Is World of Warcraft addictive?

[Beverly]

A good friend of mine plays World of Warcraft constantly, though he's also very active with college. Every minute that he's not studying or in class, he's playing online. I'm just wondering if this game is very addictive. He has asked me to download WoW to play too but I don't want to get addicted as I have other gaming interests as well as a job and family responsibilities.

 

[Saffy]

It can be, yes... I actually skipped homework for WoW quite a bit... and got dropped from some classes due to it.. I can't afford to play anymore so it's for the better so I can get all my general ed done and pay more attention to the babies. I said the same thing as you did though back in 2006 or so... maybe 2007 because my cousin was like that.. he went to school, got home, played wow, stayed up until 2am, didn't study.. but he has a photographic memory but none the less I didn't want to get addicted. I'd say try it and see, if you find yourself too hooked, then don't play it. You can limit your time, you just have to stick to it!

 

[BrokenDownFlier]

I'll agree that it can be addictive but it's not hard to overcome. I managed to avoid being assimilated until last February during one of their special sales that a friend had posted to Facebook. I stuck around for about 18 months before kicking the WoWcrack habit. There was still a lot of achievements or other content I hadn't managed to finish but I decided to stop playing. Losing my job also had something to do with why I quit; just not as much as getting bored with the constant daily grinding for quests or reputation.

I do play other games though, so I'm not sure if I'll ever stop being a game junkie.

 

[Avex]

It just depends what sort of games you're into.
@Jordan offered to pay for some feature for it if I played for a certain amount of time and liked it, but I really didn't enjoy it all that much compared to him, who had a really unhealthy addiction with the game.

 

[Issae]

All sorts of behaviors can be addictive, but I think it takes the right personality to be open to addiction to video games.

I'm a game hobbyist. People all over have different hobbies, gaming just happens to be mine. To some, it may appear to a form of addiction, but it's all about managing priorities, knowing when to take a break. I guess it also comes from being a bit older; I have a house, job, and wife. I can still come home from work and log strait into a game, but I still have to know to keep my house clean, get to work at a reasonable hour, etc.

 

[Saffy]

grinding the dailies was part of the reason I quit, I had no time to do that after I had my second child and I was taking more classes because I'm trying to get my education done. I think if you stick to a schedule or something you won't be so addicted.. It's about time management mostly, if you do it right you can make time to play and do whatever else you want to do which I never thought about but that really what it is.. and what Issae said, managing priorities.

 

[Jordan]

A good friend of mine plays World of Warcraft constantly, though he's also very active with college. Every minute that he's not studying or in class, he's playing online. I'm just wondering if this game is very addictive. He has asked me to download WoW to play too but I don't want to get addicted as I have other gaming interests as well as a job and family responsibilities.

I use to be heavily addicted. Don't play so much anymore. I don't have as much time as I use to. That is with all the websites I run.

It just depends what sort of games you're into.
@Jordan offered to pay for some feature for it if I played for a certain amount of time and liked it, but I really didn't enjoy it all that much compared to him, who had a really unhealthy addiction with the game.

So far I have bought 6 accounts xD
3 are mine. #Awks. Others I bought for other people xD

grinding the dailies was part of the reason I quit, I had no time to do that after I had my second child and I was taking more classes because I'm trying to get my education done. I think if you stick to a schedule or something you won't be so addicted.. It's about time management mostly, if you do it right you can make time to play and do whatever else you want to do which I never thought about but that really what it is.. and what Issae said, managing priorities.

One of mine to. Just simply got reallllyyyy boring. Really repetitive fast, and it was really a requirement at the beginning to be able to get stuff.

 

[Saffy]

I don't know how to quote on here... lol but yes it got very boring very fast too! I enjoyed the "pokemon" for a while but that got old too.. and the "auction house game" when I was playing for a while.. I was making a ton of gold.. but ended up spending it on pets.. I haven't checked out this new patch really.. I have to look at the changes

 

[Thomas Hall]

I thought it was, as you are building cities and collecting gold, and exploring huge areas. I would spend around two to three hours a day playing the game, as I had other things to do so did not play all night and sleep the next day. It makes you feel part of the game, as if you are in the game world and belong there and it is the real world and want to stay on it forever and never leave it. The game is quite easy to play, while I found it to be buying men, and feeding them and fighting wars and collecting the loot and fighting beasts was cool.

