Computer Games Are Too Addictive

My brother is the same, he plays counterstrike all the time, and I ask him why, he says he is bored.

And I used to be like that, until I became 18, then I took more of an interest in other things. Work, going out, travelling, girlfriend, etc.

I rarely play games anymore, because I feel guilty about wasting my time when I play them (although wasting time on a message forum is ok :p)

I did play HL2 though, because I've been waiting for it for years.
I didn't play it to death like I did HL1 though. I don't play online games anymore.

You just need to find alternative activities which keep your interest.
[SARCASM]My current interest now is revising for exams.[/SARCASM]
 
Yes, computer games have ruined my life. I am highly addicted to them. I spend about 2-3 hours on the weekdays and mostly 8+ on the weekends. I started getting addicted probably when I was about 12-13.
 
I used to be addicted to online gaming a few years ago......it destroyed the relationship I had with my girlfriend of the time and in the end she left me cos of the effect it had had on her. When I think back to it now, my behaviour was shocking, it's no wonder she left.

As you can imagine, I don't play games nearly half as much these days....

You have been warned.
 
Yes I agree with the first post.

Games are OK in moderation. For many people gaming is becoming out of moderation. I don't know if there is an real solution for this. But I agree that for many people TV has robbed them of life and they don't even realize it.

But you can't do anything about all of the other people. You recognize something in your life and you have a desire to change it. You see the effects it has had, is having, and will have. You don't want that... you want more from your life.

Wisdom is knowing the right thing... integrity is doing it. If you want to make a change, you need to start now. Excercise the discipline to "fast" from games. Don't play for a month, simple as that. Don't check these forums for a month. Just stop.

You like the band switchfoot? I love em. Here's some lyrics... Go get their CD "Beautiful Letdown" if you haven't it already...


yesterday is a wrinkle on your forehead
yesterday is a promise that you've broken
don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes
yesterday is a kid in the corner
yesterday is dead and over
this is your life and today is all you've got now
yeah, and today is all you'll ever have
don't close your eyes
don't close your eyes

this is your life, are you who you want to be?
this is your life, are you who you want to be?
this is your life, is it everything you dreamed that it would be
when the world was younger and you had everything to lose?


And of course their radio single...

Fumbling his confidence
And wondering why the world has passed him by
Dreaming about Providence
And whether mice or men have second tries
Maybe we’ve been living with our eyes half open
Maybe we’re bent and broken, broken

Oh, we were meant to live for so much more
Have we lost ourselves?
Somewhere we live inside
Somewhere we live inside
We were meant to live for so much more
Have we lost ourselves?
Somewhere we live inside



--------------------------

You've got one life... If you don't want to waste it behind a computer and look back from your deathbed in regret, or even a few years down the road in regret of wasting your youth... it is your responsibility to take the actions neccessary to make a change. I really regret wasting a lot of my youth behind a computer... because "we were meant to live for so much more."


I can't keep track of all the lessons I've learned
But the thing that I miss the most
Is all the time that I burned
~ River City High


And that goes for y'all too.... 18+ hours a day? Well hey man I've been there and I know its fun, but its shortsighted. There are a lot better things to life... and I think it is so hard to break away from the addiction to the media, but I also think it is worth it... because games can never bring you the fullfillment of living a full life.

And yeah... don't neglect your kids man. You know you don't want to. Take them hiking and camping. Teach them to play sports. Listen to them talk about their day at school. Help them with their homework. Love your family. Go on trips. Hit up the amusement parks. Head up to mountains for some snowboarding. Help people in need. Visit a 3rd world country at least once. Well hey I'm starting to sound like the sunscreen song/speech... so if you haven't heard it yet I'll paste it in here for ya...



Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.
 
thescotster19 said:
They are ruining my life.

I came back on christmas leave from the Navy, and finally got the chance to sink my teeth into Half Life 2, played it completed it and moved straight on to CS: Source.

And now all I want to do is play CS, I play until the early hours every time I get a chance, never being able to drag myself away from it. (Always just 'one more round'.)

When I finally went back to work after Christmas it was incredibly depressing, I hated my job because I didn't get to sit and play computer games all day, looking forward longingly to the weekend when I can get back to my computer and play again.

It's destroying my life.

Computer games are great, but they will unwittingly become the death of productive society.

As our genereation and further generations grow up, playing better and better games, the alternate reality presented by these games will be far more attractive than the depressing reality that most of us face in our daily lives. I have already seen it happening with MMORPG's. I've experienced shades of it playing CS.

What can be done to halt the decline?

The only solution I can see will be to ban all computer games.

Discuss.



Get a better hobby or some self-control.
 
filmguy123, so basically, you're saying that anyone who spends time infront of a computer will regret it? Hmmm, let's put this into perspective, shall we?

