Editorial & Feature Writing – Feature article on gaming addiction

Class assignment

An article written for a class assignment for an Editorial & Feature Writing module.

Game Over?

An 11 year addiction which hasn’t stopped yet

Late nights. Eyes glued to the computer screen. Constant clicking of the mouse. Full attention fixed to the game. This is how Jian Ming, 20, is like when he plays online games, spending at least 5 hours non-stop for every session.

When it started

Jian Ming’s gaming addiction began early, in Primary Four. Like other boys his age, games were fun and exciting for them. It was something harmless, just a way to escape the stress and responsibilities of being a student. However, his interest in gaming eventually became an addiction as the time he spent on them steadily increased. He had started to sacrifice sleep and friends for his gaming sessions, giving up his social life and time with family and friends.

The amount of time he spends on gaming leaves very little time for any sort of social life. After a typical day in school, he would make his way home and have dinner first before starting his regular late-night gaming session at 10 p.m. which can last for five to six hours. He only stops at 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. which leaves him with only three hours at most for sleep, as he has to wake up at 7 a.m. for school.

It only gets worse during school holidays. Jian Ming can play for up to 10 to 12 hours then, eating up even more of his sleeping time. Despite the little sleep he gets, online gaming is a part of Jian Ming’s life as he started playing them since young and it is not something he can easily give up, even till today.

He still remembers his first game in Primary Four. It was the infamous Maple Story which was widely played by boys his age then. Even though the game is no longer as popular as it used to be back in the day, a gamer never forgets his first game, especially if it played a part in sparking his addiction.

Worst off

Unlike a large number of addicted gamers who would deny their addiction, Jian Ming openly admits to his addiction. He is very much aware that the time he spends on his games is too much. He feels his addiction kicking in when he feels like playing a game without stopping at all.

Even then, he believes that his addiction is not as bad as some of his friends’. One would be shocked to hear that a person can spend up to 10 to 12 hours on a single game, but Jian Ming doesn’t think likewise.

“I think it’s pretty normal compared to my other friends,” said Jian Ming. “They spend at least 16 hours on games.”

According to him, those friends use up about 80 percent of their allowances to pay for game credits. Money which is meant for food expenses are gone in a flash as these friends are fast to spend it on games. They can spend up to $400 a month on games alone, a figure that may shock some people.

As much as he enjoys gaming, Jian Ming does not believe in spending money on it. No matter how addicted he is, he chooses not to spend money on any game credits as he believes that he might regret it one day. His advice for his friends whose addiction are worse than his, is not to invest too much time and money on games as they would never know when a game might close down.

Not stopping

On the contrary, Jian Ming does not think he will stop gaming any time soon. When asked whether or not he wanted to stop gaming, he hesitated before saying a “no” while smiling sheepishly.