Panorama Doc - 'Addicted to Games'

koHd

Bonavox wrote: »

If you're referring to me being over technical with the SC thing, look at the bigger picture. He's making out that hundreds of gamers arrive at a shop in the middle of the night to buy some stupid game. If he actually justified his visit by at least saying it was a game in development for years, and the sequel to a blockbuster entertainment title, I might be a little more forgiving.

I think you're missing the point. Those kind of details are not important. Non gamers just think the fact people are standing that long in such a long line for a game (or anything that isn't a necessity or in short supply) a bit crazy.

Trying to justify it with details of how long the game is in development just makes you sound crazier, to them.

noodler

I certainly was more obsessed with certain games as a kid.

I could play RPGs for hours, 100%them etc but I mean they end so thats the end of that.

Online? I guess Command and Conquer RA2 on the PC is the game which took the most of my time as a kid.

These kids just need more hobbies, part-time jobs etc - variation is the key here in my opinion. I do note a certain letargicness in kids these days that didn't exist to the same extent for my generation.

If I was a parent right now - I seriously doubt I'd let the kid have a TV in his/her room.

Bonavox

koHd wrote: »

I think you're missing the point. Those kind of details are not important. Non gamers just think the fact people are standing that long in such a long line for a game (or anything that isn't a necessity or in short supply) a bit crazy.

Trying to justify it with details of how long the game is in development just makes you sound crazier, to them.

And why do you think that? People are under the influence that gamers wildly stand in line for some stupid game because they're addicted. These documentaries make no effort to look at both sides of the fence. And in music, films etc. development time is a big factor to consider. Should games be any different?

koHd

noodler wrote: »

I certainly was more obsessed with certain games as a kid.

I could play RPGs for hours, 100%them etc but I mean they end so thats the end of that.

Online? I guess Command and Conquer RA2 on the PC is the game which took the most of my time as a kid.

These kids just need more hobbies, part-time jobs etc - variation is the key here in my opinion. I do note a certain letargicness in kids these days that didn't exist to the same extent for my generation.

If I was a parent right now - I seriously doubt I'd let the kid have a TV in his/her room.

I had a tele in my room from the age of 8. I remember staying up later than usual one night playing Batman on the NES with the sound turned off thinking I was great. But we had those doors with the clear glass at the top. Door was launched open and I got an earfull within twenty minutes.

I didn't try it again for a few years.

When I did do it again the same result came.

So its down to the parents to be parents.

I won't stop my kids having fun in their room during normal hours. But like my parents, I'll monitor it.

koHd

Bonavox wrote: »

And why do you think that? People are under the influence that gamers wildly stand in line for some stupid game because they're addicted. These documentaries make no effort to look at both sides of the fence. And in music, films etc. development time is a big factor to consider. Should games be any different?

The people that think you're crazy for standing in line late at night for a long time for a game, will also think the same about a movie or music.

indough

and theyd be right then, too. not being able to wait till the morning to play a game/read a book/watch a movie is slightly childish behaviour. not an automatic sign of addiction but still not something to be proud of. i suppose just popping down to get it isnt quite as bad but actually queing up for a significant length of time is a bit sad really

Branoic wrote: »

Technically, there's no such thing as a "computer games console".

"Computer" implies a PC. The xbox and ps3 etc are just "games consoles".

dont know what has led you to believe this. a console is still technically a computer so there was really nothing wrong with the original statement

Sisko

Saw it and thought it was terrible, highly disapointed by it. Packed with ignorance as usual.

I'm sick of non gamers talking about these things. Should be a guy who actually understands and plays games doing these documentaries. You don't get someone whos never watched a film to do a documentary on the violence in movies.

Theres so much ignorance out there with regards to gaming from people who don't play.

To me its amazing to think about it. We live in odd times, the fact of the matter is. Gaming is here to stay. Not only that but its only a matter of time before its viewed the same way as cinema, tv books and sports as entertainment.... by everyone. This is an inevitability.

But for the time being we still have tons of people who refuse to acknowledge to even think about gaming as something like that and instead STILL view them ignorantly as:

Shallow, mindless waste of time.

Childish and only for kids.

So violent it will turn people into killers

A menace


Theres still ignorant stigmas attached to gaming and as a result all these non gamers wont even try gaming, they wont go near it. Not even curious.

Here we have a new form of entertainment that's beginning to eclipse cinema and so many still wont go near it out of ignorance.

"Oh I'm 40, way to old for these 'video games'.."

Oh yeah your 40, you've another half a life time a head of you, so your going to never even try this revolutionary form of entertainment and interactivity because you have ignorant opinions on it? Yeah thats mature. Meanwhile theres more progressive people of all ages trying out this form of entertainment to decide for themselves instead what idiotic tv programs like this one decide for them.

At the end this eejit concludes "I will definitely keep a closer eye on my boy as he plays these (evil) video games (that I don't understand)".

Keep a closer eye on him? You've just gone around the world making a documentary on videos games and yet it STILL doesn't occur to you to .. I dunno. JOIN HIM , PLAY WITH YOUR SON?????????? That way keeping an eye on him and actually LEARNING SOMETHING.

