Video games are a highly addictive and time consuming form of entertainment that even I myself enjoy partaking in once in a while. The evolution of gaming has gone from the simple 2-D pong all the way to 3 dimensional gaming that allows the player to enter an entirely different world on or offline. But the growing online gaming community is becoming a problem.
Kids like 15 year old Brandon Crisp are not mature enough to fight the addiction and choose to take it to new extremes. Last month he ran away from home because his parents took his XBOX away from him, and wound up dead. It’s occurrences like this that have comities such as MADD and leaders like Jack Thompson trying to not only ban violent video games but all video games because of the addictive nature of the problem. Both organizations believe that the majority of violent crimes committed in North America by teens are the result of playing video games too much, and thinking that it’s cool or fun. Most of these games are played online with friends and strangers, and another concern of these groups, is the fact that you never really know who you are playing with. The big scare about Brandon Crisp running away was his parents were afraid if it was due to him meeting someone online who he went to meet.
To add to the addiction, the companies that mass produce the games and systems hold off on orders to increase the demand of them, and make them more tempting. I asked an HMV sales associate, and she enlightened me on the issue with a shipment box of Nintendo Wiis. The shipment was completed January 2007, but was not issued for order until November 2008, proof that the companies are withholding shipments to make them more addictive and high in demand. This game addiction is what companies like Nintendo thrive for; a crazed consumer who will spend any amounts of money on a console, even after two years of its release.
Will I continue to be a member in the world of gaming? Probably. It’s just the difference between knowing a game “is just a game” and making that game your reality. People have to be aware that gaming is a type of social networking, especially with the advancements of being able to play online, and just like Facebook, msn, or even this blog I am writing now, all information you release is available to those who want to find it. Companies want you addicted to their games and don’t care about the cost to a person personally. It’s all in your hands to know when to put down the controller.
Works Cited
Photo- http://www.freewebs.com/pavga/video%20game%20addiction5.jpg
Biedler, Aurae. "Grand Theft Auto IV Troubles MADD." MADD Against Grand Theft Auto. 29 Apr. 2008. Suite101. 25 Nov. 2008
Ottawa Correspondents. "Missing Canadian XBOX Boy Found Dead." Harold Sun 6 Nov. 2008: 1-1
"Welcome to Jack Thompson.org." Jack Thompson. June 2005. JackThompson.org. 25 Nov. 2008
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