There is a very simple way of removing this problem.

Game;s makers should build time caps into their games. Limit the amount of time a person can gain rewards while on-line. Let them play...just stop them from gaining XP/rep/gold etc after a given amount of time. That will put an end to it immediatley. Reduce the grindfests and make people play smart/hard instead of just long.

In the process they will also stop people lvling too quickly and clearning content too quickly.

The only hard part is finding the right limit to place the cap at.

I think so too, there was one who internally exploded because he refused to go to the toilet! and there was one who played so much that he kept himself up by drinking redbull, over dosed and got a heart attack from the sugar rushes.

Games are fun and should be played but it is the players responsibility to know when to stop!

senataur:
There is a very simple way of removing this problem.

Game;s makers should build time caps into their games. Limit the amount of time a person can gain rewards while on-line. Let them play...just stop them from gaining XP/rep/gold etc after a given amount of time. That will put an end to it immediatley. Reduce the grindfests and make people play smart/hard instead of just long.

In the process they will also stop people lvling too quickly and clearning content too quickly.

The only hard part is finding the right limit to place the cap at.

They do that in China with some games.

Yes, and god knows the best way we could handle our problems is to emulate the Chinese.

I'm not even certain where the assumption that this is a "problem" comes from in the first place.

Why i hate WoW, and stupid kids/parents. :)

GothmogII:
Lightweight. Pfft. I mean 24hours? *rolls eyes*

Hahaha no kidding! 24 hours and he collapsed? I think he had been up longer, been on some kind of drugs, or was just a total goober and didn't eat/drink anything during that time.

senataur:
There is a very simple way of removing this problem.

Game makers should build time caps into their games.

Wouldn't it suck to be playing for 12 hours (reaching a cap), then your friend logs in and wants to play with you for a few more hours? That would piss me off. If I'm paying for the game, I should be able to play it as much as I want.

Lord Harrab:
wasn't there a Korean guy who actuality died after doing something like this a while back? I think he played non-stop for a week.

I heard of a girl who died after playing too much and they had an ingame funeral...in a PvP zone!

watch this, it'll make you laugh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHJVolaC8pw

Oh. Wow. I definetly thought this headline was Teen collapses after too much Licking. Anyways, I would say that the fact that he suffered what appeared to be seizures leads me to question whether this was a simple case of exhaustion, or a pre-existing condition. I will admit that I feel sorry for him, but if it is a simple case of exhaustion I would be forced to blame the kid for not knowing when to just let go of the keyboard and go to sleep.

From Sweden here.

That article don't tell the whole truth.
The kid only had a pizza to eat for about two days and, the genious part, about 7 Redbulls.

Also, gotta say.. that's some really shitty parenting even if he's 15.
Of course the game is addictive, but going ranting about in the newspaper gotta be plain stupid..

Bluntknife:

Lord Harrab:
wasn't there a Korean guy who actuality died after doing something like this a while back? I think he played non-stop for a week.

I heard of a girl who died after playing too much and they had an ingame funeral...in a PvP zone!

watch this, it'll make you laugh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHJVolaC8pw

I don't think that was the reason, but, I'll look it up nonetheless. Second, good for a laugh? Seriously? -_-

For those who understand swedish, here's the article.
http://www.svd.se/nyheter/inrikes/artikel_2061415.svd

In 24hrs the kid slept 3 hours, ate twice and drank 7 Redbulls.
Like someone commented on a blogg. Swap "Redbull" for "Beer" and "playing" with "drinking". That's the kind of thing that happens numerous time every weekend in this country.

Guessing he might have played from launch, not just in the weekend as the articale suggests.

Stryknine:
For those who understand swedish, here's the article.
http://www.svd.se/nyheter/inrikes/artikel_2061415.svd

In 24hrs the kid slept 3 hours, ate twice and drank 7 Redbulls.
Like someone commented on a blogg. Swap "Redbull" for "Beer" and "playing" with "drinking". That's the kind of thing that happens numerous time every weekend in this country.

Guessing he might have played from launch, not just in the weekend as the articale suggests.

7 Red Bulls? I'm surprised he didn't have a heart attack! 0_o Also makes me wonder why the article wasn't called: Energy Drink overdose hospitalises teen! But then, I already know the reason... -_-'

Stryknine:
From Sweden here.

That article don't tell the whole truth.
The kid only had a pizza to eat for about two days and, the genious part, about 7 Redbulls.

Also, gotta say.. that's some really shitty parenting even if he's 15.
Of course the game is addictive, but going ranting about in the newspaper gotta be plain stupid..

