The dark side of Fortnite: How Australian children are skipping school and avoiding family holidays for video game marathons – and attacking their parents when they try to switch it off
- A boy threatened to burn his room down unless he was allowed to play Fortnite
- Child psychologists are warning it’s becoming a ‘silent epidemic’ globally
- Kids are getting checked into rehab clinics aimed at computer game addiction
- Gaming addiction could soon become recognised as an addiction by the WHO
Children as young as seven are attacking their parents and skipping school so they can stay home and play Fortnite, in what’s being dubbed a ‘silent epidemic’.
One teenage boy even threatened to light his room on fire unless his parents gave him his computer back, and carved his name on the wall of their home in protest.
Some Australian families are checking their kids into rehab clinics dedicated to weaning them off computer games and getting them back into society and school.
Kids as young as seven are attacking their parents and skipping school so they can stay home and play Fortnite, in what’s being dubbed a ‘silent epidemic’
Fortnite: Battle Royale was released less than two years ago, but already has more than 250 million players globally, and is fast becoming an obsession for underage gamers.
The game, which has been likened to a cross between Hunger Games and Call of Duty, involves killing all other players on a battlefield to be the last avatar standing.
Despite the game having a recommendation age of 13, children as young as seven and eight are becoming consumed by it, even though they’re too young to understand it.
A teenage boy even threatened to light his room on fire unless his parents gave him his computer back, and carved his name on the wall of their home in protest
Learning expert and neuroscience communicator Jill Sweatman told the Herald Sun that when kids are exposed to violence, there are short-term and long-term consequences.
Ms Sweatman said that in an extreme case a teenage boy threatened to burn down his bedroom.
‘He went to school late every single day and would play games all weekend, and when his parents decided it was time to take the computer away — and this was a 14-year-old boy — he threatened to burn down his room and took a knife and carved his name into the wall of the kitchen,’ she said.
The game, which has been likened to a cross between Hunger Games and Call of Duty, involves killing all other players on a battlefield to be the last avatar standing
She said there’s a growing number of families who are becoming effected by Fortnite, and that it’s reaching crisis point.
Cyber safety educator Leonie Smith told the paper that she is regularly told by teachers that students avoided school to play the game.
‘One boy told his Mum he was being bullied at school and he didn’t want to go. When she told the teacher, she found out it was a complete story. He was staying up all night playing Fortnite and then couldn’t function the next day,’ she said.
Ms Smith said parents are unaware of the game’s violent content due to its light heartened appearance.
The video game obsession is becoming so abundant that psychologists are starting to specialise in treatment specifically aimed at gaming addiction.
Rehab centres for gaming have been opened in Sydney and Melbourne, but they aren’t cheap, and could become a financial burden on desperate parents.
On Monday, gaming addiction could become officially recognised by the World Health Organisation when it’s expected to release the results of its Geneva Assembly.
One boy told his mother he was being bullied at school because he was so tired from staying up all night and gaming the night before
This included the 11th revision of its International Classification of Diseases that could include gaming disorders as an addiction, which will bring more awareness to the epidemic.
To be diagnosed with gaming disorder, gamers must display behaviour that significantly harms their social, educational or working lives for at least one year.
WHAT IS FORTNITE?
Fortnite is a game that originally launched as a disk back in July 2017 and was then turned into a free-to-download game by its developer, Epic Games, in September.
There are three forms of the game: ‘Battle Royale’, ‘Save The World’ and ‘Playground’.
Save the world is the original form of the game and is currently not available to play as part of the free-to-download game, instead it comes as part of a £30 ($40) extra.
It is a co-op mode with a story that’s playable solo or online with friends.
Fortnite is a battle royale-style survival shooter where players create a superhero avatar and compete against each other on a dystopian island
Users compete in teams of up to three to complete a variety of missions.
It is rumoured that the game will be added to the free-to-play version of the game in the future.
Whilst Save The World may be the original version of the game, its sister mode is by far the most popular.
Battle Royale is a game of survival where players create a superhero avatar and compete against each other on a dystopian island.
Each game, or ‘match’ as each competition is known, starts with 100 players.
The aim of the game is to be the last one standing. Users can form allegiances and play in small groups.
To enable this and the interactive experience, the game allows completely open communication between players.
Inspired by the Hunger Games novels and films, gamers search for weapons to help them survive.
Armed with quirky weapons and amusing dances, the game has swept across the gaming world, with children flocking to it.
While there is no exact figure on how many children play Fortnite, the game has so far pulled in an audience of over 125 million players.
Playground is the latest addition to the game and is a consequence free mode with more loot and unlimited respawning to allow players to get creative.
It involved groups of up to four people working as a team and the players can hone their skills as the practise in advance of entering Battle Royale where they will face better players.