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Is RuneScape filling a void?


Dylanasmith

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_____Ahhh RuneScape. It holds a place in mine and so many others' hearts. It truly is a masterpiece of gaming, and could well be considered the greatest, most addictive game every created. Being addictive doesn't automatically make it the greatest game ever, yet addictive it is. The game could be said to be equivalent to an illicit drug. If you play the game just once, you will most likely come back for another doselike the slogan goes of a popular potato chip brand. What makes this game so addictive and potentially harmful to health? I will attempt an answer.

_____The first time I played this game was at a friend's house 6 years ago, coming onto it after my friend and I discussed possible things to do. He started logging into RuneScape and I became intrigued by the little man running around cutting logs and lighting fires on Tutorial Island. It looked amazing. Between then and now I've been playing the game with long intermissions, usually playing for 1-2 months at a time before the thought comes into my head, what is this doing for me?, then I quit. The answer is nothing. You will get naught out of this game that will advance your life in any way. It may very well feel as if you're accomplishing something worthwhile, but it is merely an illusion, or rather a delusion. The feeling of meeting goals in a video game holds no candle to the sensation of meeting goals in life. The simple fact is that you're wasting your life away as I was mine. Just take a minute to think over what makes you play. The reasons could be that you have insecurity issues, social anxiety, or depression. The feeling you get when you achieve something amazing (a hoax I might add) could be making up for your lack of accomplishments in real life. I beg you not to let this game fulfill deep-seated desires that even you're not aware of.

_____I have been on hiatus from RuneScape for nearly two months and still feel some need for it in my life, but I have not succumbed to the nagging of my own brain chemistry. It can be tough to overcome, but I assure you that it is possible. I've recently begun reading books, and this has somewhat filled the void that RuneScape once filled. Books are comparable to skills in RuneScape very much so. When beginning a book you set a goal to finish it. By the end of reading it, you will feel very accomplished and fulfilled, and guess what? You've actually done something worthwhile in life. Enriching your knowledge is a much greater pastime than sitting at a computer clicking on pixels. Take pause while you're playing to think this quick, expedient phrase: what am I doing?

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What leads you to believe that books are so worthwhile? Are you learning something from them? You might consider that should you read a book you are bouncing your ideas off those of the author(s). Should you play runescape though you have ample opportunities to bounce your ideas off of a multitude of people. Essentially you are free to have a discussion with anyone you see. Although I can see how you might think having discussions with people is a waste of time.

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You could say that about almost anything people do, including reading. Your "reading" makes you so good at "research", that you come on to a Runescape fansite forum to take a stab at our lives. I ask you this: Don't you have anything better to do? Or in your own words: what are you doing?

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Hi, I'm moving this to General as it fits better there.

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Runescape fills the void left by other video games as my computer slowly got too old to run anything except a few old games and Runescape safe mode.

PM me in game anytime

 

It's a lot easier then that for an idiot to sound smart on the internet.

 

That's exactly what you're doing right now... just saying.

 

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Given a 2 years time after StellarDawn is released, 'RuneScape' will just be another word.

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Fills the void of downtime, 'bout it.

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Fills the void of downtime, 'bout it.

 

Yeah exaclty, I just got in from uni, Played my drums, Did some work and now I am just doing nothing so im gonna Play RS. What else is there to do? Sleep, Watch TV, Xbox. All the same stuff really; once you've done what you need to do may aswell waste my time doin something I enjoy.

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This year, I started playing runescape for most of the times I wanted to go get drunk/high. So far, my grades are much better, and I'm an overall happier person. Plus, I just tell people I'm staying away from alcohol to focus on grades, which I am.

 

So yes, it's filling a void quite well.

 

And to correct you on what makes the game and illegal drugs harmful:

 

In a normal person, dopamine is released when you accomplish something. This is what makes you happy. Certain drugs can cause dopamine to be released falsely (mainly opiates), causing you to become happy without actually accomplishing anything. By giving you false accomplishments in Runescape such as leveling up and making money (which, many can argue, are not real), your brain releases little bits of dopamine, thinking you have actually accomplished something. Just like a person becomes addicted to a drug for the added dopamine they get every time they get "high," many of us get addicted to Runescape for the same reasons. Now people correct what I said, because I'm just going off of memory for a psych lecture I barely paid attention to.

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This year, I started playing runescape for most of the times I wanted to go get drunk/high. So far, my grades are much better, and I'm an overall happier person. Plus, I just tell people I'm staying away from alcohol to focus on grades, which I am.

 

So yes, it's filling a void quite well.

 

Runescape intervention :shock: . All games are the same essentially. When I quit runescape I played xbox 360 for more hours on end due to me wanting all the achievements and I spent a lot more money on new games when they released.

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It's rather the opposite - Runescape is creating a void in my life now that I've far less time to play it. It's there, niggling at me, wanting to be played. I'm barely spending an hour or so on it a day and I hate that... so I feel bad when I'm not playing - thus creating a void.

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It's rather the opposite - Runescape is creating a void in my life now that I've far less time to play it. It's there, niggling at me, wanting to be played. I'm barely spending an hour or so on it a day and I hate that... so I feel bad when I'm not playing - thus creating a void.

Addiction?

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It's rather the opposite - Runescape is creating a void in my life now that I've far less time to play it. It's there, niggling at me, wanting to be played. I'm barely spending an hour or so on it a day and I hate that... so I feel bad when I'm not playing - thus creating a void.

Addiction?

Not so much addiction, rather a feeling that I should be playing since I'm paying. If I were F2P I wouldn't feel the 'need' to play. Also my various commitments here make me feel like I should be playing.

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You know, you could say the same damn thing about "void" filling books. I'll wager that these books you read aren't giving you practical value that you can apply in real life. All fictional books just "fill this void" you speak of; they certainly don't enrich your knowledge. Furthermore, unless the knowledge is practical stuff you'll USE, such as a book on auto-mechanics, or fixing plumbing or something (and then you must USE this knowledge) you could easily make the argument that the book provided a false sense of accomplishment, as what is the point of useless knowledge?

 

There's a good quote I heard, I think from John Lennon of the Beatles (but I could be wrong) "If you have fun wasting time, your not wasting time."

 

Now, although there's a crapload of arguments for why video games are bad, you can find just as many saying they are good. Anyways, it's not like this freaking addiction phenomena is freaking unique to Runescape.

 

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You know, you could say the same damn thing about "void" filling books. I'll wager that these books you read aren't giving you practical value that you can apply in real life. All fictional books just "fill this void" you speak of; they certainly don't enrich your knowledge. Furthermore, unless the knowledge is practical stuff you'll USE, such as a book on auto-mechanics, or fixing plumbing or something (and then you must USE this knowledge) you could easily make the argument that the book provided a false sense of accomplishment, as what is the point of useless knowledge?

Good point. As a computer science major, I could argue that playing video games sparks my creativity in software that helps me much more in my field than reading fictional books would.

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You know, you could say the same damn thing about "void" filling books. I'll wager that these books you read aren't giving you practical value that you can apply in real life. All fictional books just "fill this void" you speak of; they certainly don't enrich your knowledge. Furthermore, unless the knowledge is practical stuff you'll USE, such as a book on auto-mechanics, or fixing plumbing or something (and then you must USE this knowledge) you could easily make the argument that the book provided a false sense of accomplishment, as what is the point of useless knowledge?

Good point. As a computer science major, I could argue that playing video games sparks my creativity in software that helps me much more in my field than reading fictional books would.

 

 

I could argue that my extensive reading has increased both my reading speed/comprehension, as well as my writing.

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Heh. This thread reminds me of biased articles on the times. Since I glanced through the thread, I'll sum up what I read so far; Assumption - We are wasting time playing Runescape. Is this true? It's subjective. Think about it, if you're not playing RuneScape during your free time, what will you be doing?

 

Reading a book? What kind of book? If the knowledge within the book is not practical, you are also technically 'filling a void' to make yourself happy. And how likely is it really that you'd read the book in the first place? Most of my spare time is used up on the Forums, or on Typeracer, or on another game. The same applies for most people, alot of players tend to go on their Xbox or PS3 if they're not playing RuneScape.

 

This thread also implies that playing RuneScape is bad for you. That's not necessarily true. It is perfectly possible for a player to do other things whilst training on RS, and enjoy the game without getting addicted.

 

I feel like I can post more, but I can't think of anything. Gah.

 

Edit - Lol at the pixel argument. That's hardly an argument. To say RuneScape is basically clicking on pixels is like saying money is just paper. To watch an informative documentary, you are watching coloured pixels move about. To read a book, you are reading ink stamped on a thin layer of fibrous pulp. That argument is just silly.

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Runescape truley isn't addicting. In my mind if you have friends its not. I'm not addicted. I play when I have free time. That's it.

 

I remember when I first started. I played tutorial island got so incredibly bored and quit for about 3 months until my friend beat tutorial island for me and I started playing.

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I feel like this is very biased article also.

 

The author asks “what is this doing for me?”

 

Cant that be said with any video game? why just runescape...

 

It does somthing for me, it gives me somthing to do when i cant find anything to do. it also releases dopamine when i go pk or get a sweet drop. I live a social life on runescape and work on my social skills. Not to mention the buisness and marketing skills you learn in rs that you can actually bring into the "real world"

 

I think your assuming everyone that plays rs is addicted and its killing their social life therefore turning them into some kind of couch potato, but thats not the case, its been proven and im a standing example.

 

 

 

L this topic is silly he only has 3 posts, dont stir the pot sir.

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_____Ahhh RuneScape. It holds a place in mine and so many others' hearts. It truly is a masterpiece of gaming, and could well be considered the greatest, most addictive game every created. Being addictive doesn't automatically make it the greatest game ever, yet addictive it is. The game could be said to be equivalent to an illicit drug. If you play the game just once, you will most likely come back for another doselike the slogan goes of a popular potato chip brand. What makes this game so addictive and potentially harmful to health? I will attempt an answer.

_____The first time I played this game was at a friend's house 6 years ago, coming onto it after my friend and I discussed possible things to do. He started logging into RuneScape and I became intrigued by the little man running around cutting logs and lighting fires on Tutorial Island. It looked amazing. Between then and now I've been playing the game with long intermissions, usually playing for 1-2 months at a time before the thought comes into my head, what is this doing for me?, then I quit. The answer is nothing. You will get naught out of this game that will advance your life in any way. It may very well feel as if you're accomplishing something worthwhile, but it is merely an illusion, or rather a delusion. The feeling of meeting goals in a video game holds no candle to the sensation of meeting goals in life. The simple fact is that you're wasting your life away as I was mine. Just take a minute to think over what makes you play. The reasons could be that you have insecurity issues, social anxiety, or depression. The feeling you get when you achieve something amazing (a hoax I might add) could be making up for your lack of accomplishments in real life. I beg you not to let this game fulfill deep-seated desires that even you're not aware of.

_____I have been on hiatus from RuneScape for nearly two months and still feel some need for it in my life, but I have not succumbed to the nagging of my own brain chemistry. It can be tough to overcome, but I assure you that it is possible. I've recently begun reading books, and this has somewhat filled the void that RuneScape once filled. Books are comparable to skills in RuneScape very much so. When beginning a book you set a goal to finish it. By the end of reading it, you will feel very accomplished and fulfilled, and guess what? You've actually done something worthwhile in life. Enriching your knowledge is a much greater pastime than sitting at a computer clicking on pixels. Take pause while you're playing to think this quick, expedient phrase: what am I doing?

I am trying to quit this game, but I can't. Now since I read this, I might actually be able to do it.

LOL.

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_____Ahhh RuneScape. It holds a place in mine and so many others' hearts. It truly is a masterpiece of gaming, and could well be considered the greatest, most addictive game every created. Being addictive doesn't automatically make it the greatest game ever, yet addictive it is. The game could be said to be equivalent to an illicit drug. If you play the game just once, you will most likely come back for another doselike the slogan goes of a popular potato chip brand. What makes this game so addictive and potentially harmful to health? I will attempt an answer.

_____The first time I played this game was at a friend's house 6 years ago, coming onto it after my friend and I discussed possible things to do. He started logging into RuneScape and I became intrigued by the little man running around cutting logs and lighting fires on Tutorial Island. It looked amazing. Between then and now I've been playing the game with long intermissions, usually playing for 1-2 months at a time before the thought comes into my head, what is this doing for me?, then I quit. The answer is nothing. You will get naught out of this game that will advance your life in any way. It may very well feel as if you're accomplishing something worthwhile, but it is merely an illusion, or rather a delusion. The feeling of meeting goals in a video game holds no candle to the sensation of meeting goals in life. The simple fact is that you're wasting your life away as I was mine. Just take a minute to think over what makes you play. The reasons could be that you have insecurity issues, social anxiety, or depression. The feeling you get when you achieve something amazing (a hoax I might add) could be making up for your lack of accomplishments in real life. I beg you not to let this game fulfill deep-seated desires that even you're not aware of.

_____I have been on hiatus from RuneScape for nearly two months and still feel some need for it in my life, but I have not succumbed to the nagging of my own brain chemistry. It can be tough to overcome, but I assure you that it is possible. I've recently begun reading books, and this has somewhat filled the void that RuneScape once filled. Books are comparable to skills in RuneScape very much so. When beginning a book you set a goal to finish it. By the end of reading it, you will feel very accomplished and fulfilled, and guess what? You've actually done something worthwhile in life. Enriching your knowledge is a much greater pastime than sitting at a computer clicking on pixels. Take pause while you're playing to think this quick, expedient phrase: what am I doing?

I am trying to quit this game, but I can't. Now since I read this, I might actually be able to do it.

 

Do not be fooled by fallacious arguments. Simply limit your time spent playing RuneScape, and you'd be fine. Give me one good reason why it's better to quit the game, than to cut back on your hours.

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