To ask for help with managing the bane of my life that is Fortnite?

[Fortshite]

Ds 10yo has recently been allowed to play Fortnite.

Quite frankly it has turned him into an arsehole overnight, I thought the fucking minecraft phase was bad.

I already limit games console significantly. It's not allowed on week nights, it's generally limited on the weekend to a couple of hours in the morning, then an hour or so some time later in the day, that's if we're home all day. We don't have televisions upstairs so he can't just take over the lounge all day anyway.

One day on it today and he sounds like a friggin addict, begging to go back on it, trying to get us out of the room so that he can play, he's moody, he's irritable, he's aggressive, he's being lazy. He's not usually like this at all.

He's currently upstairs having spent 5 minutes sobbing and chasing me around the house begging to be allowed on it tomorrow because I said that he wasn't allowed to play on it after all the behaviour today.

I don't want to ban it altogether because I know his friends play too, but I can't bear the way it makes him.

I promise that used to have paragraphs. 🙄

I havn't banned it I just set strict time limits and rules and we seem to be getting on well.

He can have it after school for an hour as long as homework is completed first. He can can have it for an hour or two on a Saturday and Sunday but we are a big outdoor family so we are out and about most weekends.

He is well warned that if I hear any shouting at it or angry behaviour it is off for the rest of that day.

It's in the livingroom so I can monitor use aswell.

So far hes been coming off it before his time is up and is actually playing different games more than Fortnite.

He plays with his toys, out with his friend, bikes etc his homework is done. Bed at 8pm and no disruption to sleep etc

If any of these things start being disturbed then it will go

I have the dreaded Fortnite in my life too. All my DS wants to do in the winter is Fortnite, but he doesn't bother in the summer. Football in the park is the main thing then.
I've HAD to set out boundaries, no yelling etc as at the start he was getting frustrated. The PS4 is in the Living Room so I can keep an eye on him. Some of his pals have upstairs consoles but at 10, I feel it's far too young to have unsupervised access to the internet.
He's nowhere near as shouty anymore, was frustration I think at being pants at the game. I find having a bribing mechanism is helpful...ie you get an hour on fortnite when homework is finished.
Lay down the rules and if he breaks them switch it off....he will soon learn. I've herd some appalling behaviour over the year we've been inflicted with the dreaded fortnite itis..I'd be mortified if my DS behaved like some of the kids, I think either the parents of these kids don't know their little Angel is behaving like a total Shit, or they don't care. Not everyone cares what their kids say or do, and Youl get kids from all walks of life on it. It's an eye opener. Keep an eye on him and I'm sure Youl find a way that you can let him play without your DS loosing his rag. It's excellent for getting the flaming homework finished on time!
Good luck with it! Xx

DS2 (14) has been playing Fortnite since early on in its release. We have strict rules on making sure that homework is done on time for when teachers require it. He will usually do his homework in the journey back from school. Electronic devices go off at 6pm, with the exception of the family tv, so that DS3 (8) gets a long enough time for brain stimulation to subside before bed time. They both come down for meal times, I give enough warning so that DS2 can get to the end of game play without causing problems with his game. Because he is older now we allow him to play on the Xbox from 7 to 8pm again.
DS2 is also out 4 nights per week at martial arts classes, which he loves. So we don't get any arguments about turning off the Xbox. I had a conversation with a friend recently and he said that he (as an adult and a parent) uses a games console as a way to relax, whereas his wife enjoys reading to relax. In our family we treat our kids with respect, especially for their ages, so we talk about how things could be affecting us etc.

He’s probably bitterly frustrated and resentful and how tightly you control his use of his free time.

Don’t blame him.

Agreed, Streetwise. It's amazing how we managed to survive growing up in the 80s/90s when consoles first became popular and television/videos were readily available. I spent just as much time on computer games and watching crap cartoons as DS does now.

Zelda that's really good advice thanks.

I can see why it's a 12 and it's definitely the addictive element that younger brains can be too young to cope with.

As for streetwise it has nothing to do with watching cartoons and playing computer games in general. Why come on making snippy comments when you clearly have no clue. Ds can pretty much watch as much tv as he likes, this game in particular is causing severe problems that hasn't been the case on such a level with any other games he's played.

I read some articles on this Friday

Also have an addicted 10 year old

I agree with a PP who said to try and understand if , as the social and team element makes it so addictive

We also have the issue of the obsession , but he does happily do other things

As all his friends have it it’s very hard to ban it

But weekend only and hour long sessions

And sit and wait for them to die

It’s a shame . A crying shame as it feels like it’s the only thing they care about

He’s probably bitterly frustrated and resentful and how tightly you control his use of his free time

Poor lamb?!! 😒

OP isn't trying to control the lad! She is concerned about the effect it's having on him. She is his parent ffs!

Our home is a battlefield at times thanks to Fortnite.
The thing we’ve found that works best is that DS (12) can have one unrestricted evening a week. This means he’s on from when he gets home (3.30pm) to 7.30pm, with no interruptions apart from a small break to eat. He’ll go on at weekends as well, but he’s starting to go out with friends to town more now.

He always does his homework so that’s alright. It’s the constant negotiation and bickering with younger DD over the shitting PS that drove me to start this schedule. DD has her evening too, but she’s not as full-on as DS - bit of Goat Simulator and a few YouTube vids and that’s it, really.

Bloody Fortnite.

My DS, also ten, plays Fortnite and we have experienced similar behaviours.

We limit the play time and this seems to work. Everything in moderation!

There are kids in his class who play for HOURS.

My son enjoys a variety of things ;sport, lego, TV, X-box & school work. We have agreed this is part of his life & he will move on!!!!

He plays for 2-3 hrs midweek & then 1-2 hrs Sat or Sunday