How can you miss something that hasn't yet passed? Seeing as 99% of your posts fit neatly into the "absolute bullshit" category, I don't think you should be one to talk. And if its really such bullshit, why are you reading it? The only thing more pathetic than a person writing dozens of paragraphs of absolute bullshit and being blind to it is the person that thinks its absolute bullshit but still goes on licking it all up. Why are you doing that?

In fact, while we're on the subject, what are you doing here at all? Why are you here?

Well, the faculty I'm studying at is pretty down-to-earth and laid back, so there's not a lot of grudging and intriguing going on, fortunately, but I definitely do recognize that feeling. The University I used to go to in Holland was a lot more like that.

My thesis was going to be in translation studies, I already wrote my master thesis on it (the localization of video games during the era before the ESRB, when Nintendo could still tell other companies anything they wanted), but I've grown tired of studying, and it doesn't help much that my advisor passed away last year, leaving the total amount of teachers in the field of translation studies at my University a resounding 0.

So yeah, force majeure I guess.

"licking it up"? You mean reading it and acknowledging it?

No, I mean hanging around discussions you seem to find so disagreeable. What's the point in engaging in cheap hit-and-run one-liners and not contributing anything? If what I say is so full of shit, why don't you join the discussion and point out what I've got wrong? If you have anything to remark on, I'd love to hear it (<---and that's not "I'd love to hear it" in a sarcastic way, these things interest me and if you're willing to offer an opposite/different perspective, I'd very much listen). Considering the way you're acting in this thread and many others, wouldn't it just be better to shut up and observe? And if what's being said really offends you to such a degree that you think its "absolute bullshit", why do you torment your noble self by subjugating yourself to reading it?

I definitely feel like i have a sense of loss. I have some fairly good ideas on what is the root cause of it, but for the most part, I really can do nothing to change them.

...Things just decided to turn out in the way that they did, and that's that.

Nobody ever promised that life was going to be fair all the time, and that's just the way it is, whether we like it or not.

All we can do is just go along with each day, and make the rules up to the best of our ability as we go, hoping that it will make things turn out alright at the end of the day.

Not to start anything, but is there any proof to your claim? If there's a study or something, I would like to read. (Just that unavoidable fact got my eye)

Sorry about the "unavoidable fact" bit, very poor wording on my part. I don't know of any such study, the claim is based on my own intuitions and observations. In questions like these I think our gut feelings are the only things we can really base such an assumption on, because how could you really fit very subjective and vague things like "something deeper missing" and "sadness and a sense of loss" into the framework of a scientific study? But they exist nonetheless, and I think we all know of gamers like that.

Yep, and I also know people like that who don't play any games whatsoever.
I don't see why you would have to single out games in this case, since clearly the same could be said of ANY hobby that involves you sitting around the house on your own, secluded from the outside world.
Whether it be watching movies, reading books, listening to music or whatever, if you just sit around the house all day you're probably missing something, yes.
I really don't think games should be singled out in this regard.

They are not the cause of this problem, but simply offer one way of dealing with loneliness more easily.

all studies are only as accurate as the information available or volunteered. Maybe the official US census questionnaire needs a fill-in-the-blank for the number undocumented people locked in the basement.

edit (after finally reading the rest of the thread, you guys know clowning always comes first for me)..

perhaps gaming addiction is brought to attention more because it is a sedentary hobby which in itself can contribute to other health and social isolation problems. I remember from my teen gaming years how easy it was to be playing for hours on end,, and then suddenly the sun is coming up already.

take for example a runner who may run hours a day along the side of highways. People arent going to think that person has a problem (except some really nasty-ass looking feet). He would be referred to as a 'dedicated athlete', when it is possible he uses that as his escape.

Since the thread is already long-winded beyond belief (thanks mostly to me, I know), I understand how one can miss a lot of stuff being said. If you check one of my posts above, you'll find:

Ah, right you are then.

Carry on

The entirety of the world needs to be restructured. We need to employ artificial life forms, eliminate money and eradicate bad people. There is no reason whatsoever why anyone should have to go to a job unless they truly enjoy it. All trivial tasks should be handled by artificial life. We can start by removing all world governments. Since they are in charge and our world is not a paradise, this indicates their methods of governing are not effective. As an example, the government in Mexico is run by little girls. They must be little girls, because they are afraid to kill the drug dealers. If adults ran the government, then they would order the military to kill all drug dealers within one week or suffer decimation, Roman style. I can think of trillions of examples that indicate adults are not running governments. But they are adults. And as I wrote above, their methods are not effective. Our world is not efficient because the wrong people are in charge. Anyone that runs for office, in my opinion, is the wrong person. Such people seek to improve their own position, not yours.

This made me laugh so hard!