Esports
World Health Organization now recognizes “Gaming Disorder” as an official illness
In an interesting decision on May 25th, the World Health Organization (WHO) is officially recognizing gaming addiction as an illness.
While this decision is aimed at the broader gaming industry, the rise of Fortnite has absolutely contributed to this classification.
No game truly entered the mainstream culture quite like Fortnite. With its unique style and accessibility over all platforms, Fortnite’s popularity is staggering.
Apparently enough cases were reported to the WHO that the organization felt the need to classify gaming addiction (disorder) as a an official illness.
Here is the official definition of gaming disorder from the WHO:
“A pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behavior (‘digital gaming’ or ‘video-gaming’), which may be online (i.e., over the internet) or offline, manifested by:
- Impaired control over gaming (e.g., onset, frequency, intensity, duration, termination, context);
- Increasing priority given to gaming to the extent that gaming takes precedence over other life interests and daily activities; and
- Continuation or escalation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences. The behavior pattern is of sufficient severity to result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning.”
While most gamers immediate reaction is to laugh off a decision like this, gaming addiction has actually manifested itself with serious consequences.
In 2015, a Taiwanese man was found dead after a 3-day gaming binge, and he wasn’t the only person to die while gaming.
Now it is easy to dismiss those cases, but addiction can be real and brutal. Even if you can easily separate yourself from gaming, others may not be able to.
However, this report definitely does seem like it comes from people who don’t understand why you can’t pause an online game. They talked to “experts in various fields” but no one knows what their conversations were like behind closed doors.
How will the WHO decision impact gaming?
This is the interesting part. Having an official distinction for gaming disorder gives parents more ammo in the argument against playing a ton of video games.
Is this something that can be diagnosed? What is the treatment for it?
Will people end up going to gaming rehab? There are a lot of unanswered questions surrounding this decision.
In short, it probably doesn’t affect much. Games publishers are going to push back on the decision, something the Entertainment Software Association had already done before the final decision was made.
“[This decision] recklessly trivializes real mental health issues like depression and social anxiety disorder,” the ESA said in January according to gamesindustry.biz.
There won’t be any mandates on how much people can game that weren’t already established by parents.
Best reactions to the “gaming disorder” decision
There is a huge pushback from the gaming and Fortnite community right now. People are comparing gaming to other time sucks like binge watching Netflix or spending hours on Reddit.
How is gaming really that much different? Here are some of the best tweets about the decision:
😭😭😭 time to binge watch Netflix to cope. Gotta wait for them to identify that as a disorder too since it's got the same health benefits 😒 We all just some disorderly ass people 🤷🏽♂️
— Daequan (@TSM_Daequan) May 25, 2019
Welp I guess my principle was right I have gaming disorder GG im in the hospital getting all the care I need to get cured of this Disorder
— Wintrrz (@TSM_Wintrrz) May 25, 2019
Even CouRage’s mom got in on the criticisms:
i am the mother of a son that has a gaming disorder. Its been a nightmare – he was on honor roll every marking period. He worked and saved the money to buy his $12K car when he was 17. He was president of his fraternity. Now earns a living doing what he absolutely loves. 😊
— Lisa Natelli Dunlop (@lisadunlop87) May 25, 2019
She brings up a good point of all the good gaming can do. Unlike drug or alcohol addiction which have no positives, gaming is a legitimate career. Gaming will only become a larger part of the world and teaching kids how to get jobs in this industry is what we should be doing, not classifying it as a disease.
Teach moderation absolutely, but calling this a disease is just so weird. Maybe they only mean the very extreme cases like the deaths linked above, but more people die from cows each year than gaming. (That’s actually true, did you know 22 people die every year from cow related injuries?)
Anyway, in the last two nights I have played multiple hours of Fortnite with my younger brother and a good friend growing up, and it didn’t feel like a harmful addiction, just making good memories with good people who live five hours away.
If we are going to acknowledge the bad in gaming, we must also recognize the good in it.
Battle Royale
Fortnite pro Cented kicked out of FaZe Clan for using hate speech
Fortnite pro Cented is no longer a part of FaZe clan. He was caught saying a racial slur on stream, and has parted ways with the organization.
FaZe Clan has removed Cented from their Fortnite roster after the pro player used a racial slur on a livestream. Here’s what’s next for the aspiring Esports athlete.
When Evan ‘Cented’ Barron joined FaZe clan in March 2021, fans worldwide had sky-scraping expectations from him. To be fair, he did gain a ton of followers across Twitch and Twitter and significantly improved his skills as a pro.
However, the former FNCS finalist and Cash Cups winner has been kicked out by FaZe Clan for using hate speech.
Why did FaZe Clan permanently remove Fortnite pro Cented?
While playing Fortnite recently, Cented joined Twitch streamer nothellfire1’s party and wasted no time in dropping a racial slur. It seems like he was not aware that nothellfire1 was live on Twitch.
This was followed by FaZe immediately announcing Cented’s permanent removal from the clan for using hate speech. The post clearly mentioned how the Esports org is constantly evolving and there is no room for racial slurs/discriminatory language.
Soon after, Cented himself admitted to using the slur on stream and claimed that he should’ve known better. The streamer apologized to the Fortnite community and acknowledged his immaturity and ignorance.
He said, “Somewhere along the way I let my ego get the best of me.”
Fortnite community reacts to FaZe Clan removing Cented
While some players are shocked that FaZe has parted ways with Cented instead of giving him sensitivity training, others like prominent leaker HYPEX did not hold back from making him aware of his mistake.
