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I have three children ages 14, 11 and 9. I recently learned that their mother (my ex-wife and the custodial parent) has a monthly subscription to WoW.
When my children are at their mother's house, they never go outside to play, one reason being that they are allowed to play video games as long as they want, even if it interferes with school.
I am aware that WoW is not the only video game that they play, but I am concerned that they are addicted to WoW (not uncommon which is why they can charge money to play it) and that it is not an age-appropriate game.
I've tried WoW once but it just doesn't suit me. Maybe I'm "too old". I prefer classic games like Pac-Man, Space Invaders or Tetris.
For those of you who don't know, you can converse live with other players on this game, and naturally, on the Internet with no censorship or guardians of any kind, curse words and who knows what else are thrown about with abandon. I'm aware that the same kind of conversation happens in school with their peers, but at least then there are teachers and administrators nearby, and adult strangers are not allowed to join in their childish conversations.
Yeah, it's "just a game" but it's unsupervised and addictive.
Enough of what I think. What does the audience think of children playing WoW?
I think the 14 year old is part of the target audience. Younger kids can play but may be more interested in other things.
How does it interfere with school? If they are all sharing their moms computer to play I can't imagine any of them are spending too much time on it. If they have their own computers there is an easy solution to your problem
i've played it and i think it's age appropriate (except for the unpredictable aspect of interaction with other real people) but i don't think kids should be spending that much of their time on the computer doing *anything* (or watching tv, or whatever).
i don't think it's any more "addictive" than any other game, or any other activity a person enjoys. i'd worry about them having unrestricted access to video games in general, not about wow in particular.
So, moderate playing of the game can be an opportunity to teach a child how to responsibly engage people on the internet. Supervised practice can lead to good knowledge of how the internet and social games work, and that knowledge can be used to protect themselves in the digital age they will be a part of for the rest of their lives.
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One of my cousins would literally stay up until sunrise every night playing XBOX Live, WoW, and whatever other online, escapist, fantasy games he could get his hands on. He turned out fine (never been incarcerated, is a mechanical engineer who works for one of the big CGI movie producers, enjoys his work, etc.) but he is probably vitamin D deficient due to never going outdoors, if I could get him to go fishing he would not have any fun or the slightest clue what to do, he doesn't play golf, he isn't handy around the house, and just seems to have little interest in the actual world outdoors. I would really prefer that my kids be outside getting skinned knees, barked shins, sprained ankles, fishing hooks in the ears, black eyes, fat lips and fingers slammed in doors. Builds character a lot more than having 13,000,000 mana points.
I think it's fine for the 14 year old to play WOW. You just can't get upset that a child that age will hear/type a swear word and they should be old enough to differentiate between fantasy and reality, unless there are other underlying issues. A 14 year old does not need to be supervised every minute of the day.
Be careful about criticizing everything your kids do while they are at their mother's house. It could definitely backfire on you. Not that many 14 year old kids spend a lot of time playing outdoors.
So, moderate playing of the game can be an opportunity to teach a child how to responsibly engage people on the internet. Supervised practice can lead to good knowledge of how the internet and social games work, and that knowledge can be used to protect themselves in the digital age they will be a part of for the rest of their lives.
This is hands down the best advice! Very well said.
I don't know anything about WoW...but it sounds to me as if the problem is not the game it is the situation. But you don't have any control over what goes on in your ex's home...You say it is interfering with their schoolwork - is their schoolwork suffering? If you have a decent relationship with your ex you might be able to address the grade situation...As far as the kids playing outside - it really depends. Some kids are more "outside" kids than others. Depends on the weather where you live. Depends on whether your kids have friends/alternate activities at your ex's home...all kinds of things. Games in and of themselves are not bad. Like anything else, and has already been said, moderation is key. My son likes to play some of these games (not WoW but some of the other popular games) - he is generally an active kid who does spend a good amount of time outdoors "doing things" however, if the weather is not good, or it's late or he's physically exhausted he enjoys gaming. The rule in our home is games not allowed during the week during the school year. I do not want him rushing through his homework to get online to play games...I know other families whose rule is not during the school year except during breaks.....Each child and each situation has to be considered individually.
I think WoW is harmless in itself. Its the people that use it, that abuse it.
The worst thing on there ishaving your animated character be totally naked, but then thats not much fun as you get killed pretty fast. Most children don't do that though.
We all played video games. They were all violent to some extent. We didn't come out any worse for wear. They are just more advanced nowadays is all.
If anything, its the teeny boppers on there talking and swearing thats kinda bad, but chat can be ignored and overlooked when your busy fighting monsters and getting treasure. Its just a fun game.
Parta the fun is having a female character and getting free stuff from bonehead guys. LOL
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I prefer classic games like Pac-Man, Space Invaders or Tetris.
