The difference between a harmless passtime and a life waster.

At the end of the day, it doesn't matter what others think, only what you think. If you have fun playing GW or doing anything else, what right does anyone else have to tell you it's a waste of time.

I myself am 34 years old and have a strong addiction to GW. My typical week goes like this: Monday to Friday I work during the day and play for 6hrs a day on weekdays, then all day on Saturday and Sunday. I don't have a family (ie not married with kids) and have a few close friends who I see occassionally. At the end of the day though, I ENJOY GW.

People may say that I'm wasting my years away, but then what else would I be doing if I didn't have an interest in GW. Most people my age have a family or go out to pubs and clubs to meet people etc. I would rather adventure in this imaginary world

Video games hurt when:
- You have tons of homework to do but you're playing GW.
- You have friends/family to meet but you're playing GW
- You have work to finish but you're playing GW.
- You should go out and do some sport to seduce that girl you saw yesterday but you prefer virtual ele chicks in GW.
- You have to eat or to sleep to be healthy tomorrow but you prefer to finish that quest in GW.
You have to remind that video games, as well as TV, are completely selfcentered. You don't share anything with friends/family. You can't compare mastering an instrument/cooking to be good at killing DoA mobs. You can cook or play for people, you can't play GW for them.
That's why videogames or watching TV are not socially accepted, this just that there is nothing social in it. And don't start about online players, they don't know you, you will never meet them, you can scam/insult them without any repercussion and they can too. That's nothing social.
When you go in MMORPGs, you are leaving from the real world. You enjoy playing alone.
Cooking your best green pepper steak will please all the people gathered around your table, not only you. When you're playing, people only see your back. And, generally, your back is not interesting.
As long as you play GW only in your lon lost hours, there is no problem. But if you begin to skip friends/family/work/things to do for GW, then you begin to loose your life.
Some video games like the wii ones, highly social, are not exactly the same.

There are actual psychological studies that have proven video games are better for you than television. There are many advantages to playing video games you don't even think about but watching tv is completely passive.

As for me -- I do both at the same time (-;

it is a waste of time, i use to be the one who would play for the whole day straight and then some...it was really fun all my friends on, doing 2 man uw pwning axxtes for hours but then after that nerf with the aoe all my friends stopped playing and the game got really boring and i stopped playing now i look back at how much time i've wasted (3,500 hours over 2 years) now im hooked on something much better and healthier bodybuiding..

It doesn't matter if its a waste of time. If video games can help you relax after your day at work/school then what does it matter? Its the same as television or any other kind of hobby in that respect.

Sounds to me like you just replaced one addiction with another and think thats somehow healthier or better.

Gaming is the same as any other pastime (the word implies it already), its there to pass the time, a diversion, just like books, TV and anything else.
Addictive personalities can be addicted to anything but gaming is no worse or better then anything else.

2 hours a day is not an issue, someone who works, enjoys playing his games and is otherwise behaving normally is fine and healthy imho, he doesnt need to stop or change his lifestyle.

I beg to differ. Gw is a Social Game, ive made several friends from it. The main reason i got GW to begin with was myself and a couple of RL friends decided we wanted a Game we could all play together and Gw was a game we all thought looked amazing so we all got it to play together which we did. Rather than meeting up at the local Pub for a drink, we all gather on GW instead, where we can talk, have fun and relax all at the same time, without having to spend anymore (other than the original cost of the game). We talk about in game and out of games things, which would be much harder without Gw since they now live several 100 miles away.

I dont deny its stll good to meet up in the real world especially for people not on the game such as family or other friends, but that doesnt make it any less social, Its no different that going over the friends house after work each day and not seeing ur family/other friends because u are out.

As for not playing Gw for people actually u can, either u can do missions they find difficult etc. or u can use there log in details to do things for them (with there permission ofc)

Sure u get Scammers and Anti social people in Gw but thats no different than the outside world. I can think of numerious types of people you can pass by on the street who can call u names, try to scam you or generally be an annoyance.

Well, I have to comment on that.
If you feel more comfortable with +25 aged people, try to find out how and where they socialize and try to get between them.

