Gamers Driven to Weed, Speed and Caffeine?
October 30th, 2008 by Perry
A look at the darker side of gaming reveals the growing competitive “sport” may be undergoing a rise in narcotics use.
Alex Walker, the Australian World Cyber Games Tournament Director, admitted in an interview with Gameplayer that some cyber athletes like to smoke marijuana or even take amphetamines to boost their reflexes before competition.
Really? You don’t say?
Once considered a laughable cottage industry for high school dropouts and middle-aged adults living at home; competitive gaming is becoming a lucrative endeavor, with athletes able to earn as much as $100,000 to $500,000 per tournament.
Bet that makes paramedics, teachers and firefighters want to cry. Videogamers out-earning their entire yearly salary in one tournament…
The article goes on to point out media coverage by networks like MTV, USA and Directv creates an environment that has to be aware of the ills of drug abuse. One way they’ve tried to solve the problem is to create a gaming pill called FpsBrain.
I honestly couldn’t make this up. I wonder what marketing genius is going to get rich off gullible cyber athletes that buy this stuff…
