Death(suicide) of Game Addict

[CXGJarrod]

Everquest = Digital Crack

My friend helps think of some of the adventures for new add ons to Everquest and that is what he says about it.

I do feel sorry for the family, but you do need to have a balance of real life and online life. Someone did need to step in, as was mentioned before..

[auntie]

I can commiserate with that woman and how she feels. I had a 24 year old son who committed suicide it makes you feel rejected, angry and sad all at the same time . The death of a child knocks you flat on your back you learn to adjust with time but it is the most anguishing thing that you will ever live through.. To make such remarks like she should have helped him more doesn't always hold true. We knew Chris was depressed , we sought help but it was as thought he was behind an transparent invisible wall through which no one could reach. That boy in this article was depressed which is a chemial imbalance and can be corrected many times with medication but at 21 or 24 you can no longer tell that person what to do. At the time you think, "what if I had done? what if we had said"? but still are confused This man already had this problem when he was playing this game that much is true.Some people cannot cope as well as others who is to say what will break or ensnare any of you? Just be grateful that those of you who are well balanced have been truly blessed.Right now she is going through hell and lashing out at life. Auntie

[IchNiSan]

Everquest is without question a very addictive game. I myself was heavilly addicted to it for 18 months. Finally, I quit. Bottom line is, the reason Everquest is so addictive is because it is a great game. What this woman's lawsuit is essentially doing is suing sony for making a good game. Totally ridiculous.

I had lots of the same symptoms as this kid. I quit seeing alot of my friends, I would stay up till all hours of the morning, sometimes not go to bed before I had to go to work again. All I could think about was everquest. This having been said, my life was never in danger. If I got pissed off at the game, I would have quit(which I in fact did, after getting pissed off). This kids suicide is in no way related to Everquest. If anything, he wound up so deep into the game because he already had a major problem, and was using the game as an escape. People do this with books, TV, alcohol, all kinds of things. If someone dies because they were depressed and commited suicide while drunk, do you sue the alcohol distributer? Manufacturer, store? No, you don't. If, the guy had been drunk all ready, and then bought more alchohol, and drank it, and the killed someone in an accident, yeah, then sue the store potentially.

I feel for this kids mother, but this stupidity doesn't help matters. Her kid is still dead. SOny is not responsible, or at least they have a lot less potential responsibility than someone who may be suing them over this. I am not saying she is responsible, but, they arent either.

[Chuck56]

You said it all, IchNiSan. I agree totally. For the past decade or so, it's been a pattern to sue for any reason. Some years ago, a lady in a nearby city sued McDonald's because she bought a cup of coffee and, while driving away, spilled it on herself and was burned. She sued because it was too hot and there was no warning on the cup. I see little difference.

Maybe the game makers should warn people that the game could be addictive, or harmful to the player's health?? That's about as ridiculous as something I read where some people now want warnings on candy bars saying they could cause cavities or skin blemishes (acne?).

[roswell1329]

To be fair to the recently deceased's mother, she really isn't suing Sony for wrongful death. She's attempting to force them to include warning labels on their packaging. The article did say that the boy had a few more problems beyond EverQuest:

Woolley knows her son had problems beyond EverQuest, and she tried to get him help by contacting a mental health program and trying to get him to live in a group home. A psychologist diagnosed him with depression and schizoid personality disorder, symptoms of which include a lack of desire for social relationships, little or no sex drive and a limited range of emotions in social settings.

It is possible that some people with certain medical and psychological disorders can react in a way not intended by the manufacturers. I wish it wasn't necessary to force manufacturers to be responsible enough to warn people when they uncover possible side-effects of their products through litigation, but this article did say that Sony had not responded yet to this woman's inquiries. The idea that video games can have serious side-effects isn't new, either. Remember those stickers that popped up on Arcade games not too long ago?

A VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF INDIVIDUALS MAY EXPERIENCE EPILEPTIC SEIZURES
WHEN EXPOSED TO CERTAIN LIGHT PATTERNS OR FLASHING LIGHTS.EXPOSURE TO
CERTAIN LIGHT PATTERNS OF BACKGROUNDS ON A TELEVISION SCREEN OR WHILE
COMPUTER GAMES MAY INDUCE AN EPILEPTIC SEIZURE IN THESE INDIVIDUALS.CERTAIN
CONDITIONS MAY INDUCE UNDETECTED EPILEPTIC SYMPTOMS IN PERSONS WITH NO
HISTORY OF PRIOR SEIZURES OF EPILEPSY.IF YOU,OR ANYONE IN YOUR FAMILY,HAS
AN EPILEPTIC CONDITION,CONSULT YOUR DOCTOR PROIR TO PLAYING.IF YOU
EXPERIENCE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING SYMPTOMS WHILE PLAYING A COMPUTER GAME-:
DIZZINESS,ALTERED VISION,EYE OR MUSCLE TWITCHES,LOSS OF AWARENESS,
DISORIENTATION,CONVULSIONS,IMMEDIATELY DISCONTINUE USE AND CONSUL A DOCTOR BEFORE RESUMING PLAY.

