Before answering this, I'll just go few some things which are relevant to my answering of these questions. Firstly, a rundown which MMORPGs I have played, in chronological order of first play:
- Face of Mankind (
www.fomportal.com) - I'll explain this game as it's widely unknown.
I was involved with beta testing this game in the open beta. It is set in a cyberpunk future with the Global Dominion, the clans and the corporations all vying for power.
It is essentially a roleplaying MMO with FPS and RPG elements. There is FPS combat (which can be switched to third person, but I chose not to). Guns, armour, medpacks, implants, ammunition and many other kinds of items (including rocks) are player managed. Players mine, produce and sell items. There are secure storage systems on each world and on each world different materials can be mined, materials can be converted into different goods and the markets are independent.
Each player must join a faction, of which there are currently 8. These are either components of the Global Dominion, a clan or a corporation. Each faction has a hierachy, the lower rungs of which can be climbed by completing missions which are set up by players such as defense and attack and beyond the lower ranks promotion is decided upon by higher ranking members of the faction.
Well, I'm rattling on a bit, essentially I fell in love with this game world. It was just like the films and books that I love and it was a great game due to the community that existed. However, as soon as it left open beta, the community left it, I continued for a while but now there are very players and its grand scale has dissapeared unfortunately.
- Guild Wars & Factions
- World of Warcraft
The second piece of information, one of the main arguments I've seen for MMORPGs being more addictive than FPS or RTS games is that there is some part of the brain responsive to the levelling up and collecting of equipment for your character/s. If this is truly so, then surely other games I've played such as Pokémon, Final Fantasy VII-IX and Diablo II should have the same effect.
Finally, just to give some idea of how long I've played all of the games I've mentioned:
Pokémon Series - 500+ hours (estimate) - The closest I've been to being addicted to a game, but note I had no other games so this is essentially how long I played on a gameboy which I had for three years.
Final Fantasy IX - 200+ hours (estimate) -The only Final Fantasy game that grabbed me, I've completed this and done the final bosses again and again for that amazing ending.
Diablo II - 200+ hours (estimate) - I loved my Necromancer, I played him to nearly level 70, spending a huge amount of time trading, probably more than playing the actualy game.
Face of Mankind - Goodness knows how long!
Guild Wars - 142 hours (Xfire)
World of Warcaft - 107 hours (Xfire)
- Are you 'addicted' to MMORPG's? Have you lost control of your own life as a result?
From my perception, no. I stopped playing Face of Mankind when the player count dropped way below acceptable levels for the cost of subscription, I still run a Guild in Guild Wars but have not played for about a month now and I have ceased to pay for World of Warcraft for a few months but I am about to restart it. I only ever reached level 27, in Guild Wars I went quite far in the game, I'm currently managing a fun social guild and in Face of Mankind I got to only Rank 3 out of 7. I've never become incredibly competitive with an MMORPG.
- Have you made unsuccessful attempts to control your game play and do you feel restless, moody or depressed when trying to do so?
No, I get bored, I stop.
- Does your game play affect relationships with loved ones, family and friends?
Well, I play Guild Wars with friends and I even more so with World of Warcraft. The family is fine with me playing games, they're just a hobby. I might briefly discuss strategies and plan when to do specific events such as PvP in Guild Wars.
- Do you spend more time in a 'virtual' world than the 'real' world?
No, at the moment during weekdays I'll spend about 1.5 hours online, about 45 minutes of that playing games. And that's rarely an MMORPG game. I might play a maximum of an hour of Guild Wars a week.
- Do the lines between the virtual and the real world become blurred and distorted?
No, a game is a game, it's supposed to be fun. I do remember some in Face of Mankind treating the fights, the backstabbing and the political discussion to heart though!