World of Warcraft, otherwise known as "WOW", is a MMO (massive multiplayer online) video game. This game is the home to over 12 million people worldwide. World of Warcraft is a game where you choose a certain character, level this character to a certain level, and compete against other people to have the best character of your choosing. Not only does World of Warcraft involve you competing against other people, it allows you to create guilds, or social groups online to try and become one of the top guilds on the server. In order to play this game, you must pay not only for the game but also for all the expansions and the $15 monthly payments.
The past few discussions in class mentioned how technology limited our freedom and how we are just too blind sometimes to realize it. World of Warcraft I believe is a perfect example of this. Video games are one of technologies greatest discoveries and greatest downfalls. Video games are a source of entertainment that can be used properly on a daily basis to release stress, socialize with friends, and to simply have fun.
The downside to video games is that they are very addictive, much like a drug; the more often and longer you play video games, the more addicting and harder to quit they are. I singled out World of Warcraft for the fact that it just so happens to be one of the biggest multiplayer games online as well as one of the most known throughout gamers and non gamers. World of Warcraft is a mythical world within this one, allowing us humans to be whatever we want to be and because we belong to "the tribe", humans always want to be on top, and to be on top in "WOW" requires you to play more than your opponent(s). This playing more could consist of hours - months of lost time that a gamer in "WOW" will never be able to recount for or be proud of. To get and stay on top of everyone else starts making this game transform from a form of entertainment into a job, something that at times, only a bathroom or food break will relieve you from. For some gamers, their life is World of Warcraft and their everyday "real-life" is just the dream. This ruins school work, sleeping patterns, outdoor activities, friendships, relationships, and etc. World of Warcraft has even been called the "Warcraft Widow Maker" in an article known as "The Times". So is playing this game really an act of freedom during your "free-time", or is every gamer participating in this just a bunch of mindless zombies giving their lives to the creators of World of Warcraft? Addictive, ruining relationships, wasting lives, loss of real/dream world: sounds very similar to that of a drug.
Here is the article the talks about the "Warcraft Widow"
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/relationships/article5054851.ece
4 comments:
An addictive personality is an addictive personality is an addictive personality. While it may be easier to put blame on the item at hand, video game addiction is a result of someone attempting to retrieve the same high they normally experience from a video game over and over and over. Facebook micro-games function much the same way. But, so does gambling addictions - pretty much all behavioral addictions fall under this. Video Games themselves did not bring these addictions with their existence; it is people with addictive personalities finding a new way to get a high.
I recall a Twilight Zone episode, "Time Enough at Last", where the main character is ridiculed for being a literature buff. Throughout the episode he is derided for dedicating so much time to books, to the point where his relationship with his wife and professional relationships suffer for it. He seems very similar to the case study presented here, and I imagine a few decades ago you'd find people criticizing Book Readers in a similar way.
I think for some young teens, a social life doesn't exist and to finally feel "on top" or connected with a lot of people can bring them into this gaming addiction. A drug has such a broad meaning these days and the "video game drug" is becoming worse. We hear more and more cases of people dying from sitting in one spot for too long, or people stealing cars and shooting police officers because they have played too much Grand Theft Auto and have no distinction of what is real or not.
Finally, I agree that addictive personalities are finding a way to get a new high, but I think every human being has the potential to become addictive to something. I personally love playing video games and if I had XBOX Live I would be played 5 hours a day without hesitation. The fact that I didn't want to pay for it prevented me from getting that "high".
I agree some people do become slightly addicted to this fake world, and their actual social interaction suffers because of it.
World of Warcraft has become an integral part of some peoples lives. There are probably some people who play for hours and never even see sunlight in a day. I understand that some people like to play it to relieve stress or get away from reality, but lets be serious, there is no reason to sit and stare at a computer screen for hours on end. This, in my opinion, is a bad use of todays technology.
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