It is entirely possible to become addicted to a computer game. Most commonly this is to RPGs at the moment, but in the past Tetris was the well-known one, so this idea isn't limited by genre. It does, however, only work for games in which one has to 'sign in' in some way to start playing.

When one sets up an account for a game with the Addiction Limiter enabled, a prompt appears asking at what level the limiter should kick in. The user decides using parameters such as time between sessions, sessions per time period, or length of sessions overall per time period, and decided what the effect should be. Should the game refuse to start for a certain period: force cold turkey, as it were? Should sessions be limited to a certain number per time period? A wide variety of options would be available.

Once set, the options are either left in place (unchangable) for a set time period, or left alterable until the program judges that a certain level of addiction has set in (ie the user cannot undo the settings just before the limiter kicks in).
-- dbmag9, Mar 25 2008

Halfbakery: The Gametime Stopwatch (2003) The_20Gametime_20Stopwatch
Similar, but not web-based. [jutta, Apr 08 2008]

I can think of a website that needs this.
-- wagster, Mar 25 2008


+ and good night. Well maybe just one more.
-- bneal27, Mar 26 2008


This has alot of potential. This could be, for computer games in the future, what surgeon's general warnings on cigarettes are today. [+]

*If this were installed at HB I wouldn't have been able to post this for at least another week.*
-- MikeD, Mar 26 2008


<peels cobwebs from shoulders> [+] !

I need an intervention.
-- elhigh, Mar 28 2008


"I'm suing you because the addiction limiter was susceptible to my hacking, and consequently I played continuously and lost my job."
-- david_scothern, Mar 28 2008



random, halfbakery