Author Topic: Are Games Addictive?  (Read 5125 times)

Alan W

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Are Games Addictive?
« on: February 15, 2007, 11:33:44 AM »
Quite a lot of the favourable comments about games on this site have used the word "addictive". Even in the handful of messages so far sent to this forum, the word crops up a few times, and bobbi referred to people being "seriously hooked" on Chihuahua. Of course I love to read such praise, and a lot of game companies use the word "addictive" in their advertising.

But some people have claimed that computer games can become addictive in a literal sense - that they exploit brain chemistry to create compulsive behaviour, just like drugs or gambling can. What do you think?

A lot of the research on "video game addiction" seems to focus on complex role playing games, rather than puzzle-style games, but I suppose a puzzle game could become a compulsion too, if you feel compelled to play game after game, hoping to achieve a higher score.
Alan Walker
Creator of Lexigame websites

abra

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Re: Are Games Addictive?
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2007, 11:55:00 AM »
OK - this is the 3rd time i've attempted to post, it keeps telling me i've logged out for taking too long......the bottom line is...yes, I suppose it's "addictive" but...it's a healthy addiction and I'm happy to be here!

biggerbirdbrain

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Re: Are Games Addictive?
« Reply #2 on: February 15, 2007, 01:29:35 PM »
Besides the fun of seeing how well everyone can score on a particular day (just like sports--it's not always predictable), it's also very relaxing, getting out of your own daily routine or hectic pace as the case may be. You've also made it even more fun by creating a community where ideas and personalities start emerging.
Happy Valentine's everyone!
B-B-B    :)
 

bobbi

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Re: Are Games Addictive?
« Reply #3 on: February 17, 2007, 09:20:34 PM »
...or do some of us merely have addictive / addicted personalities?

Among other things; I've been "hooked" on:

Lemon syrup - a sugary combination of fresh lemon juice, sugar and tartaric acid - for bite, flavour and also preservation. As a teenager, my mum averred that I displayed negative behaviours / withdrawal symptoms if there was a hiatus in supply of this hi-carb home brew.

Cigarettes. Took about 6 months to acquire the habit, and 20+ years before I could break it. Thank goodness it's over!

The computer game Civilization (version 1 back in the early 90s) - my family including two toddlers had to feed themselves for a week while I solved the puzzle.

Ditto SimCity version 1 a year later.

Early 2000s, discovered a magazine put out by Dell publishers called Logic Puzzles - highly addictive.

2006 - Sudoku. Again it took a couple of months to get over the overwhelming compulsion to solve every puzzle I encountered. I am now so over Sudoku.

2007 - Nonograms. Been at them for about a month. Still fascinated by the (often symmetrical) arithmetic patterns.

Target word (aka Chihuahua 9 letter anagram puzzles.)  My Grandmother first introduced me to these when I was about 5 or 6 in the early 60s. I was given the classified section of the daily morning newspaper (my writing space was the white strip at the bottom of the page,) and a blunt pencil. Plus the day's list of nine letters including the "big" letter that had to appear in every word.

Although the rules stated a minimum word length of 4 letters, I was allowed to include everything (even 'I' when this was the "big" letter.) After a period of intense concentration, we would compare lists. Every word we shared was disallowed (much like Boggle) and of course because Gran had to adhere to the four letter minimum and I did not, I generally had a pleasing list to show after our comparison. 

45 odd years later, is this a compulsion? I visit three different websites daily and attempt their anagram puzzles, the most recent addition being Chihuahua. This is the only compulsion I seem unable to relinquish.

But this has to stop shortly. I've just indentured myself to academia for the next 3 years - going back to Uni as a mature student to train as an Occupational Therapist.

I may need to restrict my visit to Chihuahua to once or twice a week in future.

 Might this mid-life streak of insanity be connected to my obsessive, compulsive nature? Dunno, but my first day back on campus as a student after 25 years was awesome! :-)) For some unknown reason, my husband thinks I'm quite normal, and is happily supporting my decision to retrain by embarking on a 3 year degree.

Sorry about the stream of consciousness ramble - I'm a fast and verbose typer.



chanski

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Re: Are Games Addictive?
« Reply #4 on: February 19, 2007, 10:30:54 AM »
Hello my name is chanski and I'm a chihuahua addict. I can stop anytime I like.    But I don't want to.  :P