China is taking more steps to combat video game addiction, blocking new games from being licensed in the country.
China is on a crusade to combat video game addiction in children. The country recently restricted minors to only three hours of gaming per week — an hour a day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, as well as on holidays.
Regulators are now taking an additional step, putting new game approvals on hold “for a while,” according to sources that spoke with the South China Morning Post. The goal is to “cut the number of new games” and “reduce gaming addiction.”
The decision is sure to impact some of China’s most successful companies, including Tencent and NetEase, companies that have made billions from the very type of games China now seeks to curtail.
Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony are collaborating to make gaming safer, especially for those most vulnerable.
Video gaming has grown far beyond its original audience and is now enjoyed by people across all demographics. In fact, a recent survey shows the biggest area of growth is among those 35 years-old and up, with the single biggest jump among 45 to 54 year-old individuals.
As the pandemic has forced people to social distance, gaming has become an important social interaction for many people. Some games have even found their way into Esports, with video gamers playing professionally. This widespread adoption has increased the call for video game companies to do more to be inclusive and protect participants.
“We believe gaming is for all people of all ages, including our youngest and most vulnerable players,” writes Dave McCarthy, Corporate Vice President, Xbox Operations. “Technology makes compelling entertainment experiences possible, and we want to ensure that those experiences – especially when they involve interaction with others – are positive and respectful. All players deserve to have fantastic social gaming experiences in settings where respect and safety are mutual.
“At Xbox, we are aligned with both Nintendo, on behalf of the community of Nintendo Switch players, and PlayStation in our belief that protecting players online requires a multidisciplinary approach – one that combines the benefits of advanced technology, a supportive community, and skilled human oversight. We can accomplish more when we work toward the same goal, and so we will each continue investing in, evolving, and amplifying our approaches to user safety. As we continue this work, we will prioritize protecting the safety of our players, especially those most vulnerable.”
The three companies are working to prevent issues through more control over the gaming experience, as well as partnering with trade organizations, industry members, law enforcement and regulators to create better safety initiatives. The three companies will also make it easier for individuals to report abuse and violations of their code of conduct.
The three biggest names in gaming backing such an endeavor should go a long way toward making video games a safer environment for all players.
In further evidence of the impact the pandemic is having on everyday life, video gaming has seen a significant uptick across allage groups.
With more people staying home and avoiding in-person contact, alternative forms of entertainment and socialization have been on the rise. Video gaming, in particular, has become a popular option. Rather than being a solo experience, modern video games often provide a high level of social interaction.
According to Mat Piscatella, Video Game Industry Analyst, The NPD Group, video games are rising in popularity across age demographics, and specifically among middle-aged and older groups.
Interestingly, the biggest jump in video game usage was in the 45 to 54 year-old age group. This impact of the pandemic is sure to open up new opportunities for enterprising companies to better engage with potential customers.
Minecraft is already one of the most successful video games in the world, but now it’s also serving to help preserve information in its uncensored form.
Minecraft is a nearly infinite, open-world game that lets users create virtually anything they can image. Rather than creating a building or scene from a movie or TV show, NGO Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has created a virtual library to house works that were originally censored in their countries of origin.
“Minecraft is a favourite – one of the world’s most successful computer games, with more than 145 million active players every month,” reads the statement. “Here communities can build entire worlds out of blocks, experience the freedom of an open world. Its creative mode is often described as ‘digital Lego’. In these countries, where websites, blogs and free press in general are strictly limited, Minecraft is still accessible by everyone.
“Reporters Without Borders (RSF) used this backdoor to build ‘The Uncensored Library’: A library that is now accessible on an open server for Minecraft players around the globe. The library is filled with books, containing articles that were censored in their country of origin. These articles are now available again within Minecraft hidden from government surveillance technology inside a computer game. The books can be read by everyone on the server, but their content cannot be changed. The library is growing, with more and more books being added to overcome censorship.”
RSF’s ingenious use of Minecraft is a perfect example of the innovative ways technology—including video games—can be used to address serious issues. According to the RSF, “the Uncensored Library is accessible through Minecraft with the server address: visit.uncensoredlibrary.com.”
VentureBeat is reporting that Facebook Gaming is adding a dashboard and toolkit to help streamers deal with trolls.
Facebook Gaming is tied with Microsoft for a distant third placing among game steaming services with 3% market share. The company is working hard to change that, however, and its latest features is sure to win fans, namely the ability to limit the impact of trolls.
