What is with the obsession with games?

[Djuntas]

Its something you enjoy? Harder it cant be OP.

Why do some people play golf? I can wondor about that aswell...gives no excercise, you wait alot, do barely nothing etc.

Its cause they enjoy it, each to there own.

[Yig]

For me it was being immersed in another world I could pretend to escape to. Especially when games began to be able to take on stylized graphics that had technique and beauty you could appreciate.

[Dezerte]

It's entertainment, just like TV and books. But the difference is that gaming is much more immersive, *you* are in control.

There was a time when achivements didn't exist and we still played games hardcore, though I admit the achivements probably helps in making people play more. Games are essentially a carrot on a stick (now I'm broadly generalizing), it's the reward for completing a map or looting a badass weapon that makes us feel happy.

It also serves as a great escape from reality. Hell, you could probably spend your whole life on the internet if you wanted to.

And of course, like any other hobby, gaming isn't different. The difference here is that gaming can be so immersive/addicting sometimes that time flies by, and this is the potential danger lies where you risk becoming an addict.

[YoghurtSpoonDuckCeiling]

Honestly? Escapism. The real world is pretty stressful and whilst I do not neglect my social life, the real world isn't all that exciting when the vast majority of people I meet are only concerned with getting drunk every weekend.

[neccowafer]

Yeah, but most of the other things you can use them constructively in life. You obviously know sports stars can earn millions of dollars, and it gives you exercise that it is scientifically proven to be extremely beneficial. Video games don't give you that.

For the most part a sports obsession leads to better things than a video game obsession.

Sports obsession- great fitness, if good enough great money, respect

Video Games obsession - bad fitness, not much money is really possible even though it is changing, bad rep from society and you can become increasingly isolated from reality.

And competitive gamers can earn a living doing it, have tons of fun all the time, meet great friends who have similar interests, feel like they're exercising their mind rather than their body (which some people enjoy better) and relieve stress. Research increasingly shows that the mental training can be applied to other areas of life. Exercising your brain frequently can prevent dementia in old age. You can earn respect, just from different people. I have no interest in devoting my life to exercise, so I don't give a single fuck if people who think that is important respect me or not. So subjectively, I value that at about 0. Money has decent value to me, but not enough to devote my life to something I don't like. You don't have to be an addict to be in good shape, so I subjectively value the extra fitness I'd gain by having an unhealthy psychological problem as 0, offset by loss of self-esteem and control over my own behavior.

I met my now-fiance and some of my best friends in the world (actually all the friends I'd consider to be 'best' material) through gaming and social events. I, subjectively value them very, very highly. It is subjective. I also have endless things to relate with these people. We all remember games from our childhood, and of course the good old days when we used to do various tournaments. I simply would not get along with people who were highly interested in sports and nothing else, because while I can occasionally discuss the most recent football game, I don't otherwise care much, and they would bore me. Those people might make the best friends in the world for you, and if so, that's great, but it's all subjective. There are no universal goals to human existence. Not everyone wants to live forever, be fit, have 500 friends on facebook, beat Ninja Gaiden, visit Disney World, travel Asia, collect art, be a millionaire at any cost, or any other activity, really. I mean, generally we all like to eat, drink, breathe, piss, crap, and sleep. But I mean activities that you elect to do.

But seriously this is why I made a big post talking about what an addiction is and how it's different from just liking something a lot.

You're wrong if you think it isn't dangerous to be obsessed with sports or exercise. Especially sports that require you to be a certain weight/shape, like wrestling. Many people yo-yo their weight around to make weight classes, do dangerous diets, dehydrate for weigh-ins, etc, and that is all dangerous. All hobbies can be healthy if you are healthy about them, but all hobbies can be addictive and bad for you, too. Just because you're doing something society views as "good" doesn't mean it can't be an addiction.

Exercise/sports obsessions are often not diagnosed because people in the person's life don't consider it a bad thing, but it's not that uncommon. It's often correlated with anorexia or other types of body image problems, where the person isn't exercising because they like it or for fitness reasons, but because they are afraid to do activities where they aren't burning enough calories/building muscle. These people often refuse to sit down at any point or relax because they feel like they're wasting time. They obsess over their ideal body (whether that body is super buff or super skinny) and are stuck in a loop where they know they'll never reach it (because it's unrealistic) but continue to try and feel bad about themselves when they're not living up to it.