Sure you don't need to do anything the average person of your age does, but real-life social interaction is important.
Others already said that and I can only repeat that.
If it can't be with people of your own age, try finding people that fit better, even if they are older.

I never felt like someone my age, even now (more than 10 years older then you are), while I don't consider other immature of myself more mature anymore. We just have different interests and life experiences, meaning they will never fully understand me and I will never fully understand them.

The reason that I am telling this is that we have someone younger than you in our guild that is having similar problems and I think more young people are having problems with these kinds of things.
Playing games is a very easy way to avoid real-life problems.
We talked things over late at night and there are some problems that are causing his gaming behaviour.
Most have to do with not feeling comfortable with himself because of various reasons which has mostly to do with growing up.
The people online gave various surgestions that could help him, most of us have been young at some point in our life.
Some people grow up faster than others.

My own situation is slightly different.
I have a social disorder since very early childhood. This has been confirmed recently. Combined with an above average IQ I was able to excel in certain areas and by that hide my problems for a long time.
I also know exactly what behaviour is social accepted and how to work with that. It is however not 'normal behaviour' for me and requires constant attention. I also can get very uncomfortable in certain 'normal' social situations, close to mental shutdown or panic-attack.

The real question here is are you more like my guildie or more like me.
If you are more like him, try getting outside more and find people you do feel comfortable with, even if they are 10 years older.
If you are more like me, I'd surgest you get some kind of professional help.
You will hit walls and you will hit them hard.

Here is how I think about this. I am married and have a 7 month old son. I play anwhere from 2-3 hours a day, usually Mon-Fri. Weekends vary as I am often busy and have other things to do. Now I have been approached by people witha similar attitude as the OP.

My take is simple. I play after work at night before bed, after my son is asleep usually, if he is awake I rarely play with people because if I need to I get up and take care of him. I dont like TV, new sitcomes and reality TV are boring and kinda suck, so instead I play my game cause I find it entertaining and fun. At the end of my day, I want to relax as all people do. SOme take a book, some take posting board, other like TV, and its obvious here we like a game. So what.

The line falls here. I have a job. I do well at my job. I am finishing my masters, love my son and wife and spend time with them everyday. I get enough sleep to function in daily tasks and I play my game. If GW was to ever damage those criticle things in Life (family, work, sleep) then I have crossed the line, until then I dont see a problem with it

I wish I was still in college so I can "waste my life" for 6 hrs a day. Damn this job for getting in the way of my playing GW. I'm almost broke since I haven't been farming...

It does if you are doing it less. The average US male watches 4 hours of tv a day. If he plays for 2 that's hardly worse.

The idea that going out to parties is somehow more productive than playing games with friends at home is a joke. Unless someone has some spiritual reason, There is no way to determine if wasting time gaming is any better than wasting time being Mr Universe. The whole going to the gym thing is a joke. It's like peoples "look i'm responsible" card. I was going to the gym for quite a while, most people aren't really developing themselves. They could do as much good if they just watched their diet.

Because your assumption that " There are so many interesting things to do" is just that. An assumption. Some people don't enjoy those things. Besides somethings that people like take longer. I draw, paint & 3D model, it takes a long time.
As for "real adventures". Oh please. Unless you are battling aliens in a trap laden Aztec jungle, who cares? So you biked across the US. so? If you enjoyed it, great! But I don't know that that makes someone a better person. You work at a homeless shelter? ok, I can respect that. I think some of the anti-game sentiment come more from how well you take social acceptance/rejection. And how popular you need to feel.

2 hours is fine unless you somehow have no time. As long as you don't neglect people, your health or chores, you should be fine.

This is very much NOT true. Watching tv is VERY socially acceptable.. how many restaurants have tvs? how many people talk about shows they saw? people watch a LOT of tv.
Well, while I agree it is good to know how to cook regardless, I enjoy playing with my friend in my room on my network, than alone. You can play with lots of people on a LAN. it's way more fun.

"Productivity" is overrated.

IMO, education is a huge waste of time. Much of what you are taught is completely irrelevant to what you want to do in life, much is just fluff extending the amount of time that you have to stay in school/university, and you will forget the vast majority of what you are taught. Yes, it helps you get a job and make you a more informed citizen (and feeds you nationalist propaganda), but what they need to teach you could be done in a much shorter time.

