How games negatively affected my life
Posted by Saulo on July 17th, 2007 in Personal. 23 Comments
A short but true story of someone who decided to quit World of Warcraft.
In the afternoon of November 23 of 2004, after my last class of the day, I headed to a computer store where I had reserved a copy of World of Warcraft Collector’s Edition. Three years later, I look back and I realize how I almost ruined my life with a computer game.
I am an undergraduate in Software Engineering. I feel kind of silly writing this, but I will share my true story with the intent of helping somebody who might be going through what I went through. I hope this will not bore you.
I was addicted to WoW during my first year of university. I seemed to be a pretty dedicated student; I did not miss any lectures and took detailed notes. However, my head would wander elsewhere—be it sketching my character, building its skills and planning the next quests. As an active member of a guild, I was the first to get a mount. Every day of my life led to the same—as soon as I got home, I would go straight to the computer and log in to WoW. My idea of having a good time was spending hours and hours in front of the screen completing quests, leveling up and earning gold at the auction house.
All was fun until I saw my first transcript: A+, C+, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, D- and D-.
With these results, I had a GPA of 1.96. In my institution, you need to keep it higher than 2.00, or else you get expelled. I decided to take a definite and concrete action. Not only did I uninstall WoW from my computer but also I completely eliminated games from my life. If I told you that I even removed the solitaire card game that comes with Windows, you would probably laugh, but I really wanted to stick with my resolution.
I also changed my studying habits. I stayed long hours at the university, reading lectures in advance, redoing exercises, rewriting notes—I pretty much lived at the library at that point. When I got my transcript I thought it was someone else’s: A, A, A, A-, B, B, B, B, B-, D+ and D-.
I knew that if I could stay focused and stick to my study routine, I would do even better. I was not mistaken. Here is my transcript for the third year: A+, A, A, A-, A-, A-, B+ and B-. Nothing below a B-grade, and now I have a cummulative GPA of 3.02.
That is only one side of my life that changed. Since I quit, I have met many interesting people, including a gorgeous and smart girl who is now my fiancée.
Some will say that it was not the game that influenced me but it was I who had problems in the first place; that might have been the case. I agree that games do not ruin lives, people ruin lives; all I can say is that I am a much more complete and happy person now.
July 19th, 2007 at 21:48
Good Job Saulo!
I read this and also told Alex about it! And we are both proud of you! Keep it up! :)
July 19th, 2007 at 22:10
Thank you for your comment, Sami! Also thanks for visiting!
I’m looking forward to going back to school in September… :)
July 20th, 2007 at 04:22
Oh, too true.
I had a similar thing with Star Wars Galaxies across the second half of my first year and first half of the second. Grades all downhill. Couldn’t stop until I awoke in a cold sweat, having dreamt I actually was my online character. That freaked me out enought to kick the habit.
Managed to make it out the third year after that!
July 23rd, 2007 at 15:17
Hey James,
I am glad to hear you were able to survive as well. I promised myself I would not play any computer games while I was studying. I’ve been keeping my promise since 2004. I still have four semesters to go :)
July 26th, 2007 at 00:34
Wow is better then actual reality. Whats the point of real life if you could be a magical wizard and create your own food and water. YOU’LL NEVER STARVE! GOLD GOLD GOLD I NEED MORE GOLD!
August 1st, 2007 at 00:57
I guess I’ll add my comment here too:
Games like World of Warcraft can be a menace, and even worse in teenagers,
I know cases of teens that seems to be losing reality because they are at that age when you have too many issues and you want to forget about them, therefore they find a solution: living in a unreal world (nowadays it’s easy with those games). It is not just World of Warcraft, it’s also games like Ultima Online, DarkEven, Halo 2, even there’s one called “Second life”.
I believe those kinds of games are like drugs; let’s face it: game developers are making addictive games to their legal limits, because it’s their business; their business is to make you spent all your time possible behind a monitor in a fake reality they made for you —and whatever make you lose reality is wrong.
Teens at their age are becoming adults and they are facing the world, and they must face the real one; getting their life wasted while playing hours and hours in a fake one is just as bad as getting any kind of drugs (alcohol, weed, etc!), they eventually alienated you from reality, from friends, from relationships, from duties, from everything.
I don’t play games very often since I’m just too busy with work and projects, but I must accept I was one of those “Diablo junkies” that killed too many times Diablo in Diablo 1, and had 2 accounts with 12 characters +88 level in Diablo 2 and L.O.D…. but Diablo is not even half the bad WoW is… because WoW is too addictive for young ones, and it will destroy their wallets, or their parent’s because it’s not even free.
August 23rd, 2007 at 14:22
OKay… I’ve played WoW since it came out, I still do. I’m a big part of a guild that raids and I have a number of alts that I switch between. Since then, I’ve still had a fulfilling life, and I make the dean’s list every year *business admin./marketing major.* You only let a game control and affect your life if you let it. I’m glad you made the right choice since you couldnt concentrate with games around you, but if you look at it, you studied more and focused yourself. That was a whole other point. I wouldnt have even looked twice at this post if you had not brought it up on a facebook group. Trying to convert are we?
