Online gaming addiction

[Bioture]

I'm doing research for online gaming addiction for grad school, I thought maybe at the end I can say IDIFTL but it's actually pretty real. Take this for example:

http://www.olganon.org/?q=node/756

Man lost his job, wife, and kids to play everquest.

I've been playing TW since 2001, am I addicted?

Are you addicted to online gaming? Take the self test: http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~jenchan/SelfTest.html

[Bioture]

They have a 12 step program like AA. Cute.

[Xog]

mafia thread get

[Cojafoji]

I once downloaded continuum onto a floppy, shredded the magnetic film, liquefied it and then shot it into my arm with a syringe.

I'm not an addict.

[curse]

rofl great^

[Doc Flabby]

You've been breathing air since 1992.

Are you addicted to air?

Addiction is only a problem if it becomes unhealthy, or out of control.

[Jason]

i don't think subspace is an addiction for me. i'd say it's moreso a tradition, or at least it's become one over the years.

for an addiction to develop i think you need to be playing a game with some type of rewards system. people eat that shit up, myself included. i've been playing the beta of battlefield bad company 2 like a mofo for the past several weeks, all because i want to keep increasing my stats and unlocking that next cool weapon or gadget. if the ranking system were taken out of the game, i wouldn't play nearly as often.

[Dutch_]

Ya subspace isnt the kind of game to get addicted too. Wel not in an unhealty way. Its not like World of Warcraft where you have this whole seccond life thing. + trenchwars is only fun a few hours of the day when there are people online to jd, dd, bd or to play base with.

[Bioture]

i don't think subspace is an addiction for me. i'd say it's moreso a tradition, or at least it's become one over the years.

for an addiction to develop i think you need to be playing a game with some type of rewards system. people eat that shit up, myself included. i've been playing the beta of battlefield bad company 2 like a mofo for the past several weeks, all because i want to keep increasing my stats and unlocking that next cool weapon or gadget. if the ranking system were taken out of the game, i wouldn't play nearly as often.

Actually, that sounds about right. Anyone remember distension?

[NaiLed]

i'd answer that quiz but i don't have time between wow battles

[Cojafoji]

ok now seriously, i once got addicted to diablo 2. i mean, who didn't, am i right?

but that was in high school, and it was only for a year or two.

crack is to crack addict :: level 95 paladin smacking around diablo with a rare battle hammer is to me.

[gran guerrero]

ok now seriously, i once got addicted to diablo 2. i mean, who didn't, am i right?

but that was in high school, and it was only for a year or two.

crack is to crack addict :: level 95 paladin smacking around diablo with a rare battle hammer is to me.

I'm ready to drop my cold turkey whenever diablo 3 is officially out

[Bioture]

http://www.olganon.org/?q=node/19836

It's hard for me to admit it. But I need some direction here. 11 years ago, when I was in 9th grade, I came across an online spaceship game called Subspace. Being my first "online" game, it was great - you interacted with other people, shot at them, collected bounties, joined squads, and was generally a fun experience over a summer where there wasn't anything going on. That summer I spent 10-12 hours a day on the game. Didn't seem out of place at the time, I've always like games, and since I was young and didn't have anything else to do, it made sense. The "addiction" grew out of that, however. Partly because I didn't know what was going on, and partly because of the game mechanics evolving to include different addicting elements that ultimately gave me a sense of achievement and camaraderie with my fellow squadmates.

I played the game throughout high school. At this point my parents began noticing how much time I spend on the computer playing a simple spaceship game. They pointed out it out to me a few times, but they didn't suspect anything either. I was, for the most part, normal. I worked as a cashier, played football, got into college, etc.

The first thing I did when I got to college was to load up the game - it was the first time I had high speed internet, so the gameplay was a lot smoother. I got into it again. The game at this point created a ladder system where squads could compete in leagues with your own squads. I practiced for what is called a "basing match" where two teams try to capture the flag inside a base. This went on for about 4-8 hours a day. I still did my college work, but that too started to falter. I was on academic probation my 2nd semester, but I didn't care. All I wanted to do was win a league championship. My squadmates were very supportive of me, and they liked me, and made me feel good to contribute to something. When we won a match, it felt like we achieved something great, and when we lost, I felt like I had to practive even harder to not make mistakes in the future.

