Doctors compare effects of video game Fortnite to hard drugs

The effects of playing Fortnite have been likened to hard drugs

Health professionals have warned against the impact of video game Fortnite, likening its effects to those of hard drugs.

The online shooter-survival game, played by more than 250 million users, is causing children to become violent, distracted and sleep-deprived, according to behavioural specialists in the US.

Michael Rich, a director of the Clinic for Interactive Media and Internet Disorders at Boston Children's Hospital, told the Boston Globe: “They are not sleeping. They are not going to school.

"They are dropping out of social activities. A lot of kids have stopped playing sports so they can do this”.

“We have one kid who destroyed the family car because he thought his parents had locked his device inside. He took a hammer to the windshield,” said Mr Rich.

The game’s most popular instalment, Fortnite: Battle Royale, generated over 2 billion dollars worldwide between September 2017 and March 2019 and drew in more than 125 million players in less than a year.

Health chiefs say that widespread obsession with the game is resulting in increasing rates of gaming addiction, leading parents to seek help from therapists and doctors.

Rich Domenico, a therapist with LiveWell Therapy Associates in Boston, explained how more and more parents are fighting over who’s to blame for first allowing Fortnite into the house and seeking help from couples’ councillors to deal with the situation.

“One of the parents will get to the point of almost considering a divorce,” said Mr Domenico.

“It's similar to working with parents who have a child addicted to drugs.”

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