Arkansas Family Sues Microsoft, EA, Activision, And More For Enabling Game Addiction

[The Deadman]

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/arkansas-family-sues-microsoft-ea-activision-and-more-for-enabling-game-addiction/1100-6519012/

An Arkansas family is suing a multitude of video game companies, including Activision Blizzard, Microsoft, and Epic, accusing them of enabling game addiction in minors.

According to a report from Insider Gaming (via GamesIndustry.biz), the complaint was filed on October 30. An Arkansas mother filed the suit on behalf of her child--referred to as G.D. in the suit. The filing claims G.D. plays games over a dozen hours a day and has spent thousands on microtransactions. The suit seeks damages for injuries related to G.D.'s addiction (pain in his hands, shoulders, and elbow), related health care costs, statuary and punitive damages, and legal fees.

The suit claims 14 counts of action, including negligence for not warning users of games' addictive qualities, deceit, and violation of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act. It names a variety of tactics video game companies allegedly use to addict minors, such as 'rubber-banding,' loot boxes, and pay-to-win transactions.

The suit cites 16 patents it claims are evidence of the intention to drive minors to addiction for profit. The cited patents include a customized messaging patent from Activision, which uses players' behavioral data to write personalized messages promoting microtransactions, and an EA patent for allowing new players to purchase in-game bonuses and protection more cheaply than seasoned ones. A patent doesn't necessarily mean the material patented will be directly implemented in a product, but the suit claims that "several patents shed light on the innovative video game monetization invented to nudge users into making in-game purchases."

"Defendants manufactured, published, marketed, and sold video games, including those played by G.D., that Defendants had specifically developed and designed to cause the addiction experienced by G.D. and other users," the suit says.

In a press release, Tina Bullock, a lawyer with Bullock Ward Mason representing the plaintiffs, gave the following statement: "Gaming addiction is a serious, life-altering disorder that is stealing children’s lives and disrupting families across the country. Parents like me often mistakenly think it is a failure on their part when their child becomes addicted, but through this litigation we hope to shine a light on these companies' reprehensible actions, deceit, and manipulation of our children for their own financial gain."

The press release also claims this is the first suit of its kind and that "more will be filed in the coming weeks."

Quick, someone tell this family about drug addiction and other addictions such as porn etc

[Cowabung-Gal]

Oh come on, Arkansas…


https://media.tenor.com/d9qIyroQfNQAAAAC/sonic-the-hedgehog-sonic-anime.gif

[IMJ]

Oh THAT is awesome. THAT is up there with the fat people who sued McDonald's for fatness. That BETTER go into the "woke $#!( playbook" for blaming others for your $#!( life. OMG

[XERO]

I'd rather be addicted to games than committing real life homicide.

They're just mad because videogames basically became better parents than they are.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Even if those video games were designed to cause addiction, it wouldn't be illegal.

[Barkworm]

Dumb people blaming others for being failures as parents. Nothing new here.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

When young people play video games, the media are always there to write and talk about addiction, and how it ruins their social lives.

When adult people sit for hours scrolling Facebook and Instagram, even at the dining table, everything is OK, I guess?

I know there are discussions about that topic too but unlike video games, they aren't serious political issues and people don't call for legal action.

sAHMkVslyps

[Sumac]

It is assumed that adults can control themselves, which is not the case.
What with infantilization of the Western people

[shredder orokusaki]

When young people play video games, the media are always there to write and talk about addiction, and how it ruins their social lives.

When adult people sit for hours scrolling Facebook and Instagram, even at the dining table, everything is OK, I guess?

I know there are discussions about that topic too but unlike video games, they aren't serious political issues and people don't call for legal action.

sAHMkVslyps

Maybe because facebook and twitter is something much newer than video games and it is not the same thing to talk with someone on facebook or twitter or to write a message there or on youtube than to play a video game?

Video games exists since 1980's. I started playing in 1994 when iwas 7 years old. Facebook was created in 2006 and twitter a bit later. These things didnt exist when many of us were kids we learned them as adults. While video games existed already even when we were kids and we started playing video games since then. Maybe this isw hy they dont talk so much about facebook/twitter/youtube addiction compared to video games?

[IMJ]

When young people play video games, the media are always there to write and talk about addiction, and how it ruins their social lives.

When adult people sit for hours scrolling Facebook and Instagram, even at the dining table, everything is OK, I guess?

I know there are discussions about that topic too but unlike video games, they aren't serious political issues and people don't call for legal action.

sAHMkVslyps

The example you gave there is at the root of when I label so much of people's nonsense as "disingenuous". What I've seen of people is that, even when committing evil or wrong, their virtue must be front and center. And so people veil their BS, their hate, the personal life-anger in attacks that they feel can be hidden in "virtue".

Woke **** is disingenuous false virtue for the life angry to assign blame on others for their own behavior.
Suing McDonald's over fast food is disingenuous false virtue for those who lack self-control and want to assign blame on others for their own behavior.

People who go after video game companies for enabling "addictions" aren't frequently gamers, but I'd liken their outbursts to those same people that want to crap on something that takes attention from them or some similar psychology (e.g., jealous, low emotional-quotient mom blames video games because her son doesn't give her enough attention).

These things are not true of all cases, but I'd say that they cut a huge swath into the reality of these situations. Enough of a swath that if you could eliminate them, then probably more than half of these "outburst actions" or "societal finger pointing actions" would go away.

Some people see these patterns, some don't. And some see them but deny them in self-interest. Even the media who writes about the things you mentioned are doing it in self-interest, and then of course from that disingenuous BS you have the peasant-thinker who reads it and gets on board. Real "soccer mom" $#!(.