Fortnite is now causing divorces, hurting kids

Battle Royale games have really taken the world by storm. We have games such as PUBG and Fortnite taking over the world by storm. PC and smartphone manufacturers are even coming up with devices specifically meant to play these games. There are global esports events based on these across the world, involving millions of players investing resources to figure out who’ the better player. However, these games have gone so viral that it has started affecting human relationships.

According to a study conducted by Divorce Online, Epic Games’ Fortnite has been responsible for making a vast number of marriages unsuccessful. The report says that at least 200 marriages have been reported to face a divorce case this year — the reason being one of the partners devoting more time to the game instead of towards the partner. Since January 2018, out of 4,665 divorce cases in the UK, 5 per cent of them have been hunted by the game alone.

“These numbers equate to roughly five per cent of the 4,665 petitions we have handled since the beginning of the year and as one of the largest filers of divorce petitions in the UK is a pretty good indicator,” states the report. The other two weird reasons following Fortnite are an addiction to porn and social media browsing. In fact, it has even been reported that popular pornographic portal Pornhub notices a high dip in traffic when Epic Games release a new update to the game.

However, married couples aren’t the only ones who are suffering the wrath of Fortnite. Children have been found to be highly addicted to the game and end up harming their health, both physically and mentally. The Daily Mail reports that a four-year-old from the UK harmed himself by breaking his arm after he tried imitating the bus jump sequence in Fortnite by jumping from a slide holding an umbrella. Similarly, another 10-year-old was emptied his mother’s bank account while spending after in-game items.

The Battle Royale genre is presently generating huge revenue for developers, directly helping the gaming market boom. However, players need to abstain from addiction as it’s highly harmful, especially when the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared gaming as a potentially harmful behaviour related to technology.

Therefore, if you are addicted to Fortnite or PUBG, it is advised to forego the Chicken Dinner in favour of an actual dinner with your loved ones. As for parents, they should resort to exercise limits on their child’s devices and keep a tab on how they are spending their life on smart devices.

(source)