The mixed response from the Fortnite community is understandable, to say the least. It is fair for people to expect organizations to take rehabilitative measures, and it is equally justified for others to expect more maturity from adults like Cented.
This isn’t the first time that Cented has faced consequences for his blunt behavior. Back in June 2021, Epic Games warned him for abusing a young player and recklessly ranting about the Battle Royale game on Twitter.
Incidents like the one mentioned above have played a major role in decaying the image of Fortnite’s competitive community. Rather than being role models, the pros are infamous for being toxic and disrespectful.
Battle Royale
Fortnite Champion Series Chapter 3 Season 3 start date and prize pool revealed
Fortnite has announced the Champion Series (FNCS) for Chapter 3 Season 3 in which pros worldwide will compete for 3 million dollars.
The Fortnite Champion Series is easily the most anticipated competitive event every season. In Chapter 3 Season 3, the likes of Bugha, Clix, and Arkhram, among others, will battle it out for a prize pool of 3 million dollars.
Epic Games has finally announced the FNCS for Chapter 3 Season 3. This time around, the logo seems to have a tropical theme that matches the ‘Vibin’ season. The meta has also changed significantly, and it will be interesting to see how some of the most talented esports athletes have adapted to it.
Everything to know about Fortnite Champion Series (FNCS) Chapter 3 Season 3
Fortnite Champion Series for Chapter 3 Season 3 will begin on July 6 with 3 Qualifier rounds. The top five teams (Duos) from each round will directly advance to the FNCS Finals.
The qualifiers will take place till July 18 and the Semi-Finals will begin on July 21. As per Epic Games, the key to reaching the finals is Victory Royales and consistency. In the three Semi-Finals sessions, 6 Victory Royale winners and the top six consistent teams will move ahead.
The Finals will take place between August 12-14. There are two ways for a team to win the Fortnite Champion Series in Chapter 3 Season 3:
- The first team to get three Victory Royales and earn 475 points will be declared the FNCS champion. This is called the Match Point.
- If no team is able to acquire a Match Point at the end of 12 Finals matches, the duo with the highest points will win.
Chapter 3 Season 3 FNCS prize pool distribution
The prize pool for the Chapter 3 Season 3 FNCS is a whopping $3 million. However, it will be divided across several regions:
- EU: $1,350,000
- NAE: $690,000
- BR: $240,000
- NAW: $240,000
- ASIA: $240,000
- ME: $120,000
- OCE: $120,000
The prize pool is different for each region, primarily because of Fortnite’s prominence there. It is evident that the viewership numbers in Europe are much higher than in the Middle East and Oceania.
It is worth noting that fans should be able to unlock some free cosmetics by watching the matches. New FNCS-themed cosmetics also arrive in the Item Shop.
All in all, it is safe to assume that the Fortnite Champion Series for Chapter 3 Season 3 will be more exciting than ever. A ton of new features and weapons have arrived recently, and even map changes have been quite frequent.
Battle Royale
Fortnite star SypherPK quits Zero Build tournament after losing to cheaters
The Zero Build tournaments in Fortnite have been hijacked by cheaters, and streamer SypherPK eagerly wants Epic Games to fix it.
Fortnite veteran SypherPK has always been vocal about cheaters and stream snipers in the community. The streamer’s latest encounter with hackers in a Zero Build tournament compelled him to quit.
Multiplayer games, especially Battle Royales, have always had trouble with cheaters. Brilliant titles like Apex Legends and Call of Duty Warzone became unplayable owing to the rise of hackers and have lost innumerable players so far.
From the looks of it, there has been a surge of hackers in Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 3 as well following the introduction of Zero Build mode.
Fortnite pros are encountering more hackers than ever in Zero Build tournaments
Fortnite caught a second wind with Zero Build as a ton of new players joined the community. Moreover, big names like Ninja, Dr. Disrespect, and Tfue returned to the game and appreciated the non-sweaty mode.
The developers then hosted Zero Build tournaments that received an overwhelmingly positive response initially. However, hackers have now plagued such tournaments.
SypherPK recently took part in the NA West Zero Build finals and he was well aware of the fact that some teams are abusing aim bot and wall hacks.
Soon after, the streamer reported that hackers eliminated him in the very first game. It is no surprise that this incident led to him quitting the cup. He asked Epic Games to work on a live bans feature or atleast a new anti-cheat system that is dedicated to competitive playlists.
Zero Build mode in Fortnite has helped in exposing cheaters
Previously, Fortnite compelled players to build which significantly increased the skill gap between newcomers and veterans. On one side, there were players with the skill set to make a skyscraper within 30 seconds. On the other end of the spectrum, there were beginners who struggled in every game because the SBMM system rarely matched them with equally skilled/experienced players.
Amidst such issues, we are witnessing the growing use of cheats and devices like the Cronus Zen. This allows cheaters to win more comfortably than ever, but naturally, at the cost of the ruined experience of every player they face.
Until Chapter 3 Season 1, it was harder to track cheaters because mechanics like building and editing were an integral part of the meta.
In contrast, aim and mobility are the deciding factors of a Zero Build game. Accordingly, players can now easily identify cheaters using aim bots and wall hacks.
Countless other players, streamers, and pros have similar opinions on the current state of Fortnite and Epic Games would certainly want to come up with a solution before the Cash Cups commence in Chapter 3 Season 3.
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