August 23rd, 2007 at 16:44
Hi linds,
With that article I didn’t want to say that you can’t lead a normal life while being active playing World of Warcraft. As I mentioned, the aim was to share my experience and hopefully help others who are in the same situation. For instance, there are many cases where MMORPGs have created friction within relationships.
I am sure the majority of World of Warcraft players lead a balanced and healthy social life, but for the few that do not, I suggest them to read this article.
As far as I am concerned, I brought this up only in anti-WoW groups—if I wanted to “convert” someone I wouldn’t have done so. :)
August 28th, 2007 at 14:04
I have not really played the game, But I do have/had friend that played the game. They only see people who actually play the game. I have gotten caught up in to games before but never enough to not hang out with friend that i knew since The 7th Grade! So now After Completing a 2nd education for computer Networking and management I work for a Medical Company Known as Biomet. In Parsippany NJ. And all my Friend i use to have and still talk to still play WoW and are currently Just passing there courses! But i Am thinking about starting up a character just so i can fit in with them but I myself know how to not let things get out of control!!!
August 31st, 2007 at 17:48
@Pensador: i wish i could quit. i just cant when i uninstall it i end up reinstalling it…. =(
September 1st, 2007 at 11:12
Hi louis.
This is not an easy thing to do, but I know it is not impossible because I did it. It’s a decision only you can take. Make a list of activities that have nothing to do with gaming (e.g. sports, hanging out with friends, reading, etc.) and occupy yourself with them.
Maybe you should stop playing gradually; set realistic goals and reward yourself as you achieve them. An example of a goal would be to play maximum one hour a day for the first week, then one hour every two days for the second and so forth.
Let me know what you think about keep me posted on your progress.
September 17th, 2007 at 13:26
Saulo,
I am also very proud of you and told Alex, aka Sacha about your accomplishments. I also know someone who ruined a whole relationship because of this type of games…I wish you luck in your future endeavours…
Love,
B to the ern
September 22nd, 2007 at 21:13
Wow. Know what? Not everyone who plays is ADDICTED. If you don’t have enough will power to NOT let it dominate your life, then it sucks to be you– don’t go forcing your beliefs about it on others who do it for fun, HEALTHILY or whatever you will call it. People who wish to ban games and that sort of thing are ridiculous– first of all, you must have no life if you spend your time criticizing those who play them. Some of us “geeks,” as you’ve (crudely) labeled us, ENJOY it WITHOUT becoming “addicted.” I know many students, including myself, who lead healthy, social lives with very good GPAs, whilst playing WoW or (God forbid) other online games for a block of time several days a week, or more.
So you know what?
Back off.
And stop ripping on those who do it for FUN, and have no need of your attempts at conversion, or whatever.
= D
September 23rd, 2007 at 13:34
I find it’s easy for me to misunderstand what people try to say when I am behind a computer, anonymous. If I had the chance to talk to you in person about what happened to me that year (that is what the article is about after all) I am pretty sure, or at least I hope, your reaction would have beeen different.
With that in mind, it took me a while to decide whether I approved your comment or not. I was unsure if this was a failed attempt to trolling or a case of withdrawal from a game addict. I decided to give you to the benefit of the doubt and to reply with a legitimate comment. Here are the points I want to raise:
WoW is without a doubt an amazing game. In fact, I realized it was too good for me. That is why I quit.
/salute
October 1st, 2007 at 16:22
Seriously… I’m a 15 years old WoW Player. I started playing WoW Since WoW Beta (when i was 12). From then on, no idea why but i started to go down… when i started playing, it was the middle of 7th grade and my grade report was full of A’s and b’s, nothing less than a B! but at the end of 7th grade… My grades dropped like flies… For the fricking 1st time of my life, i got an F in my report card. Luckily i didn’t get expelled but since that year… I never get an A, EVER! and until now… Can someone PLEASE HELP ME! I just can’t QUIT IT >_< I WOULD LOVE TO BE A NERD RIGHT NOW…… I tried quitting the game 100 times already and didnt work!
November 9th, 2007 at 06:03
I think threads like this are hilarious.
I didn’t have a life-affecting problem with MMOs but I did play Everquest on and off from launch to the Prophecy of Ro expansion (7 years?). I gotta say I must’ve just done it with the right crowd. A bunch of fun-loving happy jerks that did everything that game had to offer and shit on every stupid n00b and crying baby in the server. I don’t really regret a day of it. Maybe WoW is full of whiney little kids, I don’t really know. But honestly, you guys are sob stories. Drugs have much more a profound affect on a person’s life. How can you even compare the two? Christ, computer games don’t wither your body… just your social life. But I guess everyone needs something to point their finger at when their life sucks.
