How do games affect us?

"Hello, I to suffer from an addiction to computer games, namly EVERQUEST. To tell u the truth, i just deleted the game now. I feel this sence of empty ness, this feeling is just tearing me up inside and i know that it is my withdrawl pains.

Computergames are runing my life, and i relize this, but i just can't stop thinking about playing them. Whenever i stop playing, that time is basically spent thinking about computer games and not my studying, therefore, i suffer. I take LONG *breaks* from my studies just to play computer games, so i suffer. I have spent the last 7 years of my life playing games and therefore, i havent developed into a socialy-interactive person, so i suffer. Because of computer games, i have like no REAL friends, I WILL NOT DENY THIS!, so i suffer. BEcause of compter games, my family life suffers because i force everyone off the computer so that i may play, now my entire family is apathetic towards me, so i suffer.

I am currently facing suicide because of games.... so my family might suffer. The playing of all games should be regulated at all times." "Please watch your son closly. And if you really want to do him a favour, take the computer away, or delete his characters, delete the game, and take his EQ disc and break it. He WILL BE at you for liek a month, but eventually, he will become a *normal* person. Its harsh, its cruel, but i tell u what: when he looks back upon his life, he will thank you for doing so, as would i if my parents did this along time ago for me."

"JUST TAKE MY WORD FOR IT! MY LIFE IS RUINED, ITS NOW LIKE A NUCLEAR WASTE LAND WHICH I HAVE TO REBUILD TO ITS ORIGINAL GARDIN OF EDIN BEAUTY! THIS WILL TAKE A LONGGGGG TIME AND THE PROCESS WILL BE HELL ON EARTH!"

When his not-too-tech-savvy parents had threatened to unplug the machine, he told them that doing so would destroy it (they believed him). He'd go for a week without bathing or eating a proper meal. He finally stopped going to school for a semester because he couldn't tear himself away.

Stark eventually reached the highest EverQuest levels and sold three characters on eBay for $4,500.

Education Arcade represents a consortium of international game designers, publishers, scholars, educators, and policy makers who are exploring the new frontiers of educational media that have been opened by computer and video games. Their mission is to demonstrate the social, cultural, and educational potentials of games by initiating new game development projects, coordinating interdisciplinary research efforts, and informing public conversations about the broader and sometimes unexpected uses of this emerging art form in education. They want to lead change in the way the world learns through computer and video games.