According to VentureBeat, “with the new toolkit, creators and moderators will still be able to remove comments, mute viewers for a short period of time or ban people from their Page or stream. Once someone is banned they will still be able to watch the stream but won’t be able to comment or react to the stream or other people, and their previous comments will be removed.”
Facebook worked with the Fair Play Alliance, a coalition of companies dedicated to promoting healthy online gaming. Together, they worked to create rules that would help tackle the growing problem of online trolls and harassment. As popular streamer Melonie Mac highlighted in an interview, this is especially a problem for women streamers, and the new tools have already improved her experience on the platform.
China just lifted its year-old ban on new video games but no Tencent games were approved in the initial list. Gamer World News Entertainment host Capt. Rob Steinberg says that it’s not really much of a surprise that Tencent’s Fortnite wasn’t in this first 80. He sees it as a huge economic opportunity for gaming companies in general.
Steinberg also noted that China “has gone very hyper” with the control they have put on games.
From what I’ve seen China just lifted this ban that allows more games to be licensed in China. That being said, we’ve only released about 80 games that were there. In that there are about 3,000 games that will be released in 2019 and there are about 7,000 games that are on this waitlist.
It’s not really much of a surprise that Tencent’s Fortnite wasn’t in this first 80. But what this does say is that there is an enormous market, a market that takes up $34 billion in the gaming industry that has now opened up the possibility of having these games enter that market.
China Has Gone Very Hyper Controlling Games
The gaming ban is really put in place by the government to try and protect its people. They’re very strict whenever it comes to allowing things in that might show anything that is illegal, immoral, or violent.
That being said, they have gone very hyper as far as the amount of control that they put over these games. In doing that they’ve lowered their economic ecosystem in gaming by 5.4 percent as of last year.
A Fantastic Time to Invest in Gaming
It has definitely had a huge impact and I believe lifting the console ban and allowing more games to come in will help them create more money. It also is great for us here in case you haven’t already invested in Tencent this is a fantastic time for you to consider getting into the game knowing that they are now about to open up to a huge market if they can break through and if Fortnite becomes popular with the Chinese.
The most disappointing thing about the upcoming Jurassic World movie is its unsettling lack of Jeff Goldblum – but at least the folks over at Warners Bros, LEGO, and TT games know what’s up.
There will be Goldblum in the newLEGO Jurassic World game, for which you can watch the brand new trailer below:
LEGO Jurassic World will include storylines from Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III, as well as the upcoming Jurassic World. This trailer seemed a bit heavy on the original Jurassic Park, which nobody will complain about.
Dinosaurs, LEGO, Goldblum. Folks, it appears we have a winner. The game is due out in June.
For the past six months, Kanye West has been working on a video game about his mother going to heaven.
He dropped this little tidbit at the conclusion of an interview with Power 105.1’s The Breakfast Club, as he was talking about the inspiration behind his track “Only One”.
“Right now I’m working on a video game for ‘Only One’, and the idea is it’s my mother going through the gates of heaven, and you gotta bring her to the highest gates of heaven by holding her to the light,” said West.
“We’ve been workin’ on it for like six months.”
The video game talk starts at about 56 minutes. The whole interview is interesting, however, but you can skip to that if you’re in a hurry.
No word on when the game will be completed. From the sound of it, it’ll be quite a bit different, at least in terms of overall tone, than the video games he used to try to design in middle school.
If you’ve ever wanted to relive the magic of the Jurassic Park films (mostly the first one) in Lego form, well, you’re in luck.
Warner Bros, LEGO, and TT Games have just announced the next slate of Lego video games and it includes LEGO Jurassic World and LEGO Marvel’s Avengers. The former is due out in June and the latter in the fall of 2015. Both will be available on all major consoles, handhelds, and PC.
LEGO: Jurassic World will include storylines from Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III, as well as the upcoming Jurassic World.
“This year will be the biggest yet for LEGO videogames with these incredible titles and several firsts for the series,” said Tom Stone, Managing Director, TT Games. “TT Games are crafting humorous LEGO adventures, based on new stories and characters across some of the most well-known and iconic worlds.”
Beyond those two major titles, LEGO is also putting out LEGO Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin on handhelds, The LEGO Movie Videogame on iOS, and mobile game LEGO Batman: Beyond Gotham
“The LEGO videogame franchise remains a cornerstone of our business, consistently delivering fun, engaging gameplay and remarkable humor both kids and adults love,” said David Haddad, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “We look forward to expanding the successful series with this very exciting line-up of new LEGO experiences for players of all ages to enjoy on console, handheld and mobile gaming devices.”