While I agree it sometimes seems silly to warn everyone of that condition when the percentage of people affected by it is so small, but for those people it does affect, this is a very serious warning.

Liability lawsuits have become the punchline of every lawyer joke this decade, but some of them do serve a legitimate purpose. I don't know what the outcome of this suit will be, but I don't think I'll be too bummed if EverQuest starts carrying a warning.

Just a few thoughts.

[DivineRogue]

I totally agree with the fact that is it stupid to sue because her son commited suicide. First off its not the game that caused his suicide. Also suffering from depression, and being a former game addict, I can see how the video game did not help my situation, but it wasn't the reason for my attempted suicide back in June of 2001... His mother does have the right to grieve her son's death, but is going about it the wrong way. Instead of suing the company that makes the video game why doesnt she support (or start) a group for game addicts??? She shouldn't revenge her son's death by suing the company, she should try and help people so the same thing doesnt happen to other familys. Her son's death was a result of a mental illness, not from playing EverQuest. She is definatly going through hell, and is looking for something/someone to blame. She just needs time.

[IchNiSan]

You know, they say they are suing to force them to put warning labels on, but when it comes to liability lawsuits, almost everytime, it's all about the benjamins.

Check this quote from the lawyer, I always take lawyers and politicians with a grain of salt when they hold a press conference, but this statement at least has some truth. "verdict significantly large" = ALL ABOUT THE BENJAMINS.

If they were truly concerned about warning labels, the remedy they would be asking for would be warning labels, but, it isn't. It is all about money.

"We're trying to whack them with a verdict significantly large so that they, out of fiscal self-interest, will put warning labels on," he said. "We're trying to get them to act responsibly. They know this is an addictive game."

Maybe there should be a warning put on all computers.

WARNING!!!!!! Proficiency with this device may lead to lack of friends, girlfriends, and generally, a life. You have been warned, use it at your own peril.

[remix]

This story is from The Register, an online IT newspaper. www.theregister.co.uk
Man dies playing computer games
By Tim Richardson
Posted: 10/10/2002 at 12:05 GMT


A South Korean man died after a marathon session playing computer games.

The unemployed man was discovered in the toilets of an Internet café in Kwangju, 160 miles south-west of Seoul.

According to Ananova, he collapsed and died after playing computer games for 86 hours non-stop without food or sleep.

In February a mother from Louisiana sued Nintendo for "unspecified damages" after her son died during a marathon session playing games.

The game player hit his head on a table during a seizure while playing with the console. ®

[auntie]

I did just that we started a suicide training and awareness program in our town. so that other people might come forth and learn about depression its causes and what to do.We were told when we went to the emergency room he could not be held forcfully because of his age.. He had a very bad year ,lost a girlfriend , his truck (the engine blew up)( lost a job) broke his femur when dirt bike riding ,etc, it was one thing after the other. I think if he had been older he would have realized everyone has a bad spell.Bye the time someone was listening to us his depression was in full force. So sometimes help comes too late. Many people are too embarrased to go to someone and others think they can beat it on their own. If you or anyone you know is depressed try to get them to seek help. Auntie

[pleak]

I have known several people who have commited suicide, and one who was a close personal friend. The feeling is terible and all you want to do is have some sort of solace in place for your grief. But I strongly disagree that anyone should sue for damages that the victum placed on him/herself in the first place. Not the gamming company, community, or the game itself is to blame. The person was obviously not right with him/herself and needed help, whether it come from a professional, family member, or close friend. Sometimes all it takes is a person asking "whats wrong" for the person to realize that some one cares. I used to be suicidal and the only reason I am here is that a close friend of mine was coherent enough to realize that something was wrong the came up to me to talk about it. The thought that someone out there actually cared about me and would be hurt from my death was enough to keep me alive. If the mother of the suiside victum wanted to do something about her sons death, she should try to help others, rather than placing blame.