I joined WoW about a year ago, just after i had started uni. I wanted to see for myself what all the fuss about the game was, as i'd heard stories of people killing themselves over it.
The first 4 days I played, i hated the game. I Couldnt understand what was so good about it. Then once i actually started playing it properly and got to see some of the high level players, i was totaly hooked and couldnt stop thinking about it.
Personally i think their is some addiction, in that you want to be like all the cool looking high level players, and play and play untill you get there. This is because when you start out, your character basicly looks like a piece of shit, and so you start to imagine how much youl own everyone once youre a level 60.
I once played the game for 16 hours straight (I EAT OF COURSE).
It's strange to think that to begin with I just couldnt understand what was that good about the game, but in the end I just couldnt get enough of it. Then i finally got bored and realised that the game often feels like a bad halloween party. Also that all players do is try to get the best gear, and be cooler than the others, basicly means that theres allways gunna be petty arguments over who get what. I found myself getting upset when i got blamed for something i didnt cause and got kicked out of an MC raid-which is pretty pathetic when it's just a computer game, that's an example of how much some people (me) can get absorbed into the virtual world.
So all in all, Im kind of glad i got to experience the game, however I do really think it's addictive in the way that you can get obsessed over it, when its not even all that good. Or is it?
I recently met an old friend at a party, and ended up talking about computer games, he mentioned WoW, and i said that im glad i don't play it anymore, and how addictive it is. He told me about this guy i used to know years ago, and that all he does is sit there in a pile of rubbish, stuffing his face and playing wow. He even get's people to go to the shop for him to get more booze/food to keep him going.
I dont think that you have to have mental issues to get addicted. Simply, if say in the future there will be a game which looks and feels like reality, yet you can do anything you want, and so it would be far better than a lot of peoples poor, boring lives-Would it be a mental dissorder to play it? even though its better than life?
For WoW though, You possibly have to be the kind of person who would play any game for hours and hours all day anyway, like me.
To be honset, most of the leveling up is really boring when you compare it to playing other non MMORPG games. Its so repetative. But theirs a kind of addictive satisfaction that you get each time you level up, like once youve done some household chores, or a piece of work, then you feel good for completing them.
Still, I often miss my friends and wonder of the fun their having. But I am glad i don't play anymore. Ive actually got into reading books since i gave up, and get out of the house more.
Im now looking forward to playing BF2142, and next year ther's a Pirate MMO coming out called Pirates of the burning sea, which you should check out.