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Addiction To Fortnite Cited In Over 200 Divorce Petitions (dailydot.com) 134

An anonymous reader writes: In just the last 35 weeks, one online divorce site received over 200 petitions citing addiction to Fortnite and other online games as one of the reasons someone wanted a divorce. "[T]he dawn of the digital revolution has introduced new addictions," said a spokesperson for the company, also citing online pornography and social media. "These numbers equate to roughly 5% 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."

On the other hand, the A.V. Club notes that the web site's creators "have a vested interest in making divorce seem sexy and cool in a way that only 'You walked in front of the screen and a 10-year-old in Wyoming shot me dead so now I'm taking the house' truly can."

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Addiction To Fortnite Cited In Over 200 Divorce Petitions

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  • yabh (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward

    YetAnotherBadHeadline courtesy of /. editors.

    "and other online games"

    Online games being cited in divorce filings started happening long before the typical Fortnite player was even born.

    • I'm over 50% sure this is deliberate as it generates comments likes yours (and mine), and like publicity, when it comes to a forum, any comments is a good comment.

  • by Anonymous Coward

    Fortnite wins every time. Woohoo! *arm swing dance*

  • Maybe or maybe not. (Score:5, Informative)

    by Gravis Zero ( 934156 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @03:13AM (#57322434)

    So, according to Internets, in the UK you can't just get divorced, you need to have a reason. (Internets would lie to me would it?)

    In order to start divorce proceedings in England or Wales, you first need to have been married for at least 12 months.

    To file a divorce petition against your spouse you must prove to the court that your marriage has irretrievably broken down by establishing one of the following grounds for divorce:

    * Adultery
    * Desertion
    * Unreasonable Behaviour
    * Separation of 2 years with consent
    * Separation of 5 years - no consent required

    I sure there are legit cases of addiction to gaming but I get the feeling that it's really just one contributing factor to an unhappy marriage that is being used as an easy target for "Unreasonable Behaviour". The real question is if the number of divorces has increased or have the reasons for divorce simply shifted.

    • Well if we assume it is the guy playing the game and playing with a female character you could bring up adultry because he is spending all his time looking at the animated cartoon curvy butt.
      Being that is isn’t involved with the wife or household activity we can say desertion.
      Unreasonable behavior yelling and screaming and cursing when some kid kills you.

      I agree though that there are probably other things going on too. But I expect they may be able to pull some legal excuses to get the point across t

    • Great for driving trends and influencing thinking.

      Recommendations in App stores is another case for this.

    • Desertion

      That would qualify for the gaming addicted.

    • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      They are trying to make a "no fault" divorce possible because it's become clear that these requirements are a bit antiquated.

      • Yes, the 5 years separation part is a burden to quite a few, when one spouse refuses to consent to the divorce.

    • by Blue Stone ( 582566 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @01:45PM (#57323996) Homepage Journal

      They're actually in the process of changing this right now, so that 'no fault' divorces can happen.

      https://www.theguardian.com/li... [theguardian.com]

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward

      My intuition is that gaming has not made divorce more likely.

      What HAS made divorce more likely than ever before is simply this: it is super-easy to do, and there are no harmful consequences.

      Once upon a time, if a woman got divorced, she suffered significant social stigma, from men and women alike, and her life sucked pretty bad from then on. Men suffered social stigmas too, of course, but they were more capable of earning a decent living anyway due to the gender imbalance in the working world.

      BUT......

      Now

  • Got It Backwards (Score:5, Informative)

    by mentil ( 1748130 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @03:18AM (#57322440)

    'You walked in front of the screen and a 10-year-old in Wyoming shot me dead so now I'm taking the house'

    Pretty sure it's more like "you spend more time yelling racial slurs at 10 year olds than acknowledging that your spouse exists."
    Fortnite could be Madden, Call of Duty, et cetera. They were called 