I’m in love with video and computer games. I’ve been playing them since I was about four or five years old, so the relationship has obviously had a lasting impact on my life, as it has for millions of gamers everywhere.
When I was younger, I used to play for a good six or seven hours everyday. Nowadays I don’t have that kind of leisure time, so it’s down to about two or three hours a day. But for those few short hours, I might as well be on a different plane of existence, because I lose all track of time and my surroundings.
By Chris Ulicne
Senior Staff Writer
I’m in love with video and computer games. I’ve been playing them since I was about four or five years old, so the relationship has obviously had a lasting impact on my life, as it has for millions of gamers everywhere.
When I was younger, I used to play for a good six or seven hours everyday. Nowadays I don’t have that kind of leisure time, so it’s down to about two or three hours a day. But for those few short hours, I might as well be on a different plane of existence, because I lose all track of time and my surroundings.
It’s a great way to relax and relieve some of the stress that builds up naturally in a person throughout the day. Unfortunately, sometimes it can be a negative influence, especially when I’ve got a paper to write or a test to study for and all I can think about is how eager I am to jump back into whatever fantasy awaits in my gaming world. Sometimes (not often, but sometimes) I regrettably neglect even my friends or family for the sake of gaming.
It’s observations like this that have caused some folks to ask why gamers like me become so obsessed with these fantasies. They argue that some of us have developed an unhealthy addiction to games, likening it to a dependency on drugs.
This accusation has caused quite a stir in the gaming community, and the commotion has only intensified thanks to news headlines that speak of parents leaving their infant children to fend for themselves for hours or even days at a time while the parents got their gaming “fix.”
I’ve heard a few debates on the subject on the radio, too, and there were actually men and women calling in to say they were contemplating leaving their husbands, wives, boyfriends, or girlfriends because they felt like they’d lost their loved ones to a video game addiction.
So obviously there’s at least some evidence to lend credibility to the argument that gaming can become an addiction. But there have also been some very good points made by the opposition – namely, game developers, most of whom are dedicated gamers themselves.
Basically, the developers argue that it should be no surprise that people spend so much time playing video games. Their goal, after all, is to make their games as addictive as possible. So why punish them and their industry for doing such a great job of it, by scaring both hard-core and casual gamers into thinking there’s something wrong with them?
I can understand both sides of the issue, to a point. But when parents become so disconnected from reality that they risk others’ lives or well-being for the sake of fun, their love for games has obviously degenerated into a dangerous, irresponsible lust.
I’m positive that somewhere there are scholars conducting tests and performing research right now to learn more about the issue. But until they’re able to provide some hard evidence supporting the idea that excessive gaming can be classified as an addiction, games will continue to captivate more and more people with their seductive charm.