Working really hard to make a lot of money is also a waste of time. Beyond having enough money to get what you need, all that extra money doesn't make you any happier, even though that's exactly what people think it will do. I'd rather just spend my time doing something that makes me happy (playing a game) than work a lot of overtime trying to get something that I think will make me happy but really won't.

We are quite lucky to have this amount of free time in the first place. In the past, people would spend the whole day at work on farms or in factories, often in horrible conditions. They were productive. But I'd never want to trade places with them.

Life is short. Try to spend some of your time relaxing and having fun, not conforming to society's standards of what is considered fun or productive. People will say you're wasting your life by playing games instead of going out and getting drunk, because they're too narrow-minded to understand that what is fun for them may not be fun for others.

Anyway, I played a lot of GW while I was doing my degree. Probably more than 2 hours a day. And I did just fine (got many scholarships, even). So as long as your life is in order in terms of family, friends, school/job - then do whatever you want to do in your spare time.

I think that playing games is just as good a hobby as anything else. There's also tons of people who make a living out of it, and create wonderful works of interactive art. Games are probably even better than watching TV, since TV isn't as interactive and you don't have a chance to correspond with other people. Just like with other things, as long as it doesn't become an obsession, you're fine. 2 hours a day is not bad at all.

Your brother is just worried about you. I have to agree that it doesn't sound healthy living in someone else's basement and never meeting any other people at all. I can understand having problems with being social but sometimes all it takes is finding a couple of like-minded people to get your social life cheered up.
For example, I have panic attacks occasionally and generally dislike going to parties and hanging out with people whose only idea of good pastime is getting totally wasted on alcohol. Still, when I'm with friends (about 90% of whom I've met online - that includes my boyfriend) occasional drinking and partying is very much fun since we do it our own way. They enjoy the same things as I do (anime, games, music...) and we have tons of fun times together doing things we are interested in. It's socializing, even if most of the time we do rather geeky stuff together that "normal" people don't understand.

It always takes a while to fully become relaxed with a group of friends, but it's always worth it in the end. Join a local anime club, look for friends from your area in forums, see if there's anyone on IRC that lives nearby. They're all good places to find people who share your interests. If you're interested in videogames, you should also consider getting an education in something to do with games.
Also, I recommend that you move out of your brother's basement and get a job that fully supports yourself. That way he has no right to complain about your life - after all, being able to support yourself without outside help is one of the most appreciated things in society.

Wow - well since so many contributed their life stories on gaming here's mine.
And my take on the comment that we're all freaks wasting our lives.....

I'm 33 now and started gaming when I was 10 on a c64.
I have been gaming over 23 years.
I watch very little TV, love movies and am happily married (to a non-gaming wife)
I read a lot, play poker socially and feel I have a good life.

I didn't waste my life on games - I was lucky and always realised early on that school came first. I studied hard, got my degree and worked all the way up to where I am today, managing a sizable number of people and I feel I'm good at my job.

I play games now more than I ever have - I deserve it - I put in the work when I need to and relax with my gaming hobby when the time is right.
I have about 2000 hrs logged on GW so far.

In another generation or so gaming will become socially acceptable, average game player age is going up every year as the first video game generation grows up.
I know - I'm helping make this happen!

I'm fortunate because I have always had enough self control to determine when I need to do something else because it's more important.
But I'll be a gamer til I die.

Gaming still has a stigma attached to it as being childish and for children - over the next generation or two that will go and it will become "socially acceptable"
Anyone who looks at gaming in general and calls it childish or a waste doesn't know what they're talking about.

To me playing the guitar is a complete waste of time - why would I want to do that for? It's hard and there are musicians out there who do it better than me.
Does that mean it's a waste of time for everyone - absolutely not - whatever you enjoy and just make sure you make good life choices and you'll be alright....

Stop playing games you nerd.