7 Red Bulls isn't that big a deal over a day. Again, to speak from experience, I've done a similar thing at one point (it was 8 red bulls as well). Wasn't terribly good for me but you didn't see me collapsing in a fit of convulsions. The more important point is a pizza for 24 hours. But then, what were the parents meant to do? If they offered him food and he said he wasn't hungry/interested/that he was busy, they can't really tell him that he is hungry. I doubt both parents were home for the 24 hours this kid was, they had stuff to do I don't doubt. I generally assume that people do in fact eat when they're not in my presence and it's not entirely out of the question to expect the parents thought the same of their 15 year old kid.

Normally I'd be more than willing to blame the parents for screwing up their kid, but if a 15 year old can't tell whether he's hungry or not enough to go eat...I mean come on, he's 15! That's generally the time when teenagers are meant to be rebelling against their parents and getting all 'independent' and whatnot.

Me and My Brothers did at least a 30 hour Spree when Smash Brothers Melee came out, we did Eat though

Amnestic:

Stryknine:
From Sweden here.

That article don't tell the whole truth.
The kid only had a pizza to eat for about two days and, the genious part, about 7 Redbulls.

Also, gotta say.. that's some really shitty parenting even if he's 15.
Of course the game is addictive, but going ranting about in the newspaper gotta be plain stupid..

7 Red Bulls isn't that big a deal over a day. Again, to speak from experience, I've done a similar thing at one point (it was 8 red bulls as well). Wasn't terribly good for me but you didn't see me collapsing in a fit of convulsions. The more important point is a pizza for 24 hours. But then, what were the parents meant to do? If they offered him food and he said he wasn't hungry/interested/that he was busy, they can't really tell him that he is hungry. I doubt both parents were home for the 24 hours this kid was, they had stuff to do I don't doubt. I generally assume that people do in fact eat when they're not in my presence and it's not entirely out of the question to expect the parents thought the same of their 15 year old kid.

Normally I'd be more than willing to blame the parents for screwing up their kid, but if a 15 year old can't tell whether he's hungry or not enough to go eat...I mean come on, he's 15! That's generally the time when teenagers are meant to be rebelling against their parents and getting all 'independent' and whatnot.

Ah okay, sorry, I thought that was 7 red bulls in one sitting, my mistake ^^' As for the not feeling hungry bit, isn't that what happens when you game intensely? A short term impairment of the senses, you don't feel hungry, thirsty, have to use the bathroom etc. and only really notice it when you stop for whatever reason.

I used to get like that, till I'd played enough games that, I can get bored. Before, my fingers used to seize up on the keyboard, and I wouldn't notice because I was only using minimal key taps with my pointer, middle and ring fingers, that I didn't realise I couldn't move em' until I stopped hah. xD

GothmogII:

Amnestic:

Stryknine:
From Sweden here.

That article don't tell the whole truth.
The kid only had a pizza to eat for about two days and, the genious part, about 7 Redbulls.

Also, gotta say.. that's some really shitty parenting even if he's 15.
Of course the game is addictive, but going ranting about in the newspaper gotta be plain stupid..

7 Red Bulls isn't that big a deal over a day. Again, to speak from experience, I've done a similar thing at one point (it was 8 red bulls as well). Wasn't terribly good for me but you didn't see me collapsing in a fit of convulsions. The more important point is a pizza for 24 hours. But then, what were the parents meant to do? If they offered him food and he said he wasn't hungry/interested/that he was busy, they can't really tell him that he is hungry. I doubt both parents were home for the 24 hours this kid was, they had stuff to do I don't doubt. I generally assume that people do in fact eat when they're not in my presence and it's not entirely out of the question to expect the parents thought the same of their 15 year old kid.

Normally I'd be more than willing to blame the parents for screwing up their kid, but if a 15 year old can't tell whether he's hungry or not enough to go eat...I mean come on, he's 15! That's generally the time when teenagers are meant to be rebelling against their parents and getting all 'independent' and whatnot.

Ah okay, sorry, I thought that was 7 red bulls in one sitting, my mistake ^^' As for the not feeling hungry bit, isn't that what happens when you game intensely? A short term impairment of the senses, you don't feel hungry, thirsty, have to use the bathroom etc. and only really notice it when you stop for whatever reason.

I used to get like that, till I'd played enough games that, I can get bored. Before, my fingers used to seize up on the keyboard, and I wouldn't notice because I was only using minimal key taps with my pointer, middle and ring fingers, that I didn't realise I couldn't move em' until I stopped hah. xD

Even if you don't actually feel hunger pangs in your stomach, you can consciously acknowledge that X hours have passed since you last ate and therefore it'd be a good time to eat again and thus refill your body with food. I'd hope that at the age of 15 a kid could manage something like that. I wouldn't expect say...an 8 year old to have that much awareness, but this kid was in his mid-teens where you're meant to start being mature and all grown up and whatnot.

