Gaming in the real world

Kids today are in dire danger. Too many of them spend hours in front of their consoles and computer screens, imagining themselves inside fictional pixellated worlds. This is gravely affecting their ability to deal with real life, or ‘RL’ as they dismissively call it. The results are plain to see.

Few can forget the case of Qui Chengwei, the Shanghai gamer who murdered his friend Zhu Caoyuan over a fictional sword ‘magic item’ the latter had stolen from him and sold for 7,200 Yuan (around £500) in the online role playing game Legend of Mir III. He took his revenge using a sword that was considerably more real than the one stolen. A similar fate could befall any child left to play unattended for too long.