As are most games with varying degrees of attraction. I don't blame the game for his heart attack, he wasn't paying attention to his health. My friend had other things going on, involved in various organizations and charitable to others. He also chatted with other gamers world-wide through the game as an admin, dispensing help to others. However, he did play a lot at all hours of day and night.
I feel the addiction was the opportunity to play-act as other characters that he could not achieve in real life. In a game, you can have the looks and powers that you weren't given in real life. This is not necessarily a bad thing, and possibly brings fulfillment and happiness to many. The risk is getting so deep into the fictional characters that one neglects their external health and obligations. My friend was neglecting bills and getting into financial problems, this is something I feel was indirectly caused by the game.
with respect, he allowed the game to become the excuse to neglect his bills and other things in the real world. because he did that, the real world for him began to become worse and worse, and he spent more time in WoW. vicious circle. but one he created and fostered, sadly.
I agree. Was working on that idea with my BiL. General theory was that could be a time-out - no more than 8 hours on line at time. Problem would be the loss of revenue, multiple accounts, etc.
Another method would be to start toning down the rewards after x number of hours, until, after a while there no rewards at all. After a decent interval off-line, the account resets and rewards start again. That doesn’t handle multiple accounts, though.
Problem is, forcing such an implementation would violate my belief that government should intervene as little as possible. Parents should supervise kids (Our kids like “Minecraft” whatever the heck that is) and limit their time and access. Adults are on their own...