Answer Addiction

Tag: Fortnite addiction

  • Prince Harry: Fortnite Is Addictive & Irresponsible

    Prince Harry: Fortnite Is Addictive & Irresponsible

    The royal soon-to-be parent feels the video game has an alarmingly strong grip on kids these days… and perhaps should be banned.

    Prince Harry spoke out against Fortnite, one of the most popular video games among kids today, during a talk with mental health experts in London. He even floated the idea that the game itself should be banned.

    “That game shouldn’t be allowed. Where is the benefit of having it in your household?” he pondered. “It’s created to addict, an addiction to keep you in front of a computer for as long as possible. It’s so irresponsible.”

    He added that not taking immediate action would be a mistake.

    “It’s like waiting for the damage to be done and kids turning up on your doorsteps and families being broken down,” Prince Harry said.

    He feels sympathy for the parents dealing with something they might not understand.

    “Parents have got their hands up – they don’t know what to do about it,” he remarked. “It’s like waiting for the damage to be done.”

    Fortnite, developed by North Carolina-based company Epic Games, boasts 45 million players worldwide. Players battle each other on a large map, battle-royale style.

    The game itself is free but players can purchase costumes and dances for their characters, reportedly earning Epic more than $300 million a month.

    Prince Harry’s concern doesn’t grow from nothing. Some doctors are reportedly seeing a link between excessive gaming and the health of their young patients. Additionally, about 200 divorce cases in the UK from January to September of 2018 mentioned excessive gaming, including Fortnite, as a cause.

    Fans and some experts are not convinced. Andrew Reid, a Scottish university researcher, says that calling games like Fortnite “addictive” needlessly stigmatizes all players and that there are positive social aspects to going online. E-sports director Sujoy Roy says believes panicked parents should take responsibility instead of pointing fingers.

    “Fortnite isn’t the first hit game to have had a bad press and it won’t be the last. It’s really popular with younger gamers and, of course, parents should keep a close eye on what their kids are playing and doing online,” said Roy. “But, like many games, Fortnite is a really fun and sociable way to spend free time and, like everything, should be enjoyed responsibly.”

    Prince Harry’s criticisms didn’t stop at video gaming. He also blasted social media for being “more addictive than drugs and alcohol.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • "Fortnite" Addiction Is Becoming More Prominent For Kids, Teens

    "Fortnite" Addiction Is Becoming More Prominent For Kids, Teens

    One expert says games like Fortnite are similar to heroin “once you are hooked, it’s hard to get unhooked.” 

    Whether or not tech addiction exists is still up for debate, but parents around the country are saying that their kids and teens are no doubt addicted to the video game Fortnite, prompting some parents to seek professional help for their children. 

    “This game is like heroin,” Lorrine Marer, a British behavioral specialist who works with kids with game addiction, told Bloomberg. “Once you are hooked, it’s hard to get unhooked.” 

    One NPR listener from Florida called in saying that he understands how people get hooked on the games. The listener, who is in his 30s, is nationally-ranked in a similar video game, and said that the adrenaline hit he gets from playing could easily be addictive to kids and adults. 

    “A lot of these games — I mean, my worry is they get kids addicted through chemical reactions,” he said. “If you go through a 40-minute game with 100 people, and you’re one of the last five people, your heart is beating so fast, when you actually win, they crave that rush. And that’s what they’re going back for.

    Video games are part of life for many kids today, so having healthy boundaries is important, said Sarah Domoff, a clinical child psychologist and psychology professor at Central Michigan University who directs the Family Health Lab, a training clinic that promotes healthy media use in adolescents.

    “For a lot of these different mediums, we cannot completely avoid them,” Domoff said. “What’s really imperative is to set limits early on, help children learn how to regulate their use, but then really be involved, set guidelines around use. If problems appear to arise, prevent future issues by checking to see, is my child only playing video games to the exclusion of other activities?”

    Nir Eyal, an author and tech blogger who has written about producing habit-forming tech products, said that parents need to schedule time for games and introduce healthy limits for their children. 

    “I think a big mistake that parents make is having technology in kids’ rooms. They don’t need to have the technology in the room. Keep it outside in a more family-focused place,” Eyal said. “And then prevent distraction with the technology. Your iPhone today comes with a functionality called ‘Screen Time’ where you can set limits around how long kids have access to certain apps, so then it’s not you telling them to get off the device, it’s the phone.”

    If parents suspect their child is developing an unhealthy habit around tech, Eyal said that parents need to help them figure out why that’s happening. 

