Candadian Runway Found Dead After Xbox Confiscation
Article by TimesOnline
A teenage boy who ran away from home last month after his Xbox was confiscated has been found dead in Canada.
Brandon Crisp, 15, went missing on October 14 after his father forbade him from playing his video game console after becoming concerned about the teenager’s obsession with the online game Call of Duty 4.
Steve Crisp said he removed the Xbox 360 after his son’s behaviour began to change. He said Brandon’s grades were slipping, he had started skipping school and stealing money.
Brandon fled his home on his bicycle and was last seen in a popular hiking and cycling path near Barrie, Ontario, north of Toronto.
A local newspaper and Xbox creators Microsoft offered a $C50,000 reward (27,000pounds) and 1600 volunteers searched the local area, but all they found was his abandoned bicycle with a flat tyre.
Brandon’s body was found by hunters in a cornfield on Wednesday.
In an interview with Canada’s Globe and Mail, Mr Crisp said he had not known how important the gaming system was to his son or how he would react when it was taken away.
He warned other parents to be wary of how obsessive children can get with video games. Experts commented that gamers may form bonds with fellow online players, and Brandon’s parents said they were concerned he may have been lured away.
“This had become his identity, and I didn’t realize how in-depth this was until I took his Xbox away,” Mr Crisp told the Globe and Mail. “That’s like cutting his legs off.”
“This is such an issue that hits every parent out there, with video games that are starting to control our kids’ lives,” he said.
“I just took away his identity, so I can understand why he got so mad and took off. Before, I couldn’t understand why he was taking off for taking his game away.”
Read the article on TimesOnline.co.uk
Commentary
It is much easier to take the xbox out of the house than it is to take it out of your son’s heart. It is not uncommon for gamers to become violent when their game systems are taken away but this may be the first. The key is to help your gamer say “no” himself if at all possible.
What do you think?
cgames 05 - Gamer Stories from WowDetox.com
In this episode Jessi Johnson from WowDetox.com shares about World of Warcraft addiction. This sobering episode shows just how dangerous World of Warcraft is. If you don’t believe that WoW addiction is real just listen. It will change your mind.
5 Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Kids Do
The more I talk with parents about gaming the more I think they are to blame for a part of the addiction problem.
Read the rest of this entry »
EverQuest GNP as Large as Most Countries
Here is an interesting tidbit from our growing bag of research. I wonder what the GDP of Azeroth is. GNP stands for Gross National Product and is a measure of the wealth and productivity of a nation.
“In March 1999, a small number of Californians discovered a new world called Norrath, populated by an exotic but industrious people. About 12,000 people call this place their permanent home, although some 60,000 are present there at any given time. The nominal hourly wage is about USD 3.42 per hour, and the labors of the people produce a GNP per capita somewhere between that of Russia and Bulgaria. A unit of Norrath’s currency is traded on exchange markets at USD 0.0107, higher than the Yen and the Lira. The economy is characterized by extreme inequality, yet life there is quite attractive to many.
The population is growing rapidly, swollen each each day by hundreds of emigres from various places around the globe, but especially the United States. Perhaps the most interesting thing about the new world is its location. Norrath is a virtual world that exists entirely on 40 computers in San Diego. Unlike many internet ventures, virtual worlds are making money — with annual revenues expected to top USD 1.5 billion by 2004 — and if network effects are as powerful here as they have been with other internet innovations, virtual worlds may soon become the primary venue for all online activity.”
Edward Castronova. “Virtual Worlds: A First-Hand Account of Market and Society on the Cyberian Frontier” December 2001. CESifo Working Paper Series No. 618. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=294828
I doubt this is still true since many EQ players have moved over to WoW but it is still interesting.
Labeling
Dr. Dave Greenfield is one expert I came across while researching gaming. He maintains a website, Virtual-Addiction, which looks specifically at Internet Addiction. I found an interview he did with Today where I think he hit it right on the head.
“The bottom line is it doesn’t really matter what it’s labeled, because the reality is that people have problems and many times these problems aren’t labeled or classified, but we in our offices see these problems every day.”