I dropped out of college (with much drama with my parents) and began working odd jobs around DC. This has been the last 6 years of my life. At this point, I still do not see the addiction. Two years ago, I was made a "moderator" of the zone. I now had power to ban players and answer cheater calls or other help calls from the community. It again gave me a sense of belonging, and I started putting in 10-12 hours a day into the game again. Also at the time I had been out of work for quite some time, and living in debt. I had no real friends and my parents would not speak to me.

In the last 6 months, I knew something had to change. I am 28 years old going on 29, and I wasted my life playing a game where spaceships shoot each other. As stupid as that sounds, that's just a fact of life now. I don't want to play that game anymore. It's a running joke in the community that if you quit you'll "always be back" but I don't want to come back. I want to finish school and do other things - maybe talk to my parents again and travel to new places. But when I think about what I'm leaving behind, it's still strange to me that I hold something so destructive as something so dear - I have friends in the game. They respect me, I'm well known. I have 4 league championships combined in dueling, basing and javelin! Am I really going to leave all of that behind? What else can I move on to that can replace this achievement that took me so long to accomplish?

So far, when I type ?usage in-game, the counter reads 24152 hours, first played 6/6/1999. That's how much time I spent playing this game in the last 11 years.

I do not blame the game for my failings. Instead I blame myself for not seeing that I had a problem. And now I fear that it's too late.

Someone wanna tag team?

[gran guerrero]

http://www.olganon.org/?q=node/19836



someone wanna tag team?

tag

[gran guerrero]

Hello all you kind and gentle souls. I am here on behalf of our fallen comrade in arms. It was never our intention to part from him for we are all one. Together we were strong, but the time has come where true merit and courage has faltered before the grace of God and all that we seek in the heavenly name of Allah and baby jesus we find hope that one day we can tell ourselves that everything will be alright.

I too like reflect, have played this game and have been dedicated to this once heavenly game that has grown into a bilious, vile cancer-ridden cest pool of sin that won't die or fade away from our souls so easily. It was a joyous game, it was asteroids, but you could move and kill other space ships!

Oh how much fun did I have playing fake hockey in this 2D shoot em up game, or king of the hill flag basing style matchups! There were so many people of character from all across the globe that shared delight with me over this video game. Endless nights chatting with people who loved and hated me. People who were intellectual, people who were dumb. I toyed with some of those who were simple, and I've found myself challenged by others. They all did drugs, while having a vast knowledge on The Fresh Prince of Bel-air...

It seemed that people were more real to me in there than in real life. No one really accepted me for I was an outcast, a black sheep, and foreign in their eyes. I didn't want to be programmed like them, those tools, those fools...

I was a rebel without a cause, and lazy as hell, so I spent my days playing this game. It got me into marijuana and alcohol! I skipped school to sit and stare into the black void of the background that is this game. I became pretentious and arrogant, started to believe I had influence in this game where I could control people because I was connected with the right people in this game.

I was sort of like a man behind a curtain, who was violently penetrating a microwaved melon that was this game into oblivion. I was out of control and swirling into a spiral of never ending failure that is my life. What happened to all the -="FUN"=-

I tried to quit this game, I even sent farewell messages and told everyone I would quit. They as they did to reflect said the same words. Those disgusting words...

And sadly I did come back, and I'm still stuck on this island, but good news my fine ladies and gentle men. The game is dying! Due to unforseen circumstances of expansion in game development, we find that the youth don't quite find this game as attractive as what they can find with something else! I only pray that it stays that way, cause I don't want any kids to be anywhere near this game. If I have to be mean, I will. It's for their own good!

I will see to this zone dies, and I will sink with this ship for I am not the captain, but a brave soldier who will fight the good fight who NEVER SURRENDERS and NEVER GIVE UP. I will see to it that I carry on for if no one does... Then there really wouldn't be a need for websites like this for people like me

Regards,

teehee