Video game addiction

[arunangelo]

I do I help an adult, who has ignored his family and his prayer life, because, of video games?

[InternalFlame]

Of course this isn't a good thing. I have often found that people who play a lot of video games or read or do ANYTHING during most of their free time is useing it as an escape. I know this because I once useing video games and reading ALL the time as an escape. It was all I ever did outside of homework and school during my younger years. I didn't want to think about my life, so I would spend my time in the life of a fictional character whether on the screen or in a book. I don't mean that these things are bad, just when people depend on them to escape reality they are bad. One must be careful to keep the important things (God, Family) on the top of the priority list while other things such as recreation after those more important things. This person should evaluate his life, and see what he is trying to escape from, why is he ALWAYS playing games? Is he dissatisfied with himself, his family, or his life? And if so, perhaps he needs to become closer to God, because I find that dissatisfaction often comes from straying from God....without him we are dead...so we try to fill those holes with things that just won't do (sometimes buying things, or playing games, or even having a relationship with a person). If he re-connects with God, his need for video games to fill that void will leave.

[Guest shiloh357]

I have a buddy I used to work with, who is addicted to an online game called "Ever Quest." It is an online fantasy game where you can be a Shaman, a Ranger, a wood elf, gnome, dwarf, high elf, or other such character, and you run around destroying monsters to gain treasure that you can trade for better equipment and to purchase spells to make your character more powerful. It is an open ended game that has no "winners." you just keep going up in strength and skills and such.

One weekend, he started playing the game a Friday Morning and did not stop until Sunday evening. He played nonstop the entire weekend. He has a cable ISP, so they did not kick Him off. A "short" day in the game for him, is 14 hours. His marriage is on the rocks, but this game helps him forget about that. I finally stopped going over to the house because he could not pull himself away from the game when company would come over, so there was no reason to hang out with him, plus I could see what it was doing to his marriage.

There are people so addicted to the game, that they look for ways to make money off of it, so that they don't have to get a job. For instance, one guy has high level characters that go around looking for Platinum (Everquest currency) His characters collect the "Plat" and he actually sells this "Plat" on E-bay. E-bay, of course requires you to sell a material object, so his auctions are like, 2,000 plat and ball point pen for $500. Believe it or not, the last I heard he was pulling in in Excess of $2500 a month doing this. People are paying hundreds of dollars just to buy fake money!!! Is this too much, or what?

[InternalFlame]

wow, that is bad.....

I do let my kids play alot of em, but watch which ones, but even that now is getting fruitless as it seems all the non-sports games are "war" or "vice-city" type stuff....

I dont do it as an escape, my family runs a hotel and we are slow in the winter months....

and its too cold to work outside regualarly, and when I read the bible I usually fall asleep within an hour....

matter of fact, if I read anything too long I doze off....

I can see this being a big concern with todays under 30 generation...

I wouldn't say it's only under 30's people. There are a LOT of older gamers out there. Probably half of which have a problem with playing too much.

[yomotalking]

laughing at myself cause I do it every now and then, usually in January and February when its snowy and cold.

we used to play spades as a family in those months up in maine, or monopoly....etc

but how can one stay away form Socom or Shadowman or Madden 2006!!!!!

help me---I love it!!!!!!

Guity as charged of playing Mario64, and James Bond on my Nintendo64!!!!

[Guest shiloh357]

wow, that is bad.....

I do let my kids play alot of em, but watch which ones, but even that now is getting fruitless as it seems all the non-sports games are "war" or "vice-city" type stuff....

I dont do it as an escape, my family runs a hotel and we are slow in the winter months....

and its too cold to work outside regualarly, and when I read the bible I usually fall asleep within an hour....

matter of fact, if I read anything too long I doze off....

I can see this being a big concern with todays under 30 generation...

I wouldn't say it's only under 30's people. There are a LOT of older gamers out there. Probably half of which have a problem with playing too much.

Well, with the buddy of mine, it was a way of escape. He was in a different world, and was a different person. Pretty sad.

[Keith]

Video games in themselves aren't wrong, per se. The things to be careful of are these:

What kind of video games are you playing?

How long do you play them?

Do you need to play them?

What's your motive for playing them? (Be honest, God knows the real answer anyway.)

Do video games (or anything else) take priority over your time with God or in His Word?

---- in other words, do you spend time playing videos instead of spending time with God? Have you spent time with God yet today? Do you spend more time playing video games (or watching tv, etc.,) than you spend with Him?

Our actions, not our words, indicate our priorities.

[arunangelo]

Of course this isn't a good thing. I have often found that people who play a lot of video games or read or do ANYTHING during most of their free time is useing it as an escape. I know this because I once useing video games and reading ALL the time as an escape. It was all I ever did outside of homework and school during my younger years. I didn't want to think about my life, so I would spend my time in the life of a fictional character whether on the screen or in a book. I don't mean that these things are bad, just when people depend on them to escape reality they are bad. One must be careful to keep the important things (God, Family) on the top of the priority list while other things such as recreation after those more important things. This person should evaluate his life, and see what he is trying to escape from, why is he ALWAYS playing games? Is he dissatisfied with himself, his family, or his life? And if so, perhaps he needs to become closer to God, because I find that dissatisfaction often comes from straying from God....without him we are dead...so we try to fill those holes with things that just won't do (sometimes buying things, or playing games, or even having a relationship with a person). If he re-connects with God, his need for video games to fill that void will leave.

Thanks for the reply. This is exactly, what I think he needs to do.

[yomotalking]

wow, that is bad.....

I do let my kids play alot of em, but watch which ones, but even that now is getting fruitless as it seems all the non-sports games are "war" or "vice-city" type stuff....

I dont do it as an escape, my family runs a hotel and we are slow in the winter months....

and its too cold to work outside regualarly, and when I read the bible I usually fall asleep within an hour....

matter of fact, if I read anything too long I doze off....

I can see this being a big concern with todays under 30 generation...

I wouldn't say it's only under 30's people. There are a LOT of older gamers out there. Probably half of which have a problem with playing too much.

Well, with the buddy of mine, it was a way of escape. He was in a different world, and was a different person. Pretty sad.

Not really.

There are lonely people out there........they can't face life.....they make up their own.

On video games.