Everybody should play games like this. They’re fun. Unless, like with anything else, you take it too far
December 10th, 2007 at 09:06
I know I am addicted but it hasn’t ruined my life and i don’t care, because it was going down the toilet anyway, atlease it gives me some enjoyment in my life at the moment.
I got the game with my boyfriend over a year ago back in May 2006, at first I play alot but then I got bored after a few months so stop playing. Then towards the end of 2006 my boyfriend lost his job and we had to move back to our parents, but I decided that since I was back at home i should go back to college so I could become a vet nurse like I wanted. College never panned out however I had only been there for a month when I got a letter saying that I couldn’t have my loan to pay for my course fee’s because my course wasn’t high enough. I don’t have the money to pay it myself cos I have to pay rent to my parents as well as a loan left from last year, I was ready playing WOW again just a few hours a week at this time.
This news crushed me, all my plans down to tube and still with a job I hate it was then I started to play alot more, and when my boyfriend got his own account the more hours I spent on it. I now play atleased 3-4 hours a day now if not more and if I am off work about 8, sure I have no socal life but then I never had one to start with.
If I quit what will I have my boyfriend will still most likely play on it, being addicted to WOW isn’t so bad atleased it gives me something to look forward to. There are many things worse to be addicted to than a computer game its not hurting anyone, i think most people let themselves get addicted I know I did.
January 30th, 2008 at 18:55
I am a biology student…one of the more demanding and time consuming majors out there…and my grades are around what yours were after you quit WoW…minus the D’s. I play WoW a lot, a lot more than I should, but my GPA has not suffered and is still above the average of most university students. One incident of one guy’s grades dramatically improving after he quits the game does not reflect the supposed “control” that the game has on player’s lives. That is all.
February 1st, 2008 at 03:07
i know exactly how the whole addiction thing must have felt. cuz i went (and to some extent) still going thru it all.
on my last year of college, my GPA suffered alot from spending too much time playing on WoW. I lvled up a mage from 1 to 70 in 3 weeks.. right in the middle of my exams.. so you’d know what that can do to GPA.
But there is one thing to consider:
I basically grew up playing video games. probably since Atari came out like a billion years ago. I know for a fact that if it wasn’t WoW, i would definitely be spending my spare time playing another game. before i discovered WoW, i spent a lot of time playing Battlefield series and FIFA series. both multiplayer games. So, at least in my case, it’s not about WoW. it’s either me or the whole video game thing. lol.
I have a solution though! 2 words: parental controls!
i have now blocked out the all the play times after 1am. that’s a start for me. I would stay up till 5 in the morning if it didnt automatically log me out. i’m now taking steps to extend even beyond that. perhaps to 12am in next week and so on.
i highly recommand checking the parental control thing on WoW’s website to everyone who understand where i’m coming from.
March 18th, 2008 at 13:24
I had the same trouble as you Pensador with the same consequences. I’ve played it for just under a year now and i’ve found it really hard to maintain my grades at uni, and it has also been causing me to become socially inhibited and killing my body clock!
I cant say that I will quit WoW, not just yet as i have some friends on there and we do enjoy going on the game and playing together. However for those people that are struggling with the willpower aspect of it, whether it be re-installing it or just not coming off when you said you would, get someone that you trust to change your password. My girlfriend does this for me when I have deadlines or when she thinks i’ve over played it, and there is nothing i can do about it! admittedly i will still think about the game a lot of the time, and sometimes get frustrated when i can’t play, however it can be damaging and this is working for me really well!
For those people reading this article and deciding to argue about it, re-read it. Pensador was stating what he did, not preaching or anything that would offend anyone! And at the ‘drugs are worse’ post, people get affected by different things to different severities, so dont put someone down cos they are having a tough time with gaming, its not their fault!
Thanks for the article, it’s nice to know that other people are going through the same things and that its working out for you.
April 10th, 2008 at 19:44
It took me ages to quit, but when I did, my GPA shot up from a decent 3.2 to a 3.8.. though only .6, that last bit is the hardest to get and means the most.
I played too much, but I also learned alot from the game and the people in it. Hell IBM or some company even thinks future leaders will come from games like WoW etc.
What convinced me to quit? The eventual realization that there was no point… and selling before expansion proved worth the thousands :). Most people will eventually realize that farming and raiding isn’t as fun as it sounds, and that they only play because of their E-friends. Real life can be more fun than most people think, unless you just “party” and get wasted as a form of socializing.
November 18th, 2008 at 11:13
Good for you. Personally, I haven’t felt the desire to play video games since the SNES days. Once I told someone that I live out in the country where we can only get Internet access through dial-up and his question is, “How do you play WoW?”. My question, “Why would I want to?”.
About your As without studying, that was in Remedial Algebra, wasn’t it? That (called Developmental Algebra, Math 099, at my college) and Spanish I have been the only classes I’ve taken that basically required zero studying.
@Rom: Real life sucks and you know it.
May 11th, 2009 at 17:38
This instructions may help the the younger kids, 4chan users and such… it speaks their language, with a powerful message…
http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/5103/1195719211326nj1.gif