Obese gamer collapses, dies after "marathon" gaming session
by Mike Schramm 
Mar 1st 2007 at 9:07AM
Well here we go again. Reuters is reporting that a Chinese gamer has died after a "marathon," weeklong gaming session. The 26-year-old apparently collapsed on Saturday after he spent the entire week before (he'd been on break because of the Lunar New Year's celebration) playing an unidentified online game. A local teacher says the reason he played games for a full week was that because of the holiday, "there are only two options. TV or computer. What else can I do in the holiday as all markets, KTV and cafeterias are shut down?"Be prepared, I guess, to hear about this in all future media examinations of whether or not WoW is addictive. I won't argue that this isn't a sad thing to hear-- no matter what the real cause of this poor guy's death, there were serious problems there that should have been fixed a long time ago.
But I will note that the article mentions the 26-year-old weighed 330 lbs. Why doesn't the headline say "Food addict dies"? Also of note, the last line of the article says that China considers 13% of its Internet users under 18 addicted. WoW, according to "experts," is supposed to be 40% addicts, but neither figure, as far as I can see, actually says what they define as "addicts"-- are they setting the bar for "addiction" low or high?
Filed under: Virtual selves, News items
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Sylythn Mar 1st 2007 9:57AM
Thank you darwinian theory for removing people like this from the gene pool. The only thing to do is TV or Computer? Ever heard of a book, taking a walk, sleeping, eating (you don't die from playing computer games if you're getting enough food and sleep). I really do fail to understand how people can be like this...
Moloch Mar 1st 2007 9:20AM
OH THE HUMANITY! Stop playing games and watch TV people - it could save your life.
daniel Mar 1st 2007 9:36AM
These sort of deaths should really be classified as freak deaths or as darwin award nominees, not gaming-related. The idea of anti-gaming fascists jumping on this to promote their views makes me cringe.
Without having read the article, I'm pretty sure that the 40% number is pulled out of someone's ass. Addiction to me means that someone is getting hurt because of it, be it physical, psychological, economy-wise or other. That is hardly the case for 40% of the WoW-playing population.
Randomdruid Mar 1st 2007 9:44AM
Why is this post railing against Reuters like there is nothing wrong with playing video games for 24, 48 hours or more non-stop. The article doesn't give a specific amount of time that he played without a break for things like sleep but I'm willing to bet that it was at least 24 hours. It sure isn't unheard of with WoW. Sure he was on a holiday but that doesn't mean that you take a holiday from sleeping. If there are news stories showing concern that people are playing this much there is nothing wrong with that.
Sarah Mar 1st 2007 9:48AM
Addiction is caused by something (usually a substance ) causing chemical changes in the brain or body creating a need for said item. Unless gaming causes said changes, I think what the media means is compulsion, a psychological desire to do something over and over that can result in the same symptoms as addiction but unless someone has physical withdrawals from not gaming I don't think we're looking at addiction here. That's not to say compulsive anything is a good thing, but its psychological, not physical.
Sorry I hate it when people throw words around and don't use their meanings properly, pet peeve :P
That being said, I seriously don't think that compulsive online gaming is as rampant as people make it out to be, but thats just the media throwing fuel on the fire of an ignorant population. Burn the witches!
MattRossi Mar 1st 2007 10:06AM
I play WoW a lot. Probably way too much. But I generally stop before I die.
SeiferTim Mar 1st 2007 10:16AM
60% of all statistics are made up on the spot.
Wamphyri Mar 1st 2007 10:17AM
@6 - I like your style! Let us know if you ever forget to stop in time . . .
Zuuler Mar 1st 2007 10:23AM
Stuff like this aggitates me like nothing else can.
Its so easy to blame music, movies, tv, and games for things that happen. They blamed Doom for Columbine, Marilyn Manson and Ozzy for suicides, and movies and TVs for creating perverts. The fact of it can be summed up in one sentence...
Some people are just messed up.
