Is Fortnite ruining anyone else's family?

[fortnitenightmare]

And devices in general?

We have 1 Xbox, 4 kids.

The older 2 bicker and argue about it constantly. They're like ogres when they can't go on it and ogres when they've been in it. And how very dare I interrupt a game with 'time's up!' Or 'dinner'. They're limited to 45 mins each, they have to take turns. They're addicted to it. Just one more...

It's ruining our family.

We:
Limit time spent on it
They have to earn time on it
Make them share
Warn them before stopping games

I have unpleasant children and it's really getting me down. They live for it. They're not allowed any other form of social media, and I get they they want to play/interact with their peers so I'd rather not ban it completely BUT we're running out of ideas of how to stop it ruining our family. I also hate the fact people can 'listen in' to our family life.

Have you got similar problems? How do you manage this addiction?

Sad 😞

Ican'tcope and others who are saying it is a parenting issue and the 'game' doesn't cause problems are speaking from their experience. If their child is fine with it then good for them.

So many children can't cope with this game. It is designed to be addictive and it's ridiculous to suggest that it is not. It is also a violent game.

My ASD son is fine with most games but is NOT ok with fortnite. He can't cope with the social aspects of it and it is highly addictive.

We have had to withdraw this game not others due to the fact that he can't cope with it.

OP I would just ban the game in all honestly. They think it is making them happy but it clearly isn't.

@TheOnlyPink mine are similar ages 9 and 11 and yeah if something new is out they have a little binge but then off they trot to do something else. I have the same attitude to food etc lol. We don't make an issue over junk food being 'bad' and to date have not had any problems, the boys eat if they are hungry and sometimes that's an apple and sometimes it's crisps. Maybe I'm just a hippy parent!!

DD is 10. Goes to school from 8.30/5pm. Walks herself, eats well.

Gets in, does her homework, recently won a maths competition in the province I live in. Is bilingual. She has an ipad (for school) and the free game and plays it before reading and sleeping.

I have absolutely NO problems with it. She doesn't shout or interact with anyone (I wouldn't allow it) certainly doesn't spend money, just does the little dances and chats to her friends about it at school.

It's how it is now.

It is a bit much to blame the parents not the game !

I agree makeitpink I never ban anything and so far, so good. My DD couldn't be doing better. I feel it would be a stupid thing to do.

I'm a teacher, and the next child that says to me 'Miss, do you play Fortnite?' in the middle of a maths lesson is going to find out just how angry I can get. I hate it, 7 and 8 year olds should not be playing it, and if I see one more fucking floss dance I'm going to lose it.

7 and 8 is too young to be playing games online.

10 upwards it is normal.

I'm going to get flamed:- my ds's both have iPhones, gaming pc's, Xbox ones, ps 3 (never used), nintendo switch, iPads and older gaming machines (saga mega drive, master system, Atari, game boys).

I have never 'regulated' screen time. Ds1 is 18 now, so just uses his gaming pc, but is more caught up in A-Levels (4 A-Levels and a B-Tec), work and his girlfriend.

Ds2 (14), plays rugby for school so two practices after school each week and a match. Plays football out of school- 1 practice and 1 match per week.

Has only done 2 pieces of homework at home since September. Him and all his friends use their lunch times and breaktimes to do their homework so they can game in the evenings (we have a school app that notifies us if a piece of homework hasn't been handed in- he's missed one this year).

On a weekend he will say 'can you take me and x to town tomorrow, we are meeting up with all the boys and going to the cinema/swimming/trampoline park etc'. So has plenty of 'socialisation' with all his school gaming friends outside of the bedroom/headset.

There is one boy though who is not allowed any form of gaming machines. We have had a few instances where his mum has messaged me and said 'does x want to come down' and ive had to say the boys have all gone out together as they'd arranged it last night/this morning on the Xbox. I do try to remain ds to contact this boy. But he has no social media or apps as he only had a basic phone, and all the dc contact each other via messenger, whatsapp etc. I do feel sorry for him, and ds has said that when the boys are all talking about games whether it's this, FIFA, etc, that he goes really quiet because he can't join in the conversation. He can't even look on YouTube to see what they are talking about!

There's being sensible, then theirs putting your child in a position where the world is evolving and you are not allowing them to be part of it. But that's just my opinion!

Yes. I'll be brief,
Stepson
Addicted
Partner to soft to deal with it
Arguments daily.

2 DS, 9 and 11 both football mad but unfortunately fortnite mad as well! We've had to ban gaming during the week as it was all they were interested in. Weekends are ok as we're out and about quite a lot so it won't be gaming hours on end. I don't mind the game in itself I do mind the bickering amongst themselves though as we only have 1 PS4. I also hate the shouting through the headphones, they don't seem to be able to talk in a normal voice

I don't let them spend money in any games as I think it's a total waste of money, they do seem to accept this

I am eagerly awaiting the next craze....