Bill Gates:
Most likely spends a lot of time infront of a computer looking for ways to improve his wealth, and quality of his product.
Also would most likely spend time testing latest builds of his products:
Second richest Person In the History OF THE WORLD

Y'think he regrets it?

A little closer to home

Gabe Newell:
Gabe Newell most likely spends up of 16 hours in front of a computer screen. Especially when developing Half-life 2. He's also now developing the sequel to what has been voted Game of the year about 10 times now, since it's release.
Has made TWO best-selling games in his time, and has made over 40 million dollars revenue from it. Far more

Y'think He regrets it?

The point of this is not all people who sit in front of computer screen are forced there by some maniac, holding a gun to their head. Have you even heard of the phrase "Each to our own"?

So shut up about stereotyping people saying that nerds only go on computers because they have nothing better to do. It's the thought trail of an idiot.

I play on the computer in most of my free time. I don't find it degrading in the least and I'm not addicted to it. There's just nothing else I find interesting seeing as I have no friends where I live, and I don't go outside regularily.

^_^.
-Dekstar

Edit: Also that post was really long winded, don't you have something better to do?
 
filmguy123 has the best advice.

However, a nice way to balance both is, indeed, to study with the goal of one day entering the entertainment industry. I, myself, am setting my sights on aquiring a new computer (mine is crap) and apply myself to learning 3d modelling and animation. In addition to that I'm considering going to university to become a software programmer and go on studying in the field of physics if possible. With all that baggage, a lot of door are bound to open up. I hope I can just hang in there and accomplish all that stuff.

The best advice: be kind to your body (that means exercise, yes), be kind to your mind (read some books, it can be fun!) and be kind to people (they'll break your heart but you'll know how not to do the same).
 
dekstar ~~~~~

filmguy123, so basically, you're saying that anyone who spends time infront of a computer will regret it? Hmmm, let's put this into perspective, shall we?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Basically I am saying anyone who wastes there whole life away behind a computer will regret it - since your missing out on life. NOT anyone who spends time infront of a computer. I work on computers as a job 9-5 and obviously play Half-Life 2. The difference is moderation. I go to a job just like anyone else. I play a game as entertainment. Thats fine and great. And thats great Bill Gates works on a computer, so do I. But if your life revolves around a computer, well... see my first post.

and BTW... rich doesn't equal happy. Most of the world's richest people are also the most unsatisfied and unhappy - not all, but really, most. Its quite possible to be the world's most successful person and have an unfulfilling and empty life. If you think life is all about money, fame, success... well thats a pretty materialistic and shallow POV... and its ultimately, in the end, completely and utterly empty.

And did you even read my post? Where did I say or even come close to implying that all people who sit in front of a computer are forced to by some maniac? I said games can be addicting. Do you understand the difference between addiction and force? If not reflect on it for a while... And on that note, I will say, however, that you are a slave to whatever controls you... Games, TV, alchohol, whatever. All of those are good and fine in moderation, but they can also be a trap that will rob you of life. If you're not addicted, thats great.

~~~~~~~~
So shut up about stereotyping people saying that nerds only go on computers because they have nothing better to do. It's the thought trail of an idiot.
~~~~~~~~

Thats an interesting conclusion to draw from what I said. Where specifically did you get this idea from my post? Not only did I not say that, not imply it, I don't even think that. So stop jumping to conclusions and actually read.

~~~~~~~~
Have you even heard of the phrase "Each to our own"?
~~~~~~~~

Have you? What an ironic comment to make.

When I post my thoughts in a thread inviting discussion on a topic, that is "my own" - my thoughts, my opinion, my 2cents. Why don't you go back and read my 3rd paragraph. This thread is addressed to the topic starter and specifically says "don't worry about the other people" ie TO EACH HIS OWN... "but when you see something in YOUR life and want to change it..."


BTW - My post was pretty long huh... maybe its because 1/4 is actually stuff I wrote and the other is copy/pasted lyrics? You must have missed that when you didn't bother to actually read through it... as evidenced by your reply.