The LEGO game franchise is one of the biggest in history, with over 100 million units sold.
The Xbox One is a little over a year old this month. In that year, Microsoft’s next-gen console has gone through more changes than most consoles do in their lifetime. Does that mean the console is now worth owning?
Like any new console, the Xbox One launched without any real must own games. It had titles like Dead Rising 3 and Ryse, but both of those titles are now on the PC. It also suffered from a perception that it was weaker than the PS4 when multiplatform games underperformed on the Xbox One compared to its rival.
In the months since launch, those early perceptions are nearly gone. It’s objectively true that the PS4 is a more powerful console, but developers are now starting to aim for parity between the Xbox One and PS4 versions of their games. In other words, multiplatform games like Far Cry 4 and Alien Isolation are going to run just as well on the Xbox One as they do on the PS4. As for exclusive titles, the Xbox One has the PS4 beat this year with big titles like Sunset Overdrive and Halo: The Master Chief Collection.
Besides games, Microsoft has made a number of other wise decisions regarding the Xbox One. Earlier this year, the company decided to make the Kinect optional and lowered the price of the Kinect-less console SKU by $100. At $399, the Xbox One was now the same price as the PS4 and was far more tempting to gamers looking to upgrade. More recently, Microsoft lowered the price of the Xbox One to $349 for the holidays and even packed in free copies of Assassin’s Creed Unity or Sunset Overdrive to undercut Sony’s PS4. It’s seems to have worked as Black Friday sales results indicate the Xbox One was the best selling console last weekend.
As for general system software, Microsoft has released a number of firmware updates over the last year. At launch, the Xbox One lacked many features that many assume should just ship with consoles, like a way to manage memory. Microsoft has listened to this feedback and released numerous patches that have addressed most of the complaints. There’s still work to be done, but Microsoft has made it known that it’s not going to slow down its release of new firmware updates.
Compared to this time last year, the Xbox One is in a much stronger position. The same could be said of most consoles after their first year, but the difference is far more pronounced with the Xbox One. In comparison, the PS4 is still somewhat of a disappointment as Sony has relied on remasters of PS3 games and third-party titles to sell PS4s for most of 2013. The console won’t be getting its first big exclusive until next March with Bloodborne.
In short, the Xbox One is the best value in next-gen gaming this holiday season. It always comes down to personal preference, but Microsoft has the exclusives and price advantage that should appeal to gamers looking for a next-gen fix.
Redbox is raising its DVD rental price by 25%. The price, which has been $1.20 per night, will be raised to $1.50 per night starting December 2. The price for Blu-rays will go from $1.50 to $2.00 per night.
Video games will see an even bigger increase going $2.00 to $3.00.
“With new-release movies for $1.50 a day, Redbox remains the best value in new-release home entertainment. Consumers can continue to expect access to the newest movies months before streaming subscription services and daily prices that are still lower than Video On Demand,” said J. Scott Di Valerio, CEO of Redbox parent company Outerwall. “The pricing adjustments announced today will allow Redbox to continue to offer consumers high quality movies and games while making investments to enhance the customer experience.”
“Today’s announcement represents the first time Redbox has raised prices on Blu-ray discs and video games and only the second time in more than 12 years that we’ve raised prices on DVDs,” said Di Valerio. “We look forward to continuing to provide consumers with tremendous access to the new-release movies and games they love in the formats they want.”
The company raised DVD prices from $1 to $1.20 about three years ago.
Last month, Redbox Instant, which was supposed to be Outerwall’s Netflix competitor for streaming officially closed its doors.
The Internet Archive at archive.org, which has given us great things like the Wayback Machine, has launched the Internet Arcade, a web-based library of arcade games from the 70s, 80s and 90s. You can play these for free right from your browser. There’s like 900 of them beginning with The Three Stooges in Brides is Brides.
We’re talking Pac-Man, Tiger-Heli, Street Fighter 2, Q*Bert, Ghouls & Ghosts, Pitfall II, Paperboy, OutRun, Monster Bash, Millipede, Return of the Jedi, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Galaga, Frogger, Bionic Commando, and many, many more.
