Urban Docent: "Game over, man. Game over!"

The Urban Docent

"Game over, man. Game over!"

    I enjoy video games as much as the average next person .... I mean, I don't own a lot of them, I don't spend a lot money on them, but I play them when the opportunities arise. Right or wrong, my basic philosophy on games is that they are a uniquely entertaining opportunity for escapist fun.

    On the occasions that I have played some of the more up-to-date offerings, I find myself amused by the self-regulatory efforts of manufacturers admonishing gamers to turn off their systems and go outside or otherwise take a break for a while. After all, isn't the outside world — to some degree — the ultimate in MMROPG-like experience?

    I say that these warnings are amusing because I feel that I personally don't need to be reminded when I've had enough. Here's how I know it's time to shut it down:

I starting sucking: I can't make the moves happen ... I'm losing ... my score is suffering .... I don't enjoy it anymore
I get tired: Vision starts to get a little goofy ... my head hurts ... I feel generally unmotivated to keep playing
I run out of quarters: Nuff said

    But now comes this fantastic headline: "Online Addict Dies After 'Marathon' Session." According this news story, this overweight 20-something in China is dead after he spent almost every minute of a seven-day holiday immersed in online gaming. Supposedly he had nothing else to do to occupy his mind other than TV or games.

    The big news here is that the entire continent of China is now illiterate. I make this presumption because apparently Mr. Deadman couldn't stop trying to take his character to the next level long enough to enjoy a communist best-seller .... most likely because he had lost the ability to interpret info not displayed as a blinking icon.

    While I'm sure this death is a hardship on the man's immediate family, they must have guessed that he would face a similar unceremonious fate. If it weren't online gaming, it would have been some other selfish abuse of an otherwise harmless product or pastime.

    Recreation and entertainment — electronic or not — are just ways to give yourself a little break from time to time; they probably won't make you a better person or help advance your overall quality of life. If you find that you can't tell for yourself when it's time to turn it off, ask a friend or relative to take the initative to help you quit for a while ..... you'll be better for it.

    Besides, you don't want to end up like this guy: