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Saturday, July 15, 2017, 12:44
Gaming addicts a danger for Vietnam
By Viet Nam News/ANN
Saturday, July 15, 2017, 12:44 By Viet Nam News/ANN

This undated photo shows a teenager plays an online game in Vietnam. (Viet Nam News/ANN)

HANOI - In late June, a 26-year-old man wandered into a cybercafe in Ba Ria City, of the southern coastal Ba Ria – Vung Tau province for some virtual fun. He probably had no clue he would never leave.

The young man, from the central province Thua Thien – Hue, reportedly played online games from 7pm June 29 until early morning the day after, and then lay down. Other players and the owner of the cybercafe ignored him, thinking he was just tired and needed to rest. Only in the afternoon did they realise he wasn’t breathing.

The cause of death was determined as acute pneumonia, exacerbated by physical exhaustion as he hadn’t eaten or drank for quite some time.

This was deemed the first case of a gamer dieing in a cybercafe in Vietnam, and the latest stain on the reputation of video games, which are as popular as they are widely excoriated by society.

It seems this example is not as tragic as some stories that have gained international attention about deaths due to binge gaming for days, but the problem is the same, playing beyond one’s physical endurance.

Gaming addiction not only affects the player’s health, but also has led to some gamers turning to crime to obtain money to feed their vice.

Three years ago, police in the northern province Thai Nguyen arrested Tran Van Son and his cousin Tran Van Duc – 14 and 13 years old at the time – for murdering their grandmother to steal VND 4 million (US$175). Perhaps more shocking, after they committed the killing, they played games non-stop until apprehended. The pair confessed to police that they were addicted to an online shooting game called Dot Kich (The Raid) and often played for 5-10 hours straight.

In November last year, a pagoda watchman in Viet Hong commune, Thanh Ha District, in the northern province of Hai Duong, was found dead and gagged in an outhouse.

The murderers were in grade 9 and 10 at the time, and both were game addicts who were homeless, despite having families as they said they were unhappy in their homes. The victim was close with the pair and had often let them stay at the pagoda. On the fateful day, they killed the watchman to steal the donation box, intending to use the money on games and other indulgences.

La Duc Cuong, director of National Psychiatric Hospital 1, told Nong thon ngay nay (Countryside Today) that game addicts can “no longer make distinctions between reality and virtual world.” They were so used to “respawn” features in games where a character is reborn after dieing, the severity of taking an actual human life faded in the addicts’ minds, he said, leading to cold-blooded crimes.

Games are a nice entertainment medium, but once addicted, gamers might not know when to stop.

“An IT student at the Ha Noi University of Science and Technology was once placed under my treatment. The patient was so mentally and physically broken, due to game addiction, he couldn’t even walk properly. He would play games for hours non-stop, without eating or resting, putting his body at breaking point, so his relatives had to use ropes to restrain him and take him to hospital,” Cuong recalled.

Children nowadays have easy access to electronic devices, from computers to smartphones and tablets, making it easy to get hooked on games of all sorts. Experts said dependency on gadgets and games might be one of the biggest threats for children in modern society.

“Some children have their eyes constantly ‘glued’ to the screens and are oblivious to everything around him or her, even their parents’ callings. If the addiction is strong, separating the child from their favourite gadgets and games might cause them to act out in unpredictable or violent ways,” Cuong said about some of the patients he had encountered.

According to Le Dao Nghia, deputy head of the child neurology department, Mai Huong Day Psychiatric Hospital, whose mental health treatment and rehabilitation programmes are sponsored by the Centre for International Mental Health of the Australia-based University of Melbourne, game addicts displayed similar symptoms of drug addicts.

 “The factors counting in gaming addiction can be ‘environment’, or external factors like peer influence, readily available cash and free time and the subjective mental state of the addicts. Therefore, to extricate a gamer out of their addiction
would require cutting off all aforementioned factors.”

Viet Nam has a 95-million population, two thirds of which - about 57 million - are internet users.

In 2017, the game industry in Vietnam expects to draw in some $40 million in revenue, $80 million if revenue from
mobile software distribution platforms like Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store is included.

Vietnamese game studios are trying to combat social stigma concerning video games and prove that gaming can be serious business that can bring huge benefits for the country.

ESports, or electronic sports or professional gaming, are video game competitions between professional players, with real monetary prizes being awarded to winners. The competition can be broadcast live around the world and attract millions of viewers.

According to game market intelligence firm Newzoo, in 2016, the number of eSports viewers in Southeast Asia reached 19.9 million. Nearly half of this figure, 9.5 million are ‘enthusiasts,’ with Vietnam leading the region with 2.4 million ‘hardcore’ viewers, leaving Indonesia in second place with 2 million viewers. Newzoo considered Southeast Asia the fastest growing region, saying that by 2019, the number of eSports viewers – both enthusiasts and casual – would surpass 40 million. 


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