I’ve said this before and I’m just going to say it again: It is irrelevant whether we call it digital dependence, video game addiction, or bug-eye syndrome. Many people have problems with digital games that need to be addressed. Period.
On another note: Thomas just finished speaking at the CHEACT book fair where he addressed home schoolers on the dangers created by digital gaming. You can view last year’s workshop by clicking the “video” tab above.
Chicken v. Egg?
Which came first the chicken or the egg? I think this question is easily answered since a chicken could have survived without an egg, while an egg would require incubation (aka: a chicken) to survive. Whatever. No; I am not going to talk about the inherent lameness of video games involving chickens in this posting. Go ahead; exhale a grand sigh of relief.
Instead, I am going to talk about what is often (very academically) termed a “chicken and egg dilemma:” Are compulsive, addiction-prone people just drawn to video games or do the video games themselves actually promote addiction?
To answer this question, we’re going to trek down a road often fraught with boredom; we’re going to look at research. But, if you’re willing to stick with it and at least read the major parts of this post, you just might even get some great information and maybe even a fresh perspective. What do you have to loose? Two minutes?
Read the rest of this entry »
MMO: A Minor’s Massive Obsession
Originally written as a composition assignment, 8 April 2008.
Cyberspace must be running in its own time zone. What starts as “just a few more minutes to finish this level” soon becomes an hour. When Olivia and Kurt Bruner kept hearing this from their son while he was playing games, they set out to discover the problem. They concluded that video games are like “the digital drug” (Bruner and Bruner xxi).
Massive Multiplayer Online (MMO) games are especially similar to drugs; not in their chemical makeup, but in the way they affect the young brain. MMO may as well stand for a Minor’s Massive Obsession because of the addiction it can become for many minors who find virtual reality more fulfilling than modern reality. In a way gaming also resembles alcohol. It isn’t evil, and actually can be beneficial, but can easily be overdone.
Contents
- Definitions:
- Addictive or Not Addictive… That is the Question
- A Nasty Acronym with a Nasty Side
- Pixels… or People?
- Tossing Schoolwork for the Game?
- Why Work Out when I can be a Digital Athlete in Seconds?
- Am I Ruining Reality for Virtual Reality?
- The Digital Drug?
- Fast Food Fulfillment
- Risky Playtime
The Problem of Addiction:
Why Games are Addictive:
Just Pray No!
This weekend (March 29-30) is the 18th “Just Pray No” world wide weekend of prayer and fasting.
Just Pray NO! Ltd. mainly focuses on drug and alcohol addiction, but I think that praying for those held captive by addiction to video games is also appropriate.
For Christians specifically, it is important not only to avoid addiction, but also to avoid idolatry. Video games can very easily turn into idolatry if we place them about God. No one else can tell you if gaming has become an idol, because it is a matter of the heart, but they can help you realize it for yourself. Be honest with yourself and answer some of these questions. What do you think?
- Have you played games and not done your (school)work?
- Do you spend more time in the digital world or spending quality time with your family?
- How about prayer? Do you spend more time praying or thinking about gaming?
As Christians, we are supposed to pray continually. (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Are you praying while playing games? - If you could play games or read your Bible which you you most likely do? What do you spend the most time doing?
- When you talk to friends, do you talk more about God and his word or about digital games?
- Since we as Christians are not to use our freedom such that it causes others to stumble, (1 Corinthians 8:9) we also needs to ask: have your gaming habits ever influenced anyone else to spend too much gaming?
For those who find themselves making an idol out of games and for their families, there is a way out. We have said that there really is no one size fits all solution, which is true, but there is a one size fits all beginning. That beginning is prayer. Everyone who wishes to conquer any addiction needs to start by going their knees. (and then continue praying)
I could conclude with some profound statement, but I really think God said it best:
“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”
Amen? Now please join us in prayer.
Second Skin - A Documentary About MMORPG Players
An interesting documentary is coming out soon about Massively Multilayer Online Role Playing Games. MMORPGs are some of the most addictive video games available. The film follows the lives of several gamers and promises to reveal the hidden virtual worlds most people know nothing about.
Trailer:
It looks interesting. Once it comes out expect a full review here on the blog. For more info visit SecondSkinfilm.com