*Ican'tcope and others who are saying it is a parenting issue and the 'game' doesn't cause problems are speaking from their experience. If their child is fine with it then good for them.

So many children can't cope with this game. It is designed to be addictive and it's ridiculous to suggest that it is not. It is also a violent game.

My ASD son is fine with most games but is NOT ok with fortnite. He can't cope with the social aspects of it and it is highly addictive.

We have had to withdraw this game not others due to the fact that he can't cope with it.

OP I would just ban the game in all honestly. They think it is making them happy but it clearly isn't*

That IS the parenting issue - if your child is struggling then make changes, there's nothing unreasonable about that!

lethal how is it a game's fault that parents don't take responsibility for their kids?

The aim of games manufacturers is to make games that your kids want to play over and over - that's how they make money.

That is not always consistent with what parents want.

It is up to parents to make sure that their kids engage with technology responsibly.

Jacques, I have. I've banned the game.

But it is the game that is the problem not my parenting.

If the game was not a problem I would not have to ban it.

I have not had to ban other games (Fifa/ Minecraft/ Starwars battlefront) because they have not had the same negative impact on my child.

In both cases I parent in the same way.

So how is this a parenting issue rather than the game being difficult for some children to cope with due to the content and format of the game?

.

But, ican'tcopeanymore, you said that your use of aspects of Fortnite in primary school lessons didn't cause any problems - now you say that:

I do see the children who aren't allowed to play Fortnite being left out of conversations and games. Some of them watch Fortnite videos on YouTube just to be know enough to join in, as they aren't able to play at home. It's quite sad and I do feel for them.

Not quite as harmless as you made out then. Poor kids.

No I like it keeps kids occupied while I do school work.

Those who are saying "It's not the game, it's a parenting issue"...

I have a pretty sensible 10 yo ds. He has played all sorts of PS games. He himself admits that Fortnite has been making him bad-tempered and difficult. No other game has ever had this effect on him. He is well-parented and has time limits on devices and no other behaviour problems at all. After realising Fortnite was a problem, he voluntarily stopped playing it for a week and was like a different child. He's now allowed to play one match occasionally, but any further issues and he accepts it will be a permanent ban.

lethal how is it a game's fault that parents don't take responsibility for their kids?The aim of games manufacturers is to make games that your kids want to play over and over - that's how they make money.

I totally do take responsibility for my kids. And there are lots of games they want to play over and over. Of course that is the game makers' aim, and that's fine. None of the other games have caused a change in behaviour and personality like Fortnite has though. My ds admits that himself fgs!

Because your use of elements of the game in primary lessons encourages children to a)talk about it and b)play it, but they shouldn't be. It's a 12 certificate.

It also, by your own admission, makes children at your school feel sad and left out.

I'm engaging with you, icantcopeanymore, because of that latest revelation. Your use of elements of Fortnite isn't entirely without repercussion, which is what you had initially suggested.

But Eolian, isn't that parenting by the back door, if you like? In other words, you've both discussed it together, and ds has come to a sensible decision.

My ds is a calm and mellow boy, although he livens up on fortnite (!), and he realises the game has an impact. I think if a parent can discuss this with a child, so much the better.

Also, on another point, there is one boy in my son's class who does not have an Xbox and will not be getting one as his parents are opposed to it. He is not excluded from the chat by his peers, and he's not at all isolated. I just can't get over excited by it, -it's simple to me, if a game or the Xbox is causing an issue that can't be solved by the normal methods, then remove it. Why would you not?

-That's a general question, not aimed at you Eolian

Feenie, this is the last time I'll respond to you, because you clearly cannot understand anything that I say.

1. My lessons include dance moves and the measurement of buildings. They are accessible to all children, even those who have never played the game. All my lessons are accessible to everyone and tailored to individuals too. I pride myself on it.

1. The children in the playground can't access conversations about the ACTUAL GAME, not dance moves or measurements. That has nothing to do with me, nor the content of my lessons and is completely unavoidable.

1. The game is a 12, due to online chat capabilities, not content. The online chat can be disabled, making it safe for children to play. This has been explained to you a few times, by me and others. If you can't understand that by now, after commenting about it on multiple threads, I'm not sure what else anyone can say.

1. You're clearly not a gamer, or knowledgeable about any aspects of gaming at all. I'd suggest that you gain some experience before making repeated, inane comments. I'd also suggest that you take a look at the plentiful research out there that proves the benefit of playing computer games. It's very interesting and it sounds like you need to gain some perspective.