And actually, today, no I don't have anything better to do, thanks for asking. I'm in Portland and we had an ice storm and the city is pretty much shut down - freeways, bridges, stores, etc. closed. I'm up on a hill and can't even safely get out of my neighborhood to see my friends who came back for the 3 day weekend... bummer.


~~~TAOakenshield

Yeah the entertainment industry is a blast to work in... actually I do film/video stuff for a living and its great fun! I always thought it would be fun to design games as well.
 
filmguy, I totally agree with you. I used to be addicted and I used to play for like 10 hours a day and I was sooo depressed. Then I realized that I was wasting my life when I could be out doing things and experiencing the world. I tried to quit playing dozens of times but it was just too addicting. I swear games are just as addicting as cigarettes. I don't know how it happened but one day I just stopped playing as much. Yes I still play an hour or two a day, but I don't think that's unreasonable. Normal kids play video games too (I don't consider myself normal. Do the normal kids think themselves as normal? is there a normal at all?)


I play on the computer in most of my free time. I don't find it degrading in the least and I'm not addicted to it. There's just nothing else I find interesting seeing as I have no friends where I live, and I don't go outside regularily.

You may think your not addicted. You probably think you could stop at any time. Hell, I'm addicted right now and I don't even play that much. My computer is in my room and I constantly feel drawn to it. So basically what your saying is you don't have any friends, you don't go outside, and you spend all your time on the computer. Is that right?
 
Funnel your game-loving into something productive.

Start mapping, animating, modeling, texture mapping, make a mod, make a mappack, make a map or a weapon or a gametype.

I started this years ago and haven't stopped. Eventually, if you're good enough, it can become very profitable.
 
Teta_Bonita said:
Trust me, sooner or later you'll burn out and get bored of these games. Well, at least that's what happenned to me....

Yeah, and then they'll start to want to edit them and make their own mods. And the cycle continues. Player plays, player modifies, player plays.
 
ne0_shiny said:
wait, so THEY have to find fixes?
damn, haha i thought they told the programmers...
well, there goes one of my future job ideas
What the f**k?

I said that they have to find bugs and test the fixes.
Nothing about doing the fixing...

BTW, Why does everyone (well, a lot) on the planet seem assume a bug has to be in the code? Ever heard of a level designer, for example?

Tynan said:
Funnel your game-loving into something productive.

Start mapping, animating, modeling, texture mapping, make a mod, make a mappack, make a map or a weapon or a gametype.
Aye, I now spend FAR more time mapping and testing that compared to actually playing games.
It could be bad cos I can't go out in the world now without saying "Phwar how'd this guy keep the framerate with this LOD?"

Ah well.
 
Wow. Struck a chord with a few people, and definitely got a response.

Anyhoo, the weekend is over and I'm off back to my submarine in Scotland.
 
its okay dude, dont worry about it.
we, some of us, can control ourselves, and for those individuals who are so addicted to games that they cant function properly in life, too bad,
less competition for us in the future.... lol
 
thescotster19 said:
They are ruining my life.

I came back on christmas leave from the Navy, and finally got the chance to sink my teeth into Half Life 2, played it completed it and moved straight on to CS: Source.

And now all I want to do is play CS, I play until the early hours every time I get a chance, never being able to drag myself away from it. (Always just 'one more round'.)

When I finally went back to work after Christmas it was incredibly depressing, I hated my job because I didn't get to sit and play computer games all day, looking forward longingly to the weekend when I can get back to my computer and play again.

It's destroying my life.

Computer games are great, but they will unwittingly become the death of productive society.

As our genereation and further generations grow up, playing better and better games, the alternate reality presented by these games will be far more attractive than the depressing reality that most of us face in our daily lives. I have already seen it happening with MMORPG's. I've experienced shades of it playing CS.

What can be done to halt the decline?

The only solution I can see will be to ban all computer games.

Discuss.
Join Games Anonymous.
 
Hi, I'm Bob and I'm a gameaholic.

* HL2.net chants "Hi Bob" *
 
Yeah, Sorry Filmguy123. I had read your post, but as I was replying my mind clicked to a recent conversation I had with my cousin about a subject similar to this one. Sorry about that.

Games can be realistic if you don't pace yourself. but some people can take in a lot of game time everyday and still have an active social life. It's all a matter of different people.

I say if the first poster thinks it's best he quits playing games now, since he's got like the navy and that, then that's something he's just got to do.
 
Oh, **** off, don't blame video games and computers for you troubles. You're just as bad as the people who say GTA make's people crazy.


Best ****ing solution: Friends.


EDIT: Forgive me of my somewhat immature post. :eek:


I am, too, addicted to games. I'm breaking though, but I am sure I will never stop playing. Infact, I want to make my own. I'm starting to play a little less and create more, and sometimes, walk out the door and go somewhere. Very weird.
 
At one point I was playibg maybe about 1 hour a week of computer games. I was just going out with my firnds all the time having fun at uni.

Then I started playing City of heroes, and mercenaries for the Xbox and it ****ed up my life. ;(
 
ne0_shiny said:
wait, so THEY have to find fixes?
damn, haha i thought they told the programmers...
well, there goes one of my future job ideas

No. Just report them.
 
Maybe you all ought to watch LazyTown.

It comes from Iceland, has been around for a decade, and encourages kids to socialise and exercise more in a colourful and creative way. Maybe it's too late for you lot, but your children will benefit from it. I hope my nieces do.
 
computer games aren't addictive, there are just many weak people. :eek:
 
I am going to spend the first month of next year not using Computers for recreation at all and I'll see if I have a better time.
 
filmguy123 said:
Yes I agree with the first post.

Games are OK in moderation. For many people gaming is becoming out of moderation. I don't know if there is an real solution for this. But I agree that for many people TV has robbed them of life and they don't even realize it.

But you can't do anything about all of the other people. You recognize something in your life and you have a desire to change it. You see the effects it has had, is having, and will have. You don't want that... you want more from your life.

Wisdom is knowing the right thing... integrity is doing it. If you want to make a change, you need to start now. Excercise the discipline to "fast" from games. Don't play for a month, simple as that. Don't check these forums for a month. Just stop.

You like the band switchfoot? I love em. Here's some lyrics... Go get their CD "Beautiful Letdown" if you haven't it already...


yesterday is a wrinkle on your forehead
yesterday is a promise that you've broken
don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes
yesterday is a kid in the corner
yesterday is dead and over
this is your life and today is all you've got now
yeah, and today is all you'll ever have
don't close your eyes
don't close your eyes

this is your life, are you who you want to be?
this is your life, are you who you want to be?
this is your life, is it everything you dreamed that it would be
when the world was younger and you had everything to lose?


And of course their radio single...

Fumbling his confidence
And wondering why the world has passed him by
Dreaming about Providence
And whether mice or men have second tries
Maybe we’ve been living with our eyes half open
Maybe we’re bent and broken, broken

Oh, we were meant to live for so much more
Have we lost ourselves?
Somewhere we live inside
Somewhere we live inside
We were meant to live for so much more
Have we lost ourselves?
Somewhere we live inside



--------------------------

You've got one life... If you don't want to waste it behind a computer and look back from your deathbed in regret, or even a few years down the road in regret of wasting your youth... it is your responsibility to take the actions neccessary to make a change. I really regret wasting a lot of my youth behind a computer... because "we were meant to live for so much more."


I can't keep track of all the lessons I've learned
But the thing that I miss the most
Is all the time that I burned
~ River City High


And that goes for y'all too.... 18+ hours a day? Well hey man I've been there and I know its fun, but its shortsighted. There are a lot better things to life... and I think it is so hard to break away from the addiction to the media, but I also think it is worth it... because games can never bring you the fullfillment of living a full life.

And yeah... don't neglect your kids man. You know you don't want to. Take them hiking and camping. Teach them to play sports. Listen to them talk about their day at school. Help them with their homework. Love your family. Go on trips. Hit up the amusement parks. Head up to mountains for some snowboarding. Help people in need. Visit a 3rd world country at least once. Well hey I'm starting to sound like the sunscreen song/speech... so if you haven't heard it yet I'll paste it in here for ya...



Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.


<3 Filmguy123 for the win!!!!
 
i know this 16-year-old kid who used to play a mmorpg called tibia all day. he even did not eat that much cause he was stuck to his computer. i like computer games, but not enough to let it take over my life.
 
Well, the first thing:

Is your addiction BAD ? I mean...addiction can be good sometimes...

But if it makes you feel depressed then you will just get even more depressed if you stop playing because then you will miss it even more.


Im addicted, the time is almost 4 in the morning now...but i cant help it...i just cant stop...so...just chill...make what you can while in addiction...be a Gamer ;)
 
But if it makes you feel depressed then you will just get even more depressed if you stop playing because then you will miss it even more.
You're incorrect being inside for so long is bound to make you depressed more then fighting temptations will.
 
I still play video games alot since my post back in January *wow old thread*. I'm still kicking strong, still trying for a girlfriend, still getting denied. But I don't think they are taking over my life yet.
 
My computer has already sadly already taken over my life and im only 16 :(
 
16? Pfft. Tell it to the guy who got hooked up on computers at the age of 4.
 
Aye, im 16 now, i started my addiction when i first got the NES at age 5/6
 
how hard can it be? just find another addiction. start smoking, for example, although it is a great addidition to playing counter-strike. you'll probably burn your fingers a lot.
 
When I've got nothing to do, I play games :D

Or go on forums ;)

And being a student means I have a LOT of nothing to do :D
 
Lets not confuse Computer addiction with GAME addiction and INTERNET addiction...to totaly different things.

I am NOT addicted to games...however, i am addicted to INTERNET. Some people have vice versa. So just because one person is addicted to the "computer" doesnt mean Games are bad, the internet is a big chunc of the problem to!
 
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