Once all the presents were open, it felt the same as when all the booster packs were open or the boss was looted and we were headed back to Shatterath: all the stuff was just....stuff...and the holiday was over.

Every time I come to DebatePolitics I go right to my Subscribed Threads page. Every thread that has a new post is as an unopened booster pack or a boss that needs to be looted. I get the biggest kick out of reading a new response, a lesser kick out of responding, and the debate itself really has little value.

For someone to tell me I need to get outside and go do something doesn't mean anything to me unless whatever I'm going to go do is going to replace the needs the RPG is fulfilling.

I've been into RPGs since I was introduced to Robotech in middle school. Speaking for myself only here, they have always given me a sense of control and escape from the stresses of life.

What you said about being a number at a job resonates with me because in RL I'm a drone at a dead end job. In WoW, however, I'm an officer in a fairly large and active guild. That officer ship comes with responsibilities ranging from organizing raids and resolving conflicts among players to using my advanced access to the guild vault appropriately when people request items or when the vault needs to be straightened up.

And yes, I do get a little kick when early in the morning the other officers aren’t on, someone asks if anyone can invite a friend into the guild or give them an item from the vault and I’m the only one on with the privs to fulfill the request.

I imagine that after graduation I will play WoW less as my career become more rewording.
 
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Are video games too addictive? Should we be concerned? Maybe this is the wrong crowd to ask. :mrgreen:


World of warcraft addictive?

Lets see.
Been playing WOW for just over/almost 3 years.
First time i've logged on DP since WOTLK expansion at 12 on Thursday.
I have been on it practically over 16 hours a day so be getting very little sleep - its 3.23am when im writing this post and im still levelling =D
I am level 78 Mage with only 2 levels left to go - On Tuesday we plan to start raiding Nauxx. [Keep in mind it takes millions of XP to level from 70-80]
I told my BF he's getting no sex for the next month.

Oh and im planning to call in sick for work to continue playing.

Now im no expert but i think im addicted :p
 
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Would you call someone who enjoys physical sports and would like to play for extended periods of time addicted?

Would you call someone who enjoys (fill in the blank) and would like to (fill in the blank) for extended periods of time addicted?

Yes. and yes.

But who determines what "addictions" are okay and not? I'd rather someone be playing video games and enjoying themselves than being alcoholics, drug addicts, or worse.

BTW, Everquest... THAT was where it was at. You can all thank it for the game you love :p

Kerafrym is now the ETERNAL SLEEPER :: KotSD :: Knights of the Silver Dragon

Last nite - 170 people gathered on RZ and 1400+ deaths later....yes 1400+ this event Blew the old Single spawn causing death record set by Legacy of Steel and Shock of Swords first killing of the Avatar of War by a HUGE margin(only 400odd deaths there), the Sleeper's Hp again took a nose dive with each % of its health taking about 2 minutes to do, from 100% down to 0 the Players of EQ were watching, Waiting for SoE to screw it up, and they didn't, the Sleeper Died..of course there was No Loot, but seriously who would care.
 
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