Addictions in general are only a very recent inclusion in psychology as psychological problems.  Psychology itself is often under fire for its often less than exact scientific approach to some things.  So when psychology begins labeling things like “gaming addiction” as a...

Currently, there is a meme that picked up speed early this week and has been running strong ever since.  It revolves around Twitter and the hashtag #1reasonwhy.  The conversation centers on women in the gaming industry and the blatant sexism that thrives in the world of game making and...

Chances are, if you’re reading this, you know a lot of gamers.  You’re probably one yourself.  This means that you’re intimately familiar with the lame cliche’s and stupid misconceptions about us that are rampant.  Sadly, it’s not just old people (i.e....

The gaming industry is a lot like Hollywood or Washington, D.C.  It’s full of characters, hangers-on, weird B-listers, and robber barons.  While everyone knows that movie stars are generally nutcases and politicians are liars by nature, we still revel in the Jerry Springer moments...

There are a lot of things about games that we wish we had in real life.  Maybe it’s that awesome Vorpal Sword* or that killer Conan body builder look or that sweet chainmail bikini.  Whatever it is, we wish we had it.  It’s why we play games.  They’re a fantasy, a...

In gaming, one subject is considered almost universally to the be most controversial for MMO and RPG.. creating and playing avatars of the opposite sex.  In the early days of massive multiplayers, it was usually a given that the “female” character you just ran into was being...

It’s difficult to bring up video games, especially online multiplayers, without hearing comments about pedophiles.  It has become as expected as hearing about living on mom’s basement and living on Twinkies.  Pedophilia is now considered part of the gamer culture by those...

Everyone loves “top X” lists.  They are fun, since they can introduce the reader to things they may not have seen before (such as games they might not have played) and harrowing for the writer since inevitably, the most vocal of those who read the list will be those who...

Parents worry about their children.  It’s part of being a parent.  Around the time kids are becoming social with their friends and playing games on a console or computer, they’re going to start asking about playing online games – either through a console with an...

You’re cruising through your favorite MMO, bashing mobs, collecting XP, and happily playing the game.  Then you do something that makes someone else unhappy.  Maybe you “claim jumped” on a node (a popular WOW passtime), or stole a kill (a favorite accusation in WOT),...

I was on the fence whether to call this post ‘Questing in the Barrens’ or what turned out to be the actual post title (it pretty much amounts to the same). World of Warcraft is only a few more weeks away from its 6th birthday, a time around which human beings usually...