The World Of Warcraft
One of the most popular computer games on the market is called the World of Warcraft, known to people who play it as WoW. You buy the game and install it into your computer. Then you have the chance to create your own character with it’s own name and job and identity in the game. You can control and purchase clothing and weapons and make this character as real as you would like it to be. Then you pay 17 dollars a month to play with millions of people online. They have actually created a world inside the game. The size of the “playing field” if it were to be real would be the size of Switzerland. Sometimes it takes days for characters to run to different places in the world. People are able to buy and trade things, talk and join groups together. As any other game there is an aspect of the need to complete challenges and tasks to achieve higher levels. Fulfilling these missions gives the player a great sense of accomplishment because of the time and effort put into them.
The reason why this game is so influential is to some people it becomes a serious addiction and all other aspects of their real life disappear and the game becomes who they are. In this video (no need to watch the whole thing because it is very long) two people actually get married in the game. I do not know if in person they got married as well. This is very common, it is also common for boyfriends and girlfriends to be so addicted they will sit in the same room as each other on two different computers and play the game and talk to each other not in person but through the game.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6724632215622439110
This I worry will ruin relationships for some. Also that the character played online may come out through the person playing the game. It is fine to play games on the computer, this is not my point. My point is that it is overwhelming to hear that someone could get so caught up in there World of Warcraft that they forget about their World on Earth. The need for fantasy is understandable to humans, but when it takes over reality this is when we have an issue. This is not just speculation. I have actually encountered an ex-relationship where the person would inhibit characteristic from his character and use it in his day to day life. Not sleeping or eating, just playing the game for hours upon hours upon hours. To see such a great person be so taken by a computer game hurts the soul. I am not trying to judge a person’s lifestyle because of what they decided to play I just hope people start realizing the repressions and come back to society.
Whenever you have a little bit of time (and I hope the website works because sometimes it goes on the Fritz) but watch the episode of South Park called “Make love not Warcraft” and you will understand the obsession people develop with this game.
http://allabout-sp.net/?p=season10/1008
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1 comment:
Haha, well, just to give you some perspective:
Stuff like "getting married" is usually done for roleplaying purposes, which is a mostly user-created aspect of the game that only a minority of players choose to indulge in. The players in the video you linked might have "gotten married" just for the sake of making a video out of it.
So, just clarifying that when you say it's "very common", you're right in a sense - it's very common within a small subculture of people who play the game. (That might sound strange, but remember there are around 10 million subscribers.)
Anyway, your overall concerns about the game being addictive and so on are legitimate, but I just disagree with some of the details. For example, a couple sitting in the same room/house playing WoW together and talking through their microphones doesn't really illustrate "addiction". That's just a matter of practicality. Or even if doing so serves no practical advantage, well, so what? Haven't you ever sat beside a friend physically and been talking to them on MSN, just because? It's like that.
As for harming relationships, WoW's more of a culprit for taking a lot of one person's attention, just like the long list of the other usual vices: drinking, gambling, etc. Couples who play together, though, report being very happy. I could link you to a dozen or more stories where people are talking about WoW serving to improve their relationships, (bonding over it, having common goals, etc.) as well as meeting new friends, and in some cases, significant others/spouses. For some reason a lot of people are a little horrified by this, but I'm not sure why. I guess it's the hegemonic common sense of our culture kicking in to remind us that video games = unproductive and unsocial, so a relationship formed there must surely be...an abomination! :p
Anyway, I hope this doesn't come across as me bashing your post. I know from personal experience that WoW and games like it being super-addictive, especially for some people more than others, is a very valid concern. It's why I stopped playing, so I'm living proof. Just thought I'd add an alternative perspective.
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