Video game addiction- Real enough to cause a disability?

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20070615/002750.shtmlImagine if this were to happen. Years ago, it would have been sheer nonsense to have even conceived such a notion. But now, it's becoming more valid, as the moments pass.
Video game addiction.
In the same league as depression and schizophrenia, is it real, or do you think you could just, drop the controller? I've been playing games since I was two, and as long as I can, I will be playing them until I leave this world. So it's simple, do you believe people could get so enveloped in the world of video games, that it could become obsessive, or even dangerous. I would love to know what everyone thinks.. As always, keep it civil.

i think its bunch of bullshit..... and people who make it legal is bunch of idiot.....

I used to be really hyped up about vidoe games.
But now the feeling's kinda gone a little, part of growing up I guess....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4137782.stm
Do you remember when some dude died from 50 hours straight of gaming?Anyway, I don't think it should be qualified as a disability. The comments in the article pretty much sum up what I think.

Depend on the person.
I also heard a news about someone dead because he's playing Online games for 3 days straight non-stop whatsoever.

I might sound a bit mad in saying this, but I could really see this a reality on a wide scale basis someday. Gambling is an addiction, sex is too. So why couldn't games be? After all, you control something directly, seeing it unfold, especially with story driven games. I won't say it will ever be as bad as alcoholism, or drug addiction. But if psychologically you found yourself in that world, unable to pull yourself out of it, and it became less a vise and more an addiction, what happens then?The little old lady spends her entire check on lotto scratch tickets, hoping to make it big.
There is a support group for that. So why not for people who hinge on a reality that isn't?

The word "addiction" is thrown around far too lightly. I buy the paper every day, am I addicted? I believe addiction should only be used when there is a physical consequence if you stop doing the activity. People saying they are sex-addicts or video-game addicts make a mockery of those who have a true physical addiction, ie. nicotine, alcohol, opiates etc. In my opinion everything else is just a bad habit even if taken to extremes. I have blown off work before to stay home and play games. I have also missed work or social engagements because I wanted to finish a book or I stayed up too late reading. I have even missed work to spend the day in bed with my partner. Yet I would argue vehemently if anyone said I was addicted to these activities. People need a bit of perspective on things.

Since when has any addiction been considered a disability?

even though i love playing games and feel addicted to it, i still can control myself for not exaggerating... it depend in how mature you are, i think.... beside it's much more better if you addicted to game than you addicted to drugs, or smoke.... and as for me, i found out that being a gamer makes me more controllable... a professional gamer know when you have to quit....

I was pretty addicted to world of warcraft... like for reals for like 2 years, and I force myself to quit and I won't play for like 2 months but then I give in again... it's pretty lame... well I haven't played since like Nov. 20th so it's been a month and a half, hopefully I don't go back to it. I guess I'm addicted to end game raiding and getting my purple epics >.<But I must not play... must not play.. must not play... /sighI fuckin love that game... maybe when the xpansion comes out... grrr... see.. I have problems, lol...And when I don't play it, I end up downloading other MMO's anyways and comparing them to WOW and being disappointed, like now I've tried Aion and Champions Online... :(I miss my hunter Avasky on Crushridge /pout.. ok... I'm done... must not play (I even deleted it off of my comp and that shit takes like forever to download and install, like original, bc, wotlk... all the freakin patches... see that should keep me from playing it :)I am sad and pathetic...

^
i've already delete it.... save myself for final exam..

I believe that it should be classified as a disorder. I mean, there have been many serious cases that have arisen due to video game excessive use. One boy in Ohio shot his mother dead and fatally wounded his father just because they took away his Halo 3 game. That is a very serious action to take against your own parents. There would have to be something wrong with that child for him to take such a drastic action, and I'd assume that it would be due to gaming.http://www.teenink.com/opinion/movies_music_tv/article/82305/Video-Game-Addiction/The author of the article has got many valid points.

