Here’s an interesting news piece for you. The German Social Affairs Minister in Lower Saxony – Mechthild Ross-Luttmann has asked for an investigation into the sale of inappropriate games for children. So far, so mundane, except that she is considering requesting an age restriction on “addictive computer games”.
This is a strange concept for a number of reasons, but mainly because all games are supposed to be addictive to a degree – if your game isn’t enjoyable enough to encourage people to return, you’ve kind of failed. Secondly it’s questionable as to whether adults are any better at dealing with addictive things than children – a lot of people with alcohol and tobacco addictions (often picked up while using the products underage) would seem to suggest not.
Of course the big game in question with regards to addiction is World of Warcraft, which you hear horror stories about every day. I’ve known people who do find their real lives suffering as a result of their enthusiasm for the game. Personally I think it’s more damaging for adults to have the addiction – at least kids have enough time to reach level 60.
It’s all open for debate at the moment, though personally I all think it’s a little bit too far. There’s no reason to assume that grownups are any better at managing their time than kids, and it raises the question as to who actually decides what qualified as addictive. It would be quite insulting to discover that your latest game gets a Universal C rating if your contemporaries are all getting 18s.
1 comment so far
1 James I // Mar 22, 2009 at 7:09 pm
A mate of mine said he was addicted to computer games in school. He would become irrevocably angry if he wasn’t allowed to take his games (the full-size consoles, not just handhelds) into school.