Online game addiction: a deadly habit

PRE-READING:

Look at the title headings and pictures and predict the main ideas of the article. Then, write down three wh-questions about the text.

Ex: What are MMORPGs?

WHILE READING:

Set time limit to read this article. An average reader can read at the speed of 250 words per minute. Note down your reading speed regularly to check your progress.

SKIMMING:

Within the time limit, read and summarize the main ideas of the paragraphs with your own words. Do not worry about unfamiliar vocabulary.

ONLINE GAME ADDICTION: A DEADLY HABIT

Teenager kills to feed video game habit

On May 23, Mong The Xuong, a 15 year-old schoolboy from Nghe An met Anh Nhu, a 7 year-old girl. He persuaded her to go into the forest with him to gather fruit to sell at the market. Once in the forest he took her to a place where there was a 6 metre drop near a stream. Suddenly, he pushed her over the edge. He then climbed down and beat her repeatedly with a rock. He took her earrings and left her, hoping people would think she had just fallen. He then took a pair of scissors, cut up the earrings, and hid them under a leg of his wardrobe at home. Meanwhile, the girl was found and taken to hospital. Although the doctors fought to save her, she finally succumbed to her injuries after 4 days.

This horrific crime shocked Vietnam and the world. How could a 15 year-old boy do something like that? Mong The Xuong was a video game addict. People in the area said that he would spend hours at the Internet café every day playing online games such as the popular Vo Lam Truyen Ky (Swordsman Online). According to the boy’s confession, he had planned to sell the earrings to get money to finance his gaming obsession.

Video game addiction and MMORPGs

The killing has reopened the debate on computer game addiction and has once more turned the spotlight on Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games, or MMORPGs. These are games that are played online by large numbers of players simultaneously. The players take on the role of a character in a virtual world. They can then have adventures and interact with other players’ characters in this world. The world continues to grow and develop even when a player goes off-line. The majority of the games are set in a fantasy world where characters have to fight and complete quests. Their characters can grow and develop to be stronger and have new abilities by successfully completing these quests and winning battles. Some of the worlds even have a virtual currency which is convertible into real currencies.

MMORPGs are big business. The most popular game, World of Warcraft, has more than 12 million subscribers and the global MMORPG market is estimated at about US$6 billion. The game companies’ income comes either from monthly subscriptions or from sales of objects or character modifications in the game.

Warning signs

The problem seems to be that players can become so immersed in the virtual world of the game that it interferes with their life in the real world. According to an Iowa State University study, symptoms of addiction include:

• lying about how much you play;

• spending increasing amounts of money on the game;

• reacting negatively when the amount of playing time is reduced;

• using gaming as an escape to avoid real world problems;

• skipping studies or work to play games;

• stealing to get money for games.

While considerable research is being done into the problem, there is still little understanding of the problem. The American Medical Association, for example, does not yet recognize video game addiction as a medical condition and there is debate as to whether excessive gaming results from the addictive nature of the game itself, or the compulsive behaviour of the player. Either way, the victims and tragedies are very real. The sooner we can find a solution the better.

Word count: 583 words

Internet links:

Original news article at Sky News: http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Mong-The-Xuong-Allegedly-Killed-A-Seven-Year-Old-Girl-For-Her-Earrings-To-Feed-His-Online-Game-Habit/Article/201106116006093?f=rss

Report on Iowa State University Study: http://addictionrecoveryhope.com/archives/video-game-addiction

Information on MMORPGs at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massively_multiplayer_online_role-playing_game

SCANNING:

Use your notes to identify where you can find the answers to the questions you have made in the pre-reading stage.

POST-READING:

Glossary:

Pay attention to how the word is combined with other words in context. Do not learn the meaning of the word without sentences. Vietnamese should be the last resort after you have tried all the learning strategies.

• To succumb (v) (to your injuries): to not be able to fight an illness, an attack, to die from an illness (Không qua khỏi)

• Addict (n): someone who cannot stop doing something (Kẻ nghiện)

• Confession (n): a statement admitting that you did a crime (Lời thú tội)

• To finance (v): to find or provide the money for something (Chu cấp)

• Obsession (n): something that someone thinks about all the time (Nỗi ám ảnh)

• Simultaneously (adv): at the same time (Đồng thời)

• Virtual (adj): not real; used of things on the Internet or computer (Ảo)

• Fantasy (n): a genre of fiction, film and game which is set in an imaginary world with magic (Thể loại phim ảnh, trò chơi trong thế giới ảo, tưởng tượng)

• Quest (n): an adventure to find something valuable or rescue someone (Cuộc giải cứu, cuộc phiêu lưu)

• Convertible (adj) (into real currencies): can be changed or converted (Có thể đổi/chuyển (thành tiền thật))

• Subscriber (n): someone who pays a monthly or annual fee for a service or publication (Thuê bao)

• Subscription (n): money paid on a monthly or annual basis for the provision of a service or supply or a publication (Phí thuê bao)

• To immerse (v): to become completely involved in (Chìm đắm)

• Symptom (n): medical sign of a disease or problem (Triệu chứng)

• Medical condition (n): a set of symptoms or state of health that constitutes an identifiable medical problem (Tình trạng bệnh, bệnh lý)

• Excessive (adj): too much (Quá mức)

• Compulsive (behavior) (adj): (behavior that) cannot be controlled (Không kiểm soát được)

• Victim (n): someone who is hurt or killed in an incident (Nạn nhân)

• Tragedy (n): a very sad event (Bi kịch)

Idioms and expressions:

• (Turn) the spotlight (on): put the attention of the media and public on to an issue (Thu hút sự quan tâm của báo chí)

• Massively multiplayer online role-playing game: an online game with many players playing at the same time (Trò chơi nhập vai trực tuyến nhiều người chơi)

• American Medical Association (AMA): the name of the largest association of doctors in the USA (Hiệp hội Y khoa Hoa Kỳ)

Grammar:

Find these words in the first section of the article. What do they mean? How do they help the reader?

Once, suddenly, then, meanwhile, finally

These are transition signals. They show the sequence and time events happen in a story. Sometimes they give an indication of how something happens. For example, ‘suddenly’ indicates that something happens quickly and surprisingly.

Refer to Dr Grammar’s lesson on transition signals to learn more about this area of grammar

Discussion:

Find a study friend to summarize your story. Try to use the vocabulary learned in the article in speaking and writing your summary.

Discuss the problem of computer game addiction with a study friend and/or write a paragraph.

• What causes it?

• Who is responsible (players, parents, game companies, internet cafes, government)?

• How serious do you think it is?

• Have you heard of any other stories about problems from game addiction?

• What do you think should be done to solve the problem?

This material is provided by the Australian Centre for Education and Training (ACET).