The game collection ranges from early “bronze-age” videogames, with black and white screens and simple sounds, through to large-scale games containing digitized voices, images and music. Most ga mes are playable in some form, although some are useful more for verification of behavior or programming due to the intensity and requirements of their systems.
Many games have a “boot-up” sequence when first turned on, where the systems run through a check and analysis, making sure all systems are go. In some cases, odd controllers make proper playing of the systems on a keyboard or joypad a pale imitation of the original experience.
Now set aside some time in your schedule to kill hours and hours of your life trying to relive your past. Seriously, you should probably set aside a few hours for Paperboy alone.
The big news on Monday was that Microsoft is buying Mojang, the company behind the hugely popular Minecraft, for $2.5 billion.
Naturally, the subject came up on Conan, who checked in with the inventor of the game to see how he’s celebrating:
The actual founders are leaving the company, but Mojang says most of the team will probably stay on board, at least for the time being. It’s worth noting that Microsoft recently announced a massive round of layoffs including many people it brought over from the acquisition of Nokia assets.
Rumors circulated throughout the media last week that Microsoft was preparing to acquire Mojang, the makers of the massively popular game Minecraft. On Monday, Microsoft officially announced that it is doing so.
The company says it has reached an agreement to acquire the Stockholm-based game developer for $2.5 billion, and that the Mojang team will join Microsoft Studios, which is also behind Halo, Forza, Fable, and others.
Microsoft says its investment in the cloud and mobile technologies will enable Minecraft players to benefit from “richer and faster worlds, more powerful development tools, and more opportunities to connect” across the community.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said, “Gaming is a top activity spanning devices, from PCs and consoles to tablets and mobile, with billions of hours spent each year. Minecraft is more than a great game franchise – it is an open world platform, driven by a vibrant community we care deeply about, and rich with new opportunities for that community and for Microsoft.”
“The ‘Minecraft’ players have taken the game and turned it into something that surpassed all of our expectations. The acquisition by Microsoft brings a new chapter to the incredible story of ‘Minecraft,’” added Mojang CEO Carl Manneh. “As the founders move on to start new projects, we believe the high level of creativity from the community will continue the game’s success far into the future.”
Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, said, “‘Minecraft’ is one of the most popular franchises of all time. We are going to maintain ‘Minecraft’ and its community in all the ways people love today, with a commitment to nurture and grow it long into the future.”
Microsoft expects the acquisition to be “break-even” in its Fiscal Year 2015 on a GAAP basis, and notes that it is subject to customer closing conditions and regulatory approval. The company expects the deal to close later this year, and says more details will be available upon closing.
Update: VentureBeat is reporting that Google has reached a deal to buy Twitch for $1 billion, and that the company is joining YouTube. Still, neither company is commenting.
Original article (May 19): Google is reportedly in talks to acquire video game streaming company Twitch. Variety reports that it’s an all-cash offer, and is expected to be announced imminently.
The Wall Street Journal is also reporting that the companies are in talks, but says they’re in the early stages, and a deal isn’t imminent.
The Verge says Google is close to buying Twitch for $1 billion, and that it will have “fended off multiple suitors including Microsoft” if it does. It also reports that they’ve agreed on this price, and are working out details, such as the independence of the Twitch company and the brand.
Neither company is commenting.
It’s not hard to see why Twitch would fit in well with Google. The deal is being connected to YouTube specifically in reports, though it remains to be seen just how and if Google would integrate the two.
Independent video game developer Moneyhorse has announced a title for PC and mobile called Glorious Leader!, which stars North Korea’s Great Successor Kim Jong-un as the main playable character.
Players can guide the rotund despot through seven levels in the old-school shoot-’em-up, in scenarios that describe Kim Jong-un life-facts generated by the propaganda machine of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
These faithfully reproduced side-scrolling facts include the time when the Dear Leader thwarted the United States when it attacked his homeland with an aircraft carrier and the Statue of Liberty.
Other playable trials (the game recalls Konami’s classic Contra series) include the the time when Kim Jong-un was involved in the epic unicorn battle of North Hamgyong, where the puppet dictator vanquished 10,000 invading imperialists and destroyed 200 drones. Here the plump leader rides his faithful flaming unicorn:
Here is a shot of the aforementioned Statue of Liberty invasion scenario:
Here is the Glorious Leader! teaser trailer, which features NBA Hall of Famer and Kim Jong-un BFF Dennis Rodman:
Rodman, seen below singing happy birthday to Jong-un during a bizarre basketball exhibition in North Korea in January, reportedly entered alcohol rehab soon after returning to the U.S.
