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October 20, 2006 | Comments: (0)
WoW addicts duke it out
Internet addiction is the latest "hot topic" in the social research crowd. Exhibit 1 is a new study out from the Stanford University School of Medicine that suggests there are similarities between Internet addiction and alcoholism, with 8 percent of the 2,500 people surveyed admitting they hid Internet use from family members. ("Hello, my name is Paul, and I'm an Internet addict.") So if you find a little WAP tucked into your spouse's closet, now you know why. ;-)
On a more personal note this week, there have also been duelling accounts of the salutary (or is it deleterious) effects of World of Warcraft, the massively popular massive multiplayer online rollplaying game (MPMMORPG) that counts none other than Bill Gates as a devotee.
First, on Tuesday, there was this soul bearing from a "council member on one of the oldest guilds" in World of Warcraft's virtual world. According to this person, "Andy" who has been playing the game for 30 hours a week for an entire year. At what cost? According to Andy, he put on about 30 pounds, lost most of his friends and generally withdrew from the "real world" in favor of his farming and guilding responsibilities in WoW. Typical of the post is a passage like this one:
"I remember clearly after fumbling around life for a few weeks that I dragged myself into the bathroom to get ready for work. I was tired because I was up until close to 2 AM raiding. Every week I read though email or I would run into one of my "real" friends and I'd hear "Andy, what's up, I haven't seen you in a while." I looked in the mirror and in a cinemaesque turn of events and a biblical moment of clarity, told myself "I haven't seen me in a while either"
But hey, at least this guy was single and unemployed...
"The worst though are the people you know have time commitments. People with families and significant others. I am not one to judge a person's situation, but when a father/husband plays a video game all night long, seven days a week, after getting home from work, very involved instances that soak up hours and require concentration, it makes me queasy that I encouraged that. Others include the kids you know aren't doing their homework and confide in you they are failing out of high school or college but don't want to miss their chance at loot, the long-term girl/boyfriend who is skipping out on a date (or their anniversary - I've seen it) to play (and in some cases flirt constantly), the professional taking yet another day off from work to farm mats or grind their reputations up with in-game factions to get "valuable" quest rewards, etc... I'm not one to tell people how to spend their time, but it gets ridiculous when you take a step back."
That post produced a whole lot of comment and "me too" stories, not to mention some backlash like:
"2 characters 2 years 60th & 49th level 8 hours a week at the most. Seriously, balance is easily achieved. If you do so, you don't have to get burnt out on it." (How many of us haven't heard that line from our boozing friends?)
A more thorough response, on the same blog, came this response from a fellow guild member in favor of WoW.
The main argument seems to be that in WoW you can: 1) meet cool people you wouldn't otherwise meet and make friends, 2) practice being a better human. No kidding. Consider the following passage from the "Pro" camp:
"I got a Masters degree in policy from one of the most difficult schools in the country while at the same time playing WoW and working a part time job. I would come home from a busy day and think about how to use what I learned to make the guild work better."
Or:
"I like being the very best player I can be; whether I'm playing a priest or a mage or a twink druid, you can bet that I'm crunching numbers and reading theory and strategy and trying to make every action or every cast more efficient."
To which I say, "Twink druid???"
Honestly, speaking as someone who enjoys PC gaming, but never bought into the whole WoW thing, just listening to these two dudes debate whether WoW is addictive and harmful at least convinces me how seductive and consuming the game must be. I mean, these guys are totally checked out!
How about this little gem from the Con camp:
"I miss at least one raid a week to go out with friends, go clubbing, or watch a movie with my family. I hardly ever farm. I usually play the auction-house for fifteen minutes before I go to bed at night. I actually gave up herbalism because I didn’t have time for it (and I wanted to DE the stuff my ex gave me when we broke up >.>). If I start feeling frustrated, that the demands of people in the game are getting to high, or that I don’t have anything else to do … I walk away. I go for a walk, pursue one of my other hobbies, or call a friend. Soon enough I’m happy to come back, because I enjoy it and because there are people in the game whom I love and who make it worthwhile for me to play."
Anyone who considers squeezing a hour or two of "reality" around his day job and a fantasy roll playing game moderation is off the reservation. IMHO.
Diagnosis: Dude, you're hooked!
Posted by Paul Roberts on October 20, 2006 11:56 AM
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Did anyone forget the young girl that died from playing WoW too much?
Or the South-Park Episode that gave the best portrail of WoW players?
There is no doubt in my mind that WoW has claimed a lot of people. I have a good friend who forgot to come to my bachelor party most likely due to a guild meeting. The truth is that at some point you just have to realize that they have to decide what is important in their lives. What can you do? Take away their computer? Disconnect their Internet? As long as the Internet exists people will let themselves become victims of their own making.
Posted by: Paul at October 20, 2006 09:03 PMAll MMORPG's are the same way. WoW is just the most popular.
As an employee of Turbine games (makers of Asheron's call/LoTRO/DnDO) once said...
"People come for the game and stay for friends."
I know I'm hooked myself to a game other than WoW (SWG). Unfortunately I'm watching WoW unravel my sister's life and she has 2 year old that she's almost given up on. Maybe seeing her failing his making me stronger in being aware of my addiction...
This seems a little bit of a one-sided argument without any real depth. I think that there are enough games out there that people get hooked into already but at least WoW keeps people interacting in a positive way, rather than the abuse that gets thrown around in games such as counterstrike. I think to clearly compare WoW to any other form of addiction you at least have to be familiar with the topic.
Posted by: Rob at October 22, 2006 05:43 AMStop bringing up the 5 or so people that have died from WoW. Over 7 million people play, who cares about 5? All that shows is its far less lethal than most activities.
The South Park episode was realistic? The most addicted players I know (myself included) gained or lost 5 pounds at most over the course of 150+ days played spread out over 2 years. Go look at facesofwow.com and be amazed at how many normal-looking people play.
And of course you aren't going to understand a word of what two WoW players are saying to each other in a debate about the game, even casual WoW players. It's like someone pulled right out of Tajikistan listening to two guys talk about football. "Twink" or "farm," or "touchdown" or "fumble." Of course it won't make sense.
Anyway, the game is seriously addicting for someone who is determined to be the best at whatever they set their mind on. In order to be the best you need to be willing to put in more time than anyone else, only problem is everyone else is trying to put in more time than you. That's where the *need* to play so much comes from, the person's *need* to be the best. You hear stories about people who play while doing well in school and holding a job etc etc, but those are the people who don't care if they finish first or last. They are a minority. They never become remotely successful in the game, and I don't even know why they play it.
Quitting is hard too. I tried to quit but got drawn back in by my girlfriend and only succeeded in cutting the time I play in half.
Posted by: Bill at October 22, 2006 08:49 PMI totally agree with the above, me myself is a total addict, i have been playing fo a year now and i'm reaching the top, after 2 lvl 60's and alots of other middle lvl chars, i realised i'm hooked, i only go outside if´i have too, havent hanged out with my friends for ages, i know this is totally ruin my life but i tried to quit i only manage to stay away for about 4 days then i got the tought in my mind damn now all the other locks in my guild prolly got far better gear than me..
all i want to say is dont get involved it will ruin your life, and that they made an expansion wont make me wanna play less -.-
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