Those Columbine kids had to have some other problems to make them do what they did. Doom may have influenced the way they did what they did, but not why they did what they did. There were plenty of warning signs and no one took them seriously.
Anyone who commits suicide has to have something really bad happen to them. I really don't think a song would make you want to kill yourself. Its just easier for people to blame a song instead of the fact that they let someone they love down.
People have hormones. Some people can't control their hormones. Perverts will get their kicks one way or another. Better for them to get them from movies or tv and not running out to actually do it.
Violence, sex, suicide, all existed LONG BEFORE MODERN DAY MEDIA. People act like media created these problems, but in reality all they are is a scapegoat for problems people don't want to admit exists.
The fact of the matter is the guy weighed 330 pounds, he had to have health problems already. If he had died sitting in front of the TV, no one would have said a word. But because he died after playing games for a full week, everyone is going to point and games as the reason he died.
Get over it people, why not admit the fact that a majority of people in civilized countries are obese and have weight associated health problems and probably would have died no matter what they were doing.
Go out and run around the block a few times.
Bradley Nash Mar 1st 2007 10:51AM
@6 - ROFLMAO!!
But seriously, wtf? I understand that WoW is "addictive" (i don't like using that word for games, but when in rome...) but when I go for more than 24 hours without sleep, I can't function well enough to speak, let alone play video games. And more than 12 hours without food and I feel like I'm gonna die. I don't know if he thought his 330 lbs would sustain him through his whole break or what... This is not the fault of WoW, this is the result of stupidity. And thanks to this kid, I'm gonna have to listen to Jack Thompson's retarded comments for another couple of months. I knew a guy in college we found passed out in the shower from lack of sleep and food because of WoW. He was a retard, too. GJ n00b!
Twinny Mar 1st 2007 10:27AM
@6,
LOL, i too try to avoid dieing where possible.
crsh Mar 1st 2007 11:26AM
So let's throw something out there that he spent 120 hours straight (that's 5 full consecutive days) doing (insert something); anything will kill you at that rate, online gaming, eating/not-moving/not-peeing, or watching tv.
Anyway, this is hardly representative of the online gaming community at large; yes there are addicts, but it's not like many die from it on a regular basis.
For that matter, I've "known" two WoW gamers on my server who committed suicide over the past year, there's another conspiracy theory for ya.
Heymish Mar 1st 2007 10:46AM
Amen Sarah!
Double Amen Zuuler!!
Facists will use this incident to further hamper our gaming enjoyment. People like Hillary Clinton, who want to put MANY restrictions on games, will say "See! I told you games were bad!", when we should be saying, "See! A lot of people in the world ARE idiots!"
Heymish Mar 1st 2007 10:48AM
Edit: Fascists
mr_disco Mar 1st 2007 11:37AM
(@7)
I thought it was 78% of stats... oh well
Zuuler Mar 1st 2007 11:50AM
I heard a story about somoe kid in china who commited suicide after played WoW for a week or so straight and in his suicide note he said he was doing it to "Join the heroes in Azeroth". Now if someone says he died because of WoW and not from a mental isntability, well, come to my house, I'd like to introduce you to my friend Intelligence.
Why can't the theory of evolution weed out the people who make claims such as "WoW killed my son"?
Elomeno Mar 1st 2007 12:16PM
They've done studies, you know. 60% of the time, it works every time.
Pritchard Mar 1st 2007 12:32PM
Just before fatty's heart exploded, he uttered one final wish...
...nerf warlocks...(gasp)
Heymish Mar 1st 2007 12:58PM
Next thing you know, games will have to have warnings of health risks just like cigarettes do. Then we'll have all those stupid truth comercials depicting in "insightful" and "creative" ways how many people WoW kills every year.
Obmulap Mar 1st 2007 1:38PM
Last time I checked my PC had an off switch and it functioned as designed. WoW addiction maybe, but to blame a game because he didn't have the sense to get up and walk away. And this whole thing with he only had two options TV or computer? At 330lbs he should have been thinking about jogging or something at the local park, unless they don't have those in China.