Kim Jong-un has held the titles of the First Secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea, the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, First Chairman of the National Defense Commission of North Korea, the Supreme Commander of the Korean People’s Army and presidium member of the Politburo of the Workers’ Party of Korea. He was officially declared the Supreme Leader following the state funeral for his father Kim Jong-il on December 28, 2011.
Here the people of North Korea cry hysterically over the passing of Kim Jong-il:
Moneyhorse hasn’t set a release date, and the CEO of that company commented that his team has tried to “carefully walk the line of satire without being an apologist for the (North Korean) regime.”
It was by 1994 that we grew familiar with 2D fighting games: a one vs. one matchup where characters would yell “Hadouken” or “GET OVER HERE!” and beat the living tar out of each other. Street Fighter II and Mortal Kombat are the staples of the genre, and, due to their successes, spawned a fury of notable competitors and shameless rip offs.
Among one of the biggest abominations unto the Lord was Shaq-Fu. Shaquille O’Neal was capitalizing on everything in the 90’s from bad raps to Kazaam, but it was Electronic Arts (EA) (voted the ‘Worst Company In America’ twice) that thought it would be a good idea to make a video game that sends a professional basketball player to a different dimension to fight the evil mummy Sett-Ra.
Critics like Allgame called it a “dud”; Gametrailers rated it their #4 worst in their “Top Ten Best and Worst Video Games”; GameInformer magazine placed it as #2 on their “Top 10 Fighting Games We’d Like To Forget”; and I, who rented the game at a Blockbuster, thought the music was frightening, the physics were fatty, and the only redeeming quality was Shaq killing a vicious demon with a basketball.
It was so bad, that 20 years after its release, EA Sports’ Sandy Sandoval (I am not making that name up) said: [It’s] probably one of the worst games in EA history.”
So what demented sadists decide to resurrect Shaq Fu? Why, the developers at Big Deez (who’s name comes from a joke about testicles), whom in which made an Indiegogo crowd funding campaign that managed to reach its goal through the investment made by 1,340 misanthropists.
The sequel is called Shaq-Fu: A Legend Reborn. In response to its predecessor’s failure, the man himself assures viewers: “This time, we won’t FU it up.”
And how much did they ask for, you ask?
$450,000
…and they managed to raise $473,884.
Big Deez confirmed that ‘work’ has come underway on PC, PS4, Wii U, PS3, Xbox One, and Xbox 360.
In a press release, Shaq said: “”I’ll admit it, Shaq Fu was a horrible game. I’m a huge fan of video games and want to have my name associated with a Shaq Fu game that I’m proud of and would like to play,”
Well that’s good.
Aren’t you just excited to play as a cyborg Arsenio Hall?
Battlestar Galactica’s Katee Sackhoff is starring in CCP Games’ upcoming multiplayer virtual reality dogfighting shooter, EVE: Valkyrie, playing the role of Rán Kavik. Sackhoff’s Rán isn’t a playable character, but rather a voice that can be heard in the player’s ear, akin to Cortana in the Halo franchise.
Commenting on the new game, Sackhoff said, “The first time I played EVE: Valkyrie I immediately knew I had to be a part of it. Even with the roles I have played, it is the closest I have ever felt to being a real spaceship pilot. It is a truly transformative video game experience.”
EVE: Valkyrie (formerly called EVE-VR) is set in the EVE universe, and incorporates new virtual reality peripherals to add to the depth of the gameplay. Eve: Valkyrie is scheduled to be released for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 4. For Windows, the game will be a launch title for the Oculus Rift virtual reality head-mounted display. As for the PlayStation 4, EVE: Valkyrie will support Sony’s virtual reality headset, tentatively known as Project Morpheus.
Here is a preview of EVE: Valkyrie, which sports visuals reminiscent of Battlestar’s own space battles:
Sackhoff, 34, is best known for playing Captain Kara “Starbuck” Thrace on the Sci Fi Channel’s reimagining of Battlestar Galactica, which ran from 2003 to 2009. She was nominated for four Saturn Awards for her work on the show, winning for Best Supporting Actress on Television in 2005. The role in EVE: Valkyrie not the first time Sackhoff has appeared in a video game. She also lent her voice to 2007’s Halo 3, 2009’s Resistance 2 and 2011’s Spider-Man: Edge of Time.