    “For some folks, there are underlying issues: a lack of autonomy, confidence, connectedness, and for those type of things we need to dig deeper to figure out what we’re really trying to escape with these devices,” Eyal said. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Fortnite Addiction Leads Sports Team To Institute Ban

    Fortnite Addiction Leads Sports Team To Institute Ban

    The self-instituted ban was put in place so the team could focus on bonding with teammates.

    The popular video game Fortnite has caused problems in some marriages and in academic settings—and now it’s being banned from some professional sports teams for the same reason. 

    TSN 1040 reports that members of the Vancouver Canucks, a Canadian ice hockey team, have taken matters into their own hands, with a self-instituted ban on the game while on the road.

    Team Captain Bo Horvat told the radio station, “Yeah, that’s definitely a no-go on the road. No more Fortnite. No more bringing video games on the road. It’s strictly team meals, team dinners and hanging out with the guys. So we put an end to that.”

    Horvat also added that there are better options for killing time when traveling, such as bonding with teammates.

    “In my opinion, there’s better ways to spend time on the road, whether it’s hanging with the guys in the room or going to a movie with the guys,” Horvat said. “There’s a lot of cool cities we visit and to be cooped up in your room all night, playing Fortnite, is a waste of your time.”

    Personally, Horvat says he has never played the game.

    “Hopefully a lot of parents and little kids are listening right now,” he told the radio station. “I don’t play it. Nor will I ever.” 

    According to TechDirt, the Fortnite issue first arose for the Canucks last year when the team claimed a young player was “inactive and seeking counseling for video game addiction.”

    This isn’t the first time Fortnite play has disrupted professional sports teams. According to Fortune, players from the Ontario Hockey League were asked to remove Fortnite references from their social media accounts. 

    Reporter Renaud Lavoie says that executives in the sports world have spoken out about the issue. 

    “That GM told me it’s an issue,” Lavoie told Sportsnet 590. “Before, the athletes were going to bars. Now, they’re staying in hotel rooms or at home and playing video games for hours.”

    Major League Baseball has also claimed to have issues with the game, including one case of carpal tunnel syndrome. 

    Outside of sports, the game is causing issues in some families. In the UK, the game has been cited as a reason for divorce in 200 divorce petitions filed in the UK from January to September 2018.

    A nine-year-old British girl was admitted to treatment after her Fortnite addiction kept her up all night and affected her grades and health. The girl’s parents say the tipping point came when her father found her sitting in her own urine while playing the game. 

    “She was so hooked to the game, she wouldn’t even go to the toilet,” the girl’s mother told the Daily Mirror. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Fortnite Addiction Is Ending Marriages In The UK

    Fortnite Addiction Is Ending Marriages In The UK

    The popular video game is becoming popularly cited in divorce petitions across the pond.

    The fact that video games can become addictive is not new. But the fact that they may play a role in divorce—especially one game in particular—is now coming to light.

    The video game Fortnite Battle Royale, according to UK-based website Divorce Online, has been mentioned in 200 divorce petitions filed on the website since January. This is about 5% of the total petitions the site has received in that timeframe.

    According to Quartz, Fornite Battle Royale is “a multiplayer Hunger Games–style shooter-survival contest where the goal is to kill off everyone else.”

    The game was released last year and is free to users. However, most users buy digital items within the game, spending an average of $85 for such items.

    According to Divorce Online, a spokesman stated that ”addiction to drugs, alcohol and gambling have often been cited as reasons for relationship breakdowns but the dawn of the digital revolution has introduced new addictions.”

    “These now include online pornography, online gaming and social media, so it is no surprise to us that more and more people are having relationship problems because of our digital addictions.”

    According to Fortune, it’s not just relationships that are suffering because of the video game. It’s become problematic in schools, especially since the release of the mobile app. In fact, some schools are even having wifi speed issues because of the number of students using the app. In some cases, it has even led to students fighting or disregarding school work. 

    The game has also been an issue for some professional sports teams. For example, Fortune notes, hockey players from the Ontario Hockey League have been asked to remove any references of the game from their social media accounts. Major League Baseball has also cited issues with the game, even reporting one case of carpal tunnel. 

    Even amid the issues it has caused, Fortune states, the game is growing in popularity. 

    “In July, the free-to-access game passed the billion-dollar threshold through in-game sales alone, and some colleges are even starting to offer scholarships to top players,” Fortune reports.

    According to Divorce Online, the numbers are indicative of the divorce market as a whole.

    “These numbers equate to roughly 5% of the 4,665 petitions we have handled since the beginning of the year and as one of the largest filers of divorce petitions in the UK, is a pretty good indicator,” a spokesman said.

    View the original article at thefix.com