Again its like a journalist making a documentary on violent movies who's never watched a movie. You think , being a proper journalist and all, he's at least WATCH ONE MOVIE for the sake of making a more informed documentary?

'Nooooooooooo they're for kids, I don't need to try them to judge them'


Idiot.

I look forward to the day a proper documanrty on gaming comes out designed to inform the ignorant on what it is they're actually missing out on.

tonydude

indough wrote: »

and theyd be right then, too. not being able to wait till the morning to play a game/read a book/watch a movie is slightly childish behaviour. not an automatic sign of addiction but still not something to be proud of. i suppose just popping down to get it isnt quite as bad but actually queing up for a significant length of time is a bit sad really

When last years cod mw2 came out, the only time i could collect my preordered copy was by collecting at the midnight launch. I was in a small queue for 5 minutes but i was embarassed to be there and would never actually line up for a game like that again.

In relation to this doc, i forgot to watch it but my brother sky +'d it and did so just to throw gaming addiction in my face, The doc was so bias and probably didnt relate to any normal gamer

Mr E

I watched this a few days ago. The main thing that stood out for me was how utterly bored and uninterested the reporter seemed to be.

Mark Hamill

I watched some of the documentary and thought that addiction had fairly obvious origins.
In terms of South Korea, you have a society where cheap online gaming is available everywhere, so cheap that it has ousted going to a pub/club as young peoples weekend activity of choice. Despite the implications of the documentary, this isn't that much of an issue for most young people in South Korea, the ones that extreme reactions or actions (like the couple whose baby starved) where reported as having low intelligence (in the documentary) and the people interviewed admitted to being depressed and with nothing else to do.

As for the English kids? They just had **** parents. When I was a kid, I would have rather stayed at home and gone to school, but if I had a tantrum I would have got a thick ear for my troubles. Parents hsould know what their kids are up to, pure and simple. A parent not knowing that their kid is playing games 16 hours a day is no better than a parent not knowing where their kids are.

Video games are addictive, and more and more video games are using known addiction psychology in order to make their games more addictive, but the choices and personality of the person playing the game are still by far the biggest decider in whether or not they actually get addicted. Its up to people to stand up and take responsibility for their lives (or their kids lives) and quite looking for something else to blame (that goes for any addiction too).

koHd

Mark Hamill wrote: »

Video games are addictive, and more and more video games are using known addiction psychology in order to make their games more addictive, but the choices and personality of the person playing the game are still by far the biggest decider in whether or not they actually get addicted. Its up to people to stand up and take responsibility for their lives (or their kids lives) and quite looking for something else to blame (that goes for any addiction too).

This last bit is the thing I was talking about. Certain games are made to get you addicted. They'll never admit this though.

But until there is proper research done it can't be monitored and managed properly by the industry.

UberPrinny_Baal

I didn't click on the Youtube links because uninformed anti-game rants generally make my blood boil.

A couple of points about gaming I generally rattle off in these kinds of conversations:

- Gaming doesn't alter your physical body (like booze), or make you dependant on a foreign substance (like cigarettes); so I don't believe you can be physically addicted to gaming. I think a massive gaming addiction that is detrimental to your life is probably more similar to the weirder addictions, like shopoholics (i.e. it's just YOU).

- Gaming is a valid hobby. You spend some spare cash and time on it, and have fun. If anyone comes along to the monthly Dublin Street Fighter tournaments, they run at €15 for a whole day of game playing/tournament fun. What's that, like three pints? Half a round in the pub? You meet and socialise with people who have similar interests, just like any hobby.

I think games are a weirdly easy target for the "scare media", and they tend to become the focus of a story even if their involvement was peripheral or non-existent.

We've all seen the news stories.

My favourite paraphrasing of this comes from a Penny Arcade strip:

"12 year old kills younger brother in video game re-enactment?" How about "Crappy parents raise stupid kids."

Sabre0001

Dear Panorama

Video games were not responsible for some idiot trying to open my front door this morning (5 in the morning) for 15 minutes before being led away by the Guards despite ample warning...All the nerds are locked indoors somewhere socialising with friends / randomers, griefing strangers, questing or just enjoying themselves.

Instead, it was that other substance that people should be partaking in according to your documentary.

Kind Regards,
A very awake...but tired...me

Crasp

For me it's like anything, I obsess over it for days, weeks, playing for 2/3 of the day only stopping to eat and toilet myself. Then I just get bored of it and move on!

I'm not a fan of gaming really, I believe one should spend their lives doing more productive things. I don't even own a console. I own Halo for PC, F1 97 and F1 2010... that's it!

Optimalprimerib

I was really disappointed in this. I was hoping that they would show what methods developers use to make the games addictive, but instead it looked at the impact on the lives of addicts. Which has been done to death.

I accepted that it would be unbalanced, but any watchdog show about games normally get heavy criticism from the gaming public for not having the proper research or respect for the industry. This was no different.
I would love if one of these documentarys was made for gamers who already understand the industry instead of the usual hand holding of the already fearful and ignorant.

Loved the final line of the cod player. Dont play games. If you want to play, call a friend and go out and get smashed instead.