Fortnite is the most popular game in the world, but some kids are taking it too far. Yes, so many of us spent countless hours playing video games as kids. When Halo 2 dropped, there wasn't a single gamer in my high school that slept for the week following. Video game addiction has escalated since then, and Fortnite players are leading the pack. Gadgets 360 recently did a report on video game addiction, and it appears that rehab has become the only option for some addicted young gamers.
The report highlights Debbie Vitany, the mother of 17-year-old Carson. He spends 12 hours a day playing Fortnite, devoting half of his time daily to the game. "We'd made some progress in getting him to cut down his Fortnite hours and get better sleep, but he's slipped back into his old habits," Vitany said. "This game is like heroin," stated Lorrine Marer, a British behavioral specialist for kids who have gaming addiction. "Once you are hooked, it's hard to get unhooked." Heroin is a reach, but both the drug and the video games are landing kids in the same place. Rehab. The World Health Organization listed "gaming disorder" as a disease for the first time in June. Now, parents are turning to mental health workers to help their kids cut down on the gaming addiction.