Do people really do this? Sit on a couch and do nothing but watch TV? I'd go insane. Yes, in that case, gaming is obviously better. But who watches TV that mindlessly? I'm constantly analyzing it, thinking about what I see, talking it over with my husband, in addition to a million other things. Like you, we multi-task - gotta use time efficiently. Listen to music, websurf, watch tivo, play a game, talk, check email, eat, more stimuli PLEASE. I work out to movies and podcasts, he works out while websurfing (steps, bikes and treadmills are great for this). Life's too short to sit around doing just ONE thing at a time!

And it's definitely too short to let small-minded tech-ignorant people tell you how you ought to spend your free time.

"...."Productivity" is overrated.

IMO, education is a huge waste of time. Much of what you are taught is completely irrelevant to what you want to do in life, much is just fluff extending the amount of time that you have to stay in school/university, and you will forget the vast majority of what you are taught. Yes, it helps you get a job and make you a more informed citizen (and feeds you nationalist propaganda), but what they need to teach you could be done in a much shorter time.

Working really hard to make a lot of money is also a waste of time. Beyond having enough money to get what you need, all that extra money doesn't make you any happier, even though that's exactly what people think it will do. I'd rather just spend my time doing something that makes me happy (playing a game) than work a lot of overtime trying to get something that I think will make me happy but really won't.

We are quite lucky to have this amount of free time in the first place. In the past, people would spend the whole day at work on farms or in factories, often in horrible conditions. They were productive. But I'd never want to trade places with them.

Life is short. Try to spend some of your time relaxing and having fun, not conforming to society's standards of what is considered fun or productive. People will say you're wasting your life by playing games instead of going out and getting drunk, because they're too narrow-minded to understand that what is fun for them may not be fun for others."

Andisa Kalorn, congrats 1000% ok with your post.....


"Ludwig Wittgenstein argued that language is a game consisting of tokens governed by rough-and-ready rules that arise by convention and are not strict.[1]"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language-games


Dont worry, be happy & keep on gaming........

I have my own set of rules about my gaming. Some days i have absolutely NO obligations, since im a Uni Student :P yeah im lazy.. So some people get bored and dont know what to do.. Well i will go play on my xbox with mates or play gw..

Other days im completely fully booked with Field hockey, watching movie with mates, go out to town and have a lot of alcohol and laughs, play golf or go on a day out.. or just hang out with friends.

so my rule is: If i have nothing to do i go and play gw or whatever.. As long as i NEVER cancel any social activities i would have done had i not known GW!
Dont let your rl suffer!!! rl>gw!!!!

Homer Simpson. And the large group of American males his character represents.

This game, WoW, Second Life and all other "games" which don't have a definitive end, are life wasters. I play 15 - 20 hours a week and have since beta, with some weeks as much as 50 hours. I work a full time job, have a wife, kid and dog which all require attention. So how do I make time? I give up sleep for the game, I start playing after 11:00 pm and quit around 1:30 am to go to be and get up and do it again the next day, I haven't slept for more than 6 hours in one night in years. The game is an escape for me, the problems in life vanish when I log on (except a few nights ago when my dog went out and got hit by a skunk *STINKY*).

So as long as the player can put things in proper perspective, go for it, otherwise, go get a life, and come back later.

We'll be here!!!

Stop posting flames you idiot.

I rarely ever have slept more then 6 hours in a night. Don't like too, 6hrs is all I need to be productive, unless I am sick, then I sleep til I am well.

oh well that reminds me of learning for tests. Suddenly you start to clean your room repair stuff that didn't bother you at all an all that other stuff that suddenly seems much more important then learning

I can understand the arguments for both/against gaming.

I suppose my single issue is thus...

I play for 2-3 hours a night, sporadically.
I am 19, I go to a very good college, but in the summer (i.e., now) I work in a lawfirm 9 hours a day (am at work now lol), play GW a fair amount, work out about the same, but see my girlfriend and my friends a lot as well

I guess the main issue is balance. That's what life is all about. Indeed, your female friend should probably get off her high horse, especially because you only play 2 hours a day. She probably watches TV hours on end, which is simply mind melting for me.

