The Most Addictive Game Ever.

[omoneru]

As to WoW, I was a hardcore raider in one of the top guilds and quit shortly after doing some Kharazan. My total playtime (played since the original release) was over 250 days. So called no-life player.

There are a lot of reasons why I quit but in sum, it's because 1) you can't win the game as the point of the game is to go on indefinitely, 2) rewards/buzz you get are extremely temporary - reset after patches and xpacs 3) I had to socialize with people I didn't like just for raiding and 4) it took too much RL time to achieve raiding goals.

I ended up procrastiating real life goals and caused a bit of trouble to the people I cared. It was hard to quit because the game was very well crafted (just like any other Blizz's games) and it gave me something I was looking for in real life - a sense of achievement and socialization.

In-game goals are relatively easier to achieve compared to real life ones, but they are pixel illusions in the end. But I was sacrificing real life goals/dreams for nothing. Most of my "friends" on WoW weren't really friends. They were just using each other to do raiding. They'll forget you quickly and find a replacement in a few days. So much for in-game socialization.

here's a good list from wowdetox for those who want to quit. Quote:

1) redirect the lust for loot into a lust for loot in the real world. Greed is a powerful motivator.

2) Face the time warp reality you know well....realize the second you sit down to play it's already six or twelve hours later.

3) Try to envision "real" your life in five years continuing the current trend. It's easy to con yourself into thinking you'll give it up by then, but deep down you know you don't even want to.

4) Imagine the real world as the ultimate MMORPG. Things are harder sometimes, but the rewards are bigger. Take what you need to excced in WoW and apply it to real life.

5) Cold turkey quitting is the only way. There is no such thing as half time crooks. Seriously.....you cannot play a couple hours a day, you cannot quit when you want to. You are a slave Neo.

6) Realize that my Glider bot can accomplish practically everything you can. Your entire existence basically to live out a few lines of code. You have become a bot which can be purchased for $25. Sure they can't raid very effectively yet, but they will soon

7) If you have real dreams let them motivate you. Consider the /played time applied to that software product you want to write or company you want to start....or working on your six pack. You'd probably be a Dot Com billionaire and still can be or at least have REAL fun trying.

8) Understand the addiction cycle.....RAID -> PL -> adrenaline rush -> let down -> more RAID -> adrenaline rush ...... it's a magic formula for addiction. Just like gambling.

9) Think hard about right now what you would give to have all that time back that you played the game. You could have weeks, months or years of your life back. Now realize you are having a conversation with your future self and the choice is now.


Also try: http://wowdetox.com/
Read 30 pages or so there and some of the posts may break your heart.