We all love gaming, it provides us with entertainment, challenge, a way to socialise and be part of a team, to compete, to create etc. It’s these and other things that make us proud to be gamers and so we often rise to the defense of gaming whenever someone criticises it in some way.
But we would be naive to think that it’s all 1-ups and flawless victories. Just like any hobby, gaming can become detrimental especially when it becomes an all-consuming obsession that negatively affects our “real life” lives. The latest game in the spotlight in this regard is the ever popular Fortnite: Battle Royale particularly because of its appeal to younger gamers who are far more susceptible to its addictive qualities and less able to moderate their gaming behaviour.
I came across an article recently, titled: New Report: ‘Fortnite’ Is Harmful to Kids and Their Families.
It is from a Christian reporting website so it does carry that particular slant on the issue but I found to be rather unbiased and fair in reporting the issue - especially this closing paragraph:
While it’s easy to demonize video games, it’s important to remember that a game like Fortnite is powerful because it appeals to good desires God created in us, such as our longings for community and for our lives to have purpose. It’s also helpful to keep in mind one point that Michael Rich makes, which is that any compulsive behavior is a symptom of a deeper problem. Rich says that his clinic is approaching obsessive Fortnite playing, “not as a diagnosis, but as a syndrome, a group of symptoms of diagnoses ranging from ADHD to anxiety, depression or mood disorders that manifest themselves in the interactive media environment.”
With this in mind, Fortnite can be an opportunity for parents to evaluate the deeper issues their children are dealing with and to point them toward the richer, more meaningful purpose God has for their lives.
I found this to be a rather refreshing approach than the customary “Games are bad m’kay?”
Has a game ever been detrimental to your life? One that became an obsession or addiction that actually started affecting your day to day life? How did you deal with it?
What do you think of the whole Fortnite issue? It’s easy to blame the parents but I think a lot of parents are out of the depth on this one. I would hazard a guess that gamer parents are better equipped to deal with the issue. They could even game with their kids, thus ensuring they limit the hours of gamin appropriately and actually help teach their kids how to enjoy games without making them the centre of their lives.