If you're obsessed with a sport, you do the sport even if you don't like it, you feel guilty when you're not practicing/playing and like you're wasting time, your self esteem depends on whether you win or lose, you neglect your family or friends or other responsibilities in order to go play, you're an addict. It can be dangerous and you should seek help. These people often push themselves too hard and don't allow time to recover, and people who are also anorexic or bullimic or who are too skinny to be healthy otherwise are putting themselves in danger because overly obsessive exercise is very hard on the heart, and anorexic patients are already at risk for heart problems. Obsessive runners who don't give themselves time to recover and set realistic goals develop bone, joint, and tendon/ligament problems.

So, no I can't say that being addicted to sports has been scientifically proven to be extremely beneficial. These are not people who just like sports a lot, or people who take their sport seriously. That's not an addiction. These are people who only care about their sport to the point where they no longer care about friends, family, other responsibilities, or any negative consequences. These are people who base their entire identity, their self-esteem, their worth as a person, on their ability to perform at this sport. That is always unhealthy. It doesn't matter if the person has better fitness than you because of it, they have a much worse mental state and they're NOT happy people. They're sick people.

[Poppincaps]

I think it depends on what you consider addiction. There is a fine line between being addicted to something and really enjoying it. I'll use WoW as my example. I've played WoW since December of 2004. I have somewhere around 400 days played. To some they may say that I'm addicted, but addiction means that you are emotionally or physically attached and cannot stop. I've taken numerous breaks (with the latest being an 8 month break). I enjoy World of Warcraft, but it doesn't run my life. People throw the word "addicted" around way too much.

[Dezerte]

Yeah, but most of the other things you can use them constructively in life. You obviously know sports stars can earn millions of dollars, and it gives you exercise that it is scientifically proven to be extremely beneficial. Video games don't give you that.

For the most part a sports obsession leads to better things than a video game obsession.

Sports obsession- great fitness, if good enough great money, respect

Video Games obsession - bad fitness, not much money is really possible even though it is changing, bad rep from society and you can become increasingly isolated from reality.

It's also scientifically proven that gaming improves your body as well, just in other ways. Examples are hand-eye coordination, fine motor and spatial skills, logic and problem solving. You could say that video games is exercise for your brain. Not to mention, it's possible to earn money from playing games just like other sports.

Then there's the social aspect of online gaming, I dare say that's one of the biggest positives about the internet. It's so easy to find friends. Also there's nothing wrong with spending more time alone or socializing on the internet; it's a common missconception that these people are anti-social while they are in fact just being introvert (introverts don't crave as much socialization).

And finally, bad health? Gamers are actually more fit than the average person. The whole "fat nerd living in his mothers basement at the age of 34" is just wrong, probally invented by the more extrovert people.

[Poppincaps]

And finally, bad health? Gamers are actually more fit than the average person. The whole "fat nerd living in his mothers basement at the age of 34" is just wrong, probally invented by the more extrovert people.

I agree with everything else you said, but... source? I know that the fat, mommas boy, living in the basement is just a stereotype, but you can't just make a statement like that without proof.

[Dezerte]

I agree with everything else you said, but... source? I know that the fat, mommas boy, living in the basement is just a stereotype, but you can't just make a statement like that without proof.

http://www.livescience.com/2907-vide...fit-older.html
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/200...05502308.shtml
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7621412.stm

[dennisdkramer]

2. The competition. Humans are inherently competitive, and we love, love to win. At all costs. I feel as if the thrill of winning especially against other humans(prevalent in PvP, arena) can lead to addiction. Also, maybe even more so, if a player is on a losing streak, they will continue to play, play, and play to reach victory.

Someone posted a video addressing motivation around here somewhere, but I dont have the link. Here is my take on #2, if you change the keyword to mastery instead of competition.

I have 8 max level, at least moderately geared characters in world of warcraft. Right now, I log on to play my feral druid in pvp only. The first month or so I played him I was learning, getting some gear, etc... This past second month or so I've been perfecting my play in random BGs, the occasional RBG, and by queueing with random people each week for 2s. I'm nearing the personal skill cap (still making mistakes, but who doesn't) and the next level is skill in coordination with a good teammate.

The point is that I've gotten about 2 months of play out of learning, and then mastering one spec of one class in pvp, and I could probably get another month or even two out of mastery before I even GET to competition.

This doesn't apply to all players.. I wish it did; there would be a lot less bad players out there if they took the time to master their class. I know people who have been playing for a long time who still have what I would say is a childlike skill level at even the most rudimentary elements of gameplay (for example a standstill dps rotation).

[Veyne]

I play games for entertainment when I have nothing else to do. Just like how most people watch TV for entertainment when they have nothing else to do. OR a small handful of people left who read books when they have nothing else to do.

[Jon]