> I've never met or heard of anyone (except in sensationalist and hence untrustworthy news reports) who was addicted to video games
Uhhh, what? There's a reason people called EverQuest 'Evercrack'. There was/is an entire website devoted to people who were addicted to WoW (wow-detox, no idea if it's still around) and had noticeable detrimental effects in their life from it.
There are most definitely games that encourage addiction, and while the vast majority can handle it responsibly there's a sizeable minority who can't (much like gambling).
Uhhh, what? There's a reason people called EverQuest 'Evercrack'. There was/is an entire website devoted to people who were addicted to WoW (wow-detox, no idea if it's still around) and had noticeable detrimental effects in their life from it.
There are most definitely games that encourage addiction, and while the vast majority can handle it responsibly there's a sizeable minority who can't (much like gambling).