Are you also a PUBG player?
The fame of PUBG has increased so much that it has even reached Narendra Modi, evident from his sentence ‘Ye PUBG wala hai kya?’ during ‘Pariksha pe Charcha’ session. It is creating a sensation throughout the world which has led to organising PUBG competitions at various colleges and international tournaments with hefty prize amounts.
I was done with my exams and was taking some time off. Apart from reading literature books, travelling and watching movies, I did not have any other goals. That is when I heard about the game PUBG. I usually don’t prefer playing virtual games to while away my time. However, seeing the PUBG fever engulfing the society, I decided to try it out.
The fact that I could play along with voice interaction was kind of appealing. With time, I met many of my friends online. I started playing overnight. I have also seen people play PUBG during lunch breaks at office, even during a meeting. Only then did the realisation dawn on me that I may be addicted to the game too. I started reducing the time I spent on the game and later completely abandoned it. Now, standing away from the influence of the game, I want to assess if it was worth it.
Advantages of playing PUBG:
- Helps spend time when no productive work is in line.
- It is said to have a minute effect on improving the reflexes which I am really not very sure of.
- Reduces stress to a certain extent.
Disadvantages of playing PUBG:
- First and the foremost, we need to forget about the health of our eyes. The high graphic display will strain the eyes.
- Addiction affect the mental health too.
- Time wastage is an inevitable outcome.
- The game has such an effect that I had experienced nightmares of PUBG.
- Playing late night upsets the sleep-wake cycle leading to emotional distress and headache.
Clearly, the disadvantages outweigh advantages.
Is PUBG the new Bluewhale?
With the world shrinking due to widespread digitalisation, one or the other game has been ruling the lives of people. Games like Pokemon Go, angry birds, flappybirds, candy crush have earned fame throughout the world. These games are not only played by kids but by elders too. I have seen many elderly people playing candy crush the whole time. With all these games on one side, bluewhale took the gaming craze to a higher level leading to suicide of many weak minded kids making it a metaphor for such life ruining games.
Reaction for the game:
Recently, China has banned the game citing that it harms mental health. In India, Gujarat has taken lead to ban PUBG. Many colleges like Vellore Institute of Technology has banned PUBG in their hostels.
Gaming and its effects have reached such a level that World Health Organisation has listed Gaming Disorder as one of the entries in the International Classification of Diseases in 2018.
Is it a part of our mistake?
During my childhood, games meant playing outside in the fields, cycling and such other outdoor activities. But now, I see that most of the children are happy staying indoors, watching television and playing video games than to engage in physical activities. Many parents too wouldn’t want their child to go around playing, fearing that they might hurt themselves. Unfortunately, where is the fun in childhood without these? We are pushing away the child from the real world towards virtual world and we ourselves complain when they get engrossed in video games. This fact is wholly exploited by the developers of such games, attracting the kids and youth towards them. ‘Are we creating an environment for the kids to grow, mingling with the real world?’ is the most important question to be raised. Shouldn’t we teach our kids to read some book instead of killing someone on the screen? Should the youth waste their prime time of their life in such games? Should technology be allowed to grab our time and the parts of our life? Is it our mistake that such games have taken priority over other important things? Does banning the game end the plethora of problems?
(Image Source: Google)