TheBadass:

Spinwhiz:
Good thing the father knew he was playing for that long and didn't MAKE HIM GO OUTSIDE AND DO SOMETHING. Thank God for good parenting.

Come on, the game is addictive. I mean, what could they have possibly done?

Stop him? Pfft, they were busy.

It can be addictive, sure. But that doesn't mean the parent should not notice he hasn't seen his son in 12 hours. No lunch or dinner? Come on now. He should have gotten his ass up the stairs and AT LEAST asked what was going on. Sometimes kids need a break...even if that means dragging them from their computer to make them eat and just chill for a bit.

They think 24 hours is a big deal? Damn... good thing they don't know gamer stardarts.

Spinwhiz:

TheBadass:

Spinwhiz:
Good thing the father knew he was playing for that long and didn't MAKE HIM GO OUTSIDE AND DO SOMETHING. Thank God for good parenting.

Come on, the game is addictive. I mean, what could they have possibly done?

Stop him? Pfft, they were busy.

It can be addictive, sure. But that doesn't mean the parent should not notice he hasn't seen his son in 12 hours. No lunch or dinner? Come on now. He should have gotten his ass up the stairs and AT LEAST asked what was going on. Sometimes kids need a break...even if that means dragging them from their computer to make them eat and just chill for a bit.

I was being sarcastic dude, no worries.

ummm damn?

Maybe he was just doing a dramatisation of the WoW servers on WotLK first day or so.

damn that kid has to go to the gym or something ... one hour? in the good old days you were able to stay awake for 3 days straight without water and food and still could play through super mario bros

TheBadass:

Spinwhiz:

TheBadass:

Spinwhiz:
Good thing the father knew he was playing for that long and didn't MAKE HIM GO OUTSIDE AND DO SOMETHING. Thank God for good parenting.

Come on, the game is addictive. I mean, what could they have possibly done?

Stop him? Pfft, they were busy.

It can be addictive, sure. But that doesn't mean the parent should not notice he hasn't seen his son in 12 hours. No lunch or dinner? Come on now. He should have gotten his ass up the stairs and AT LEAST asked what was going on. Sometimes kids need a break...even if that means dragging them from their computer to make them eat and just chill for a bit.

I was being sarcastic dude, no worries.

Oh, I know...I was agreeing with you...in a round-about sort of way. Sorry it didn't come across that way. I'll have to edit it later :)

Baby Tea:

galletea:

Spinwhiz:
Good thing the father knew he was playing for that long and didn't MAKE HIM GO OUTSIDE AND DO SOMETHING. Thank God for good parenting.

Well said.

Indeed.

Too bad parenting is more like a democracy now, instead of the dictatorship it should be. When MY dad said 'Go outside!', the only choice I had was to either go outside, or go outside with his foot up my ass.

Like wise here, either go outside or the tv would be unplugged till I went outside.

SmugFrog:

senataur:
There is a very simple way of removing this problem.

Game makers should build time caps into their games.

Wouldn't it suck to be playing for 12 hours (reaching a cap), then your friend logs in and wants to play with you for a few more hours? That would piss me off. If I'm paying for the game, I should be able to play it as much as I want.

I didnt say cap the game. I said cap the achievment within the game. In the case of WOW, what keeps people playing so long is the desire to reach certain objectives within the game and the competing with other players to hit those objectives. That added to the fact that the achieving those objectives basically comes down to how much time you invest in the game. Let them play, just stop the leveling/gold/rep from stacking up. That way the only reason to play will be enjoyment of the game, not continuing the grindfest.

Malygris:
"too long a stretch of concentrated game playing."

That is an actual medical term too!

This another reason I refuse to play WoW. Its like drinking after shave to get drunk, sure it works but its just not good for you.

sirdanrhodes:
24 hours, try a 2 day guitar hero marathon!

Man, you'd cramp something shocking..

Did he drop any good loot?

On one hand I feel sorry for someone who's addicted, however small 24 hours might be compared to others. On the other hand it's idiots like these who give all gamers a bad name.

This Game has caused nothing but trouble for my Family. My Son plays the Game like nothing else matters. Tearing him away is not as easy as you may think (even setting his alarm sneaking out of bed @ 3am to play which results in him falling asleep in class). We have had to compromise of the past few years by giving him a little time to play (set time limits with internet filter Ez Internet Timer http://www.internettimer.net . However this just became a daily fight to tear him away.... Parents should do their job and get their kids told, get off the game!

curlycrouton:
See? This is what WoW does to people!

One day, when I have my way, it'll be banned..

One day...

I wasn't going to raargh but: RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!

...I apologise for this, all things can be taken over-board. You can pretty much die from anyhting it just depends on how stupid you are.