You know it's a becoming a bit of a problem when you get several signs:
You would prefer to talk on vent with guildies rather than go out with friends...mainly because you really just can't beat human contact face-to-face.
You play the game to the exclusion of other activities solely. E.g., if you begin to arrive late to work/class because of gaming, you may want to re-examine your time.
You suffer physically because of a lack of physical activity (if you can't help this, then you can't and you shouldn't worry about it)
You begin to neglect responsibilities because of gaming
Your work/Grades suffer because of gaming

I suppose the South Park WoW episode is a good example of where casual, good natured gaming becomes obsession.

I play a lot, this is a given. But I like to keep my life balanced. I go AFK a lot, and I let my brother play on my account a lot.

Balance is key to happiness, it's nice to keep everything in perspective.

Wholeheartedly, though, I agree with most of you, especially Freekedoutfish

Really to me it's about flexibility.

With Guild Wars I am able to leave the world for days, weeks or months depending on my real life situation. This could range from anything from a new game coming out the I have to play (this makes games last shorter for me) to a lot of homework or a summer vacation.

The only time where I get frustrated is if I can't do something fun all day which happens every once and a while. Of course almost everyone else does too... and those who aren't are called workaholics which also seems to be bad somehow....

Really life to me isn't about "balance" it's about doing things you love while getting everything you need. Video games are something I love and maybe one day I can change that into a job and become a game designer.

Hmm...

I might have quite an extreme position on this. First of all all things you do in life is ultimatly rendered pointless since death strips it all away (I guess I'll have to admit being an atheist for this to hold true). I can also only repeat what others have already said about what you do with your sparetime is only your business and as long as you're satisfied for whatever reason they should back of (short of hurting others, of course). I'd take it further tough and say all about your life is only your business - If you want to mess yourself up that's fine too in my book as long as it is your choice.

You hardly need to be so extreme to decide wether you can game with a "clear counsiness" or not tough, just agreeing to "your sparetime - your business" is enough.

I wonder tough, are you really totally satisfied with your life? I'm not judging at all here and I think the living conditions you've described are fine as long as you are happy with them. However, from the tone of some things you've voiced it definately seems that something is worrying you. Is it that you think other folks (like your brother) shouldn't be judging you and you're just tired of it or could it be that you're not really happy with your situation and wish you we're more like the other people around you? If the second is true would you think it's only because you're getting their ideals pushed onto you that you wish it or would you genuinly wish to lead another life (who wouldn't want to improve something in their life tough? Ideally I'd like to be a mage living in a fantasy world ).

If you're just tired of people trying to push their ideals on you just say red engine them and learn to shake it of you - too bad they don't agree with your choices but that's their problem. If however you want a change try to find a way, meet some new people that are more like you or try to find folks that do the stuff you'd like to. And don't think you're a lone freak, there are always people that are more or less like you out there, it's just a matter of finding them. The internet can be a good way to meet new people. Personally I found most of the friends I hang out with now through studies oat the Uni and taking a stray course or something in a subject that holds some interest to you might be a way but it's just a suggestion among others.

Being a loner is also perfectly fine. I go nuts if I am forced to be social for several days, not if I am forced to be alone. It's all personal ideals. It's true tough that (almost) all humans need love and some social interaction with other humans. It's highly individual to which degree tough and there are lots of ways to be social other than to just go and hang at a bar. Playing GW can definately be one way. Chatting over the phone another or just saying hi to your brother at the morning might be enough.

Final point is only you are the relevant judge of how you lead your life! There's no such thing as an objectivly ideal life, it's all subjective so don't let someone elses ideal be showed onto you. The only one who needs to lead your life is you so don't worry about the rest. Play as much games and watch as much movies as you deem fit!

I find myself being bored of video games.... but I find nothing else to do.

I turn on my PC to check mail, forums, IM, and eventually turn on GW for a quick RA match, or Oblivion for some eye candy/epic battles.

I don't really like to go out, unless a friend takes me. I should learn how to drive, but I can't be bothered. Everyone pushes me to learn it, but I know, once I learn it, I will have no excuse of not going to parties etc. and my friends won't take me because " I know how to drive". I'll lock myself up even more.

Sometimes I think my mother is overprotective. I'm an only child, there are no other kids in my neighbourhood, or they're either too young, or shy. I'm not shy, I just don't want to waste energy on meeting other people.
I don't have a job(student), although my mom says I should get a part time job, so I can pay for my own leisure. But I can't drive to work. Dilemma.