Replying to #12

I agree that there is something seriously wrong with Daniel Petric, but making a positive correlation between gaming and insanity based on just one case sounds too hasty to me. What about the thousands of other gamers who don't have anger management issues? In fact, there have been studies suggesting that playing violent video games reduces aggression. If he really believes that death is just temporary at age 17... then it sounds like he had mental issues even before he started playing Halo.And I don't find the article credible. He brings up some interesting points, but it's hard to take him seriously especially when he vaguely mentions "chemicals released during gaming" and "game manufacturers hire expert psychologists to make games addictive" and throws around statistics without backing them up with sources.

I watch this kind of documentary in National Geographic Ch. he is a Korean an have a bad habit of gaming he even skip school just to play he play FPS games and when he is going to sleep he thinks that someone is gonna shoot him down so he always calls his parents to watch him sleep (or maybe it is just an addiction not a disorder)another one is a guy killed his mother because his mother want him to stop playing video games Xbox 360 i think

Replying to #14

that's crazy, that guy is mentally retarded i guess...

Usually there is a underlying cause that drives people to any addiction. Stress could make a person do things they, under normal character, wouldn't do. I agree with Mr. Flash there, a disorder fits it better that a full scale disability.(Taken from Wikipedia)
The term "addiction" is used in many contexts to describe an obsession, compulsion, or excessive psychological dependence, such as: drug addiction (e.g. alcoholism, nicotine addiction), problem gambling, crime, money, work addiction, compulsive overeating, Oniomania (compulsive shopping), computer addiction, video game addiction, pornography addiction, television addiction, etc.The above was taken from Wikipedia's definition of addiction. Funny in my eyes at least, how video game addiction takes precedence over porno. :P

Remember last month when it was reported that a 16-year-old kid shot his parents because they took away his Halo 3? Here's a follow-up to that.For one, the kid is now already 17, just so you know. In 2007, Daniel Petric shot his parents in cold blood for keeping his copy of Halo 3 away from him. This resulted in his mother's death, while the father eventually recovered. Petric finally had his hearing last month, and just today, the judge has convicted him of his crimes.No sentence was passed on Petric just yet (that will come at a later date), however, he is facing the maximum possible penalty of life sentence in prison without parole.Though his defense attorneys attributed his crimes to his video game addiction (which, in their argument, made him less responsible), the Judge overruled this, and pointed to evidence saying that he actually plotted the act.According to the report from the Associated Press, one of the prosecutors:described Petric as a cold, calculating killer who plotted to murder his parents, Mark and Susan Petric, and make it appear to be a murder-suicide by putting the gun in his father's hand.Meanwhile, it was also revealed that when Petric left the crime scene, there was only one thing which he took with him: his copy of the Halo 3 game.Based on the Judge's ruling, Petric is now guilty of aggravated murder in the death of his mom, and the attempted aggravated murder in the assault on his dad. On top of that, Petric was also convicted of tampering with evidence.http://www.qj.net/qjnet/nintendo-ds/halo-3-gamer-who-shot-his-parents-now-convicted-of-aggravated-murder-may-get-life-sentence-in-prison.html

It always goes to the extreme in cases of video game violence. Thanks for the responses you guys, and gals too ;), gave. It was something I had on my mind for awhile. Going back to Shelly or Killuah, why do women fall madly for WOW? I don't get that one at all... Wouldn't you rather play some Gears/God of War? :P

Replying to #18

lol.. no... I am playing champions Online though atm (I'm on a trial account, I may buy it...) I still <3 wow though... oh and LoL (League of Legends is pretty neat too...I don't own a PS3 or Xbox.. if I did I would be interested in.... Infamous, Batman Arkhum Asylum and Dragon Age Origins (though I could get Dragon Age for PC hrmmm.... oh and I need a Wii for Zelda and that New Wii Final Fantasy game.. what is it crystal chronicles?I like geeky stuff I guess... fantasy games and superhero ones... ;)

I guess it correlates to the fact women want the knight/hero to wisk them away to someplace better. And nothing wrong with geeky, if I remember the formula correctly:geeky=intelligence
intelligence= decent job
decent job+true determination= a woman like you in a man's life.Now that's a formula worth living and dying by.