Sackhoff recently appeared in the 2013 supernatural drama horror film Oculus, and was seen in Vin Diesel’s sci-fi action/survival movie Riddick the same year.
Owen O’Brien, executive producer for EVE: Valkyrie at CCP commented, “Katee is the perfect actor to bring Rán to life. Not only does she have a track record in bringing strong female characters to life, but also once she had played Valkyrie I was delighted to see that she was as excited and enthused about the project as we are.”
The year is 1983. The Alamogordo Daily News reported in September that between 10-20 (actually 14) semi-trucks coming from a storehouse in El Paso, Texas, traveled 90 miles to a landfill in Alamogordo, New Mexico. At night, they would unload, cover deep within the earth, and seal with concrete, Atari boxes, cartridges, consoles, and the shame brought with their creation.
Among the gizmos lay purged was one of art’s greatest abominations: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial Atari videogame. An estimated 750,000 copies lay crushed in their dusty graves; the cause of death being rock-bottom sales due to abysmal quality by rushed development.
Whispers of what happened that day trickled into an urban legend of doubt, intrigue, and mystery… until…
On Sunday, at 12:45pm MDT, a film documentary seeking out the video game grave yard teamed up with Xbox Entertainment Studios and Lighbox Entertainment, went back to that old landfill and dug up the remains. There, in front of hundreds of spectators, revealed the epitome of what was one (of many) man’s trash, to be a treasured relic of gaming history.
The E.T. Atari cartridge did not die alone; several cases of the game Centipede, Pac-Man, and others games were also found, surprisingly, to be in very good condition despite three decades – unfortunately none of them were playable.
There’s a notion in the video game industry that the licensed movie adaptations of video games (and vice versa) wind up becoming laughable flops. The Atari E.T. game competes as one of the worst video games in history, but, as with all art, found a way to be enjoyed.
Besides the novelty of his lovable wrinkly testicle-like face, critics found the gameplay of collecting Reese’s pieces and part of E.T.’s phone to be a repetitive and vicious cycle; try to watch the following without any hint of irritation:
I, like many children who grew up in the 80s and 90s, spent a lot of time playing video games. We could have spent those hours outside, but we instead chose to stay inside trying to save the princess or collect all seven chaos emeralds. Parents may have been rightly concerned about our habit of playing video games for nine hours straight, but some good may have come out of it.
In the latest video from AsapSCIENCE, they ask if video games can make you smarter. As you might expect, the answer is yes. The how behind it, however, is the surprising part. In a study, scientists had participants play Super Mario 64 for 30 minutes a day for two months. At the end of those two months, the participants who played video games saw an increase in the areas of their brain related to memory, strategic planning and fine motor skills.
What about violent action games? Surely, games like Call of Duty have no positive side effects, right? Wrong. Studies have shown that those who play action games, like first-person shooters, have better attention-related skills than those who don’t. Studies have also shown that those who play action games are better at differentiating between shades of grey – a skill that degrades as we age.
While video games are helpful and fun, your parents may have been right to scold you for playing Mega Man X for nine hours straight. Too much of anything is a bad thing, including video games. There are unfortunate stories every year of men and women who play games for hours on end to only suffer a heart attack as a result of their sedentary lifestyle.
In short, video games exercise your brain, but they don’t exercise your body. If you find that exercise lacks the fun of video games, you might want to check out one of the many dancing video games that have become rather prominent in recent years.
Are you addicted to video games? You probably want to say no, but you realize that spending 40 or more hours a week in front of a screen might not be all that healthy. Well, rest easy knowing that you’re not as bad as some gamers in the UK.
Domino’s Pizza recently surveyed UK gamers to ask them multiple questions about their gaming habits. While most surveys would be content to just ask about average weekly playtime, Domino’s went a bit deeper. The chain found that half of all male gamers would rather play games than have sex. Some female gamers also reported not showing up to important events, like weddings or funerals, to play games.
As expected, our favorite Taiwanese animators at NMA couldn’t leave such a story alone. In it, we’re treated to the extremes some people will go through to keep playing games. The video may even be prophetic as a bride is playing games via the Oculus Rift while she’s at the altar. Nothing says love like ignoring the groom to play a French Revolution simulator.
While the above may be in jest, any kind of addiction is no laughing matter. I have stared into the abyss of gaming addiction and it isn’t pretty. This isn’t to say that you should give up on your current gaming habits, but sprinkling in other activities, especially those with friends, is never a bad idea.