2 weeks ago I went to Sicily. Had a great time, met lots of people(including girls!). It felt good to have 2 weeks without a PC.( I study Computer Science, 50% of my day was spent behind a PC )

I have another "hobby". I play sax in a local band. Don't like it too much, we practice every friday night...Instead I'd rather stay home and play video games or go out. (This is my big exuse: Most friends go out on fridays, I can't, I have to practice, and when we finish, I'm too tired)

I'm 19, haven't had a real girlfriend in 7 years. I should do something about my weight(It's not THAT bad, but losing 20 pounds would make me a whole lotta better)

I don't know how to continue with my life....play video games? I'd rather make them. That's why I'm studying CS. But I failed 5 out of 12 courses this year, so I have to redo those exams by the end of August. Instead of learning in books, I tell my mom I'm learning to program for my exams(but actually I'm just writing this post here ) , while most of my failed courses are not pc related.

I should find a healthier hobby. I was thinking of cycling or swimming. A girlfriend wouldn't hurt as well... My bioclock is ticking . My family's pushing me really hard to have loads of kids, as I am the only descendant that can continue the family name. My 2 uncles all have daughters. At this rate, I'll never ever have kids.

I enjoy some TV shows. Battlestar Galactica, Simpsons, Southpark, other comedies.

Perhaps I should really learn how to drive...I'll get my parents' old Peugeot 306.

So, is this the fault of videogames? Or am I just another psycho?

Life should be fun..

If you think gaming is fun..

Btw, 2 hours isnt that much.. I know much ppl that play more..

~Prof.

Yanman, you need a kick in the ass.

Useless to blame anything. You need more activities, a balance so that important things like studies become more desirable.

20 pounds is nothing. Working out and running will become an habit once you've overcome the first hard steps, when your body adapts to the new conditions - that's when the real fun starts. Most give up at the beginning for they are untrained and not hardy. Give it some time and you'll notice that being in great physical shape/condition makes you feel very different. It's very very underestimated.

I've been through phases like that myself. It turns out that sometimes, when you don't feel motivated to do anything anymore, and you don't enjoy anything, and most of your activities involve escaping reality (games, tv, drinking, etc.), you may be depressed. At least I was. In other cases, the problem is that you just need to get out and try other things, until you find something you actually like. Maybe there's something out there you'd really like to do, but don't know because you haven't tried it yet.

I think that if you're spending your free time doing things that are both boring and devoid of extrinsic value, then it is wasting your life.

Yanman you might want to try make programming a hobby. Think up an application and find out how to write it, it can be just addictive as GW.

Want to write windows programs like word in ? readup on the Windows API and learn how to use it or Swing if your doing Java.

Want to learn how to establish a connection and send data between computers ? and write an instant messenger ? research 'Winsock'.

Want to write a simple 2d game ? use SDL : http://www.libsdl.org/
Want to write a 3d game, opengl ?: http://nehe.gamedev.net/

Since your doing computer science you already have the preliminary knowledge so it wont be hugely difficulty.

Theres loads of stuff you could be doing.
On the other hand theres ecto farming,lightbringer farming, vanquishing etc

I found this on threadless.com and I feel it is relevant to this topic.


Joking aside, if you find balance in your enjoyment and do other things besides gaming/tv watching/pc usage then there is no harm in enjoying any of those things.

I found what would have liked the OP for GWEN cover


http://frankfrazetta.org/viewimage.p...rwarrior. jpg

or


http://frankfrazetta.org/viewimage.p...thdealerII.jpg

or


http://frankfrazetta.org/viewimage.p...athdealerV.jpg

or



http://frankfrazetta.org/viewimage.p...thdealerIV.jpg

or.....LOL


http://frankfrazetta.org/viewimage.p...edestroyer.jpg

or.....LOL²


http://frankfrazetta.org/viewimage.p..._and_Chain.jpg

or...


http://frankfrazetta.org/viewimage.php?loc=snow_.jpg


I love this artist =======> n°1

Wrong thread?