Gamer Forgets to Take a Break During Gaming Binge, Dies
Tell me if you have heard this story before – a man rents a private room at an Internet cafe, plays a game for 40 hours straight and then dies. While the game and the time might vary between them, the story does not seem to shake sense into gamers that don’t understand the importance of taking a break when gaming.
Gaming is a happy hobby that allows us to experience strange new worlds, or be that empowering person that we are too shy to be in real life. It makes us a hero that saves the day, or a character that does the most vile things in the name of the greater good. But most of all, it is supposed to be something fun that we enjoy for a period of time, and then we step away. Unfortunately, a young man in China did not see it that way, and after 18 short years, he will never play another game.
It seems that this individual rented that private room at an Internet Gaming cafe, sat down and went on a 40 hour straight binge playing nothing but Diablo III. After 40 hours of no sleep, no eating or what I would assume is no bathroom breaks, his heart gave out. It was ruled that cardiac arrest killed him.
There are many times that we as gamers get hooked into a game, sometimes for hours at a time. Right now, I have been hooked into Fallout New Vegas for hours at a time each night after my wife and son go to bed. The difference is that after about two hours, I have to step away. The twinge of carpel tunnel syndrome starts to kick in, and my thirst for food and drink makes me get up and walk away from the computer. Sometimes, I might just flip over to Netflix, or I just want to get out of my somewhat uncomfortable desk chair that needs to be replaced.
The bottom line is that gamers around the world really need to understand the idea of taking a break from your passion. Yes, Diablo III can get intense, and there is that hook of wanting to get that last piece of legendary armor you have been looking for, but at the end of the day, is it really worth your life? That piece of armor will be there another day. So will the game, we promise.
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“Why not take a break? You can pause the game by pressing +”
Wii Sports has been warning of these dangers for years. Better listen, people.
Play more Wii.
PTA Type: “He should be outside, killing REAL Diablos.”