Time for regulation of video game makers? - Class action lawsuit against Fortnite

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Quebec judge has authorized a class-action lawsuit over 'addictive' Fortnite game. Would love to hear your thoughts on this.

montreal.ctvnews.ca/quebec-judge-authorizes-class-action-lawsuit-over-addictive-fortnite-game-1.6186022

Personally I think there is a need for some sort of regulation on video games, given the impact it’s having on young kids. And it seems like parents don’t know enough about the negative effects or how to effectively control video game use.

Cocaine is addictive. So it’s banned. It’s illegal for anyone to sell or consume cocaine.
Tobacco is addictive. It’s not banned. It’s illegal to sell tobacco to anyone under 18
Sugar is addictive. It’s not banned. It’s not illegal to sell sugar. There is more awareness about the impact of consuming foods and drinks that are high in sugar - For e.g., There is a tax on drinks with high sugar. Sugary drinks are not included in school meals etc
We already regulate some things depending on the extent and impact of addiction. So why not video games? What do you think?

Unreasonable - It’s parent’s responsibility to restrict the amount of time kids spend on video games. Can’t fault the companies that make video games

Not Unreasonable - We regulate other addictive substances. Why not video games?

It's a parent's responsibility to control what games their dc are allowed to play and for how long.

Are you also going to ban Jack Reacher Novels? They're very addictive as well, as are other books. Or playing D&D. Or, in fact, most hobbies.

Another moral panic over video games is going to be quite boring (even if, it seems, moral panics are quite addictive - perhaps we can ban them?)

Bingo - novels, even Jack reacher, are not designed to stimulate dopamine hits

What is this impact on young kids you refer to?

What could you even regulate - games must only be 60% enjoyable?

Do we regulate cocaine and tobacco because they are addictive or because of the terrible effect that they have on the body?

@bongsuhan I’m certainly not having a moral panic.

From the article “children developed severe addictions to Fortnite , spending almost all of their free time in the virtual world and in some cases not eating, showering, or socializing. They became withdrawn from their families and one of them had panic attacks due to the pressure of the game”

There are several other articles/studies that show that some gamers end up with repetitive stress injuries (to the point that pain and inflammation develop) and vision problems (some resulting in seizures). Gaming has also been associated with sleep deprivation, insomnia and circadian rhythm disorders, depression, aggression, and anxiety.

I don’t know of any novels or books that have this impact. Do you?

Also, not all video games are created equal - As they mention in the article Fortnite is way more addictive than other video games. It’s the only game that has therapy centres dedicated to players of that game.

"It is a much, much deeper issue than people will ever really realize. So basically, these games were created with algorithms and dark patterns that are made to addict you. And once the pattern starts, it's very, very, very hard to get out of it,”. “Fortnite is “the perfectly designed game" that makes it seem impossible to turn off for some younger players.””There's something about Fortnite that is completely unique. There are no other games that have therapy centres dedicated to players of that game."

To be clear, I'm not talking about banning video games. That would make no sense. I'm not sure what regulation of video games will look like to be honest (maybe awareness campaigns, better UI/UX for parental controls), but hopefully someone will figure it out

There already are regulations - just as there are for films/movies. Unfortunately, too many parents allow their children to play games they're too young for, or don't monitor what they're playing.

@GaspingGekko It's because of both of those reasons - because it's addictive and the effect it has on the body.
Nicotine in tobacco is highly addictive and the main reason why it's is so hard to quit smoking

I think better education for parents about why /how these things are addictive would be good.

I am very relaxed about my children gaming but i did find fornite different so we've moved away from that.

They are regulated, every game is given an age rating and only sold to people who are appropriately aged.

Those people then give them to younger people and that's where the problem is. Parents who give unfettered access to inappropriate material.

YABVU. Parents should be monitoring their childrens video game usage. It’s ridiculous that anyone would expect the government to step in.

Similarly, we shouldn’t be regulating sugar either.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-58384457

I wouldn't like to see rules like this.

It's not the developer's fault that the game is addictive and that parents are allowing under 12s to play.

I dont think the age ratingbrelates to the addictiveness though. Its other aspects. My children were old enough for fornite but it was still different.

Parenting courses would be more usual for these people, I can’t believe they have been allowed to bring this lawsuit! Bloody well set limits.

Or make your own decisions and carry them out in your house?

Why do you need/want the government to make a decision and impose it on everyone?

These sorts of demands are a problem in lots of areas. I just don't understand why people demand the government to impose things when they could easily decide how to live their life and crack on

Addictiveness is subjective though. Some people can regulate video game use while others can't. Plus different gamers find different games addictive- some might play FIFA while others play Call of Duty. It's up to parents to monitor their child's use, especially if they allow an under 12 to play.

Fortnite is a 12. Utterly sick of primary kids parents allowing them to play it

Why does it bother you?

Is OP actually going to explain how this regulation would work?

Yes, totally agree with you. Ask teachers why they are running like mad from a profession they are/were passionate about and I guarantee most will tell you that yes, workload, pay and pressure from SLT are huge factors but an increasing number will also tell you that children's behaviour in general is rapidly declining as screen use increases... Many children are now screen addicts, zombies who lack respect, concentration and any keenness to learn. There will be a study in the future about the correlation between screen use and type of game played compared to attitude/behaviour/mental health in children. I'm baffled more people don't see the link to be honest. Very damaging to our young people. And I agree with the resulting rise in aggression from children using screens too much. I've seen a huge decline in standards since I became a teacher in 2004, and this is children coming into school like this, from a very young age. I do think it would be great if parents understood the massive problems these games cause, but most aren't and won't. Therefore I agree government should step in. We are losing a whole workforce of teachers at an alarming rate. I've held on as long as I can but I refuse to be verbally and physically attacked as part of my job thanks. Very valid post OP.

Games are pretty well graded and regulated by pegi, usk and esrb for violence which is useless if parents don't follow the advice but in the case of fortnite the publishers have got around it by making the violence cartoony. It's rated a pegi 12 but many parents I know allowed their kids on at 8 , I did not having read up on it and learned about the addictive nature of it, but most parents just ignore the massive age rating on the front. Now with fortnight they have really tapped into the dopamine hit and the age rating bodies don't have a good handle on measuring this yet. I still think parents need to make a researched decision on each and every game they allow their kids to play.

It would be outrageous to punish a company for doing a good job and coming up with a product that players don't want to stop playing.
I find that marketing of this game and the promotion of loot boxes to be suspect but at the end of the day it's the parents responsibility to use parental controls, uninstalling the game or removal of console etc for their child's health.

YABU, none of the examples you have given are banned because they’re addictive

They’re banned because of the negative impact to peoples health and society.

Sex is addictive, do you want to ban that?

Are parents really so lazy at parenting their own children they would rather blame a game? How embarrassing. If you're old enough to be a parent, then parent your own child. My son plays fortnite but I'm the adult, I tell him when it's time to come off. It really isn't hard.

All of this is the responsibility of the parents. If they can't regulate their children's screen time well that says a lot about their parenting. All video games are made to make you want to keep play it is not the game makers fault if the parents can't say no to their kids.