 

[mauricioq]

A lot! At least it was for me. All I head in my mind was leveling and then get the best gear and mounts possible. Then I wanted to be the best pvp player... It's super addictive so be careful.

 

[CosmicOdyssey]

It's designed to be addictive every mmo is. Some people simply function quite well with addiction.

 

[cyberpinoy]

Yes it an be very addicting. there is something abut pushing yourself to get those few extra XP for that next level to be able to use something you were not able to use yesterday. Once you get one hero where you are happy you want to start another one then another one and you just keep going until you cant do it anymore, then go back and continue leveling the ones you have.

 

[Nate5]

I played for a while but it didn't really interest me. However, a friend of mine put his heart and soul into it, it was almost scary. After he started playing, I never really saw him anymore, and he didn't seem as interested in hanging out or socializing. He also gained a lot of weight and started eating pretty unhealthily. Fortunately, he had the sense to ease off on the hours spent on this game, and now he's doing much better. I guess it's all up to the preferences and the personality of the people who play this game.

 

[Miles Hansen]

I can attest to that. My ex-boyfriends mom would play World of Warcraft almost constantly. We actually had to cook ourselves usually because she would be raiding or because she just didn't feel like cooking when she could be gaming. Video game addiction is actually quite common, although it is recognised less frequently as a "real" addiction in the west compared to other countries, like South Korea or China. In South Korea, I actually believe that there is a system in place that makes you unable to play after 12 am if you're under 18, and this is largely due to the fact that a lot of underage people have been diagnosed with gaming addictions.
So yeah, I would definitely say that being addicted to WOW is a real thing, although it will largely depend on whether or not you enjoy that particular game. I don't so I'm safe, at least from that (Booyah!)

 

[Zyni]

Like anything else, it certainly can be. Even the loading screen says, "everything in moderation."

I think it becomes an escape from reality. It's also (like any game) designed in a way that's meant to keep you playing, keep you coming back for more.

In my experience, WoW (with friends anyway) is a game that the more you play, the more you want to play. At the same time, when I play less it doesn't make me "crave" it. It makes it easier and easier to walk away.

 

[GlacialDoom]

You DON'T want to know how addictive this stuff might be. I've been off for 4 months now, but even so, I'm still thinking about the game at least once a week and each time I get withdrawal symptoms. I also still browse WoW forums, such as this one. Please, if you're just trying the game out to see why it is addictive, don't try it at all. Don't do this to yourself.

 

[Dana]

I'm afraid to join World of Warcraft because of how addicting it can be. My boyfriend plays it and he loves it. I want to purchase some sort of a subscription for it, but I just don't have enough money right now to be spending fifty dollars to play this game. Do any of you guys know if there is going to be any sort of sale on WOW?

 

[Aree Wongwanlee]

You don't need fifty dollars to get started with this game @Dana. Just start with the trial version. That's good for up to level 20. It will give you a better perspective on the game.

Now is it really addictive?

The way I see it, it's only as additive as you allow it to be. There are some people who cannot start work without having a cup of coffee. So coffee is addictive, too. I also know some people who cannot go to sleep without having had a bottle of beer. So beer is addictive, too.

It's our choice. Somehow we will get addicted to something. Myself, I would rather get addicted to this game than to, say, getting addicted to going to the disco every night. For the amount of money I spend on the game, I am getting very much more in return.

Still, as in everything, moderation is the way to do it. Play in moderation and have a life outside the game, too.

 

[Brady2121]

WoW can be extremely addictive. In fact, I was playing so much, it actually became a problem. So I canceled my subscription and took a break.

 

[Aree Wongwanlee]

Or you can look at this question of addiction from another viewpoint. Look at it as a way to build up your character. You would love to play 24/7 but you control your play time. That strengthens your character. I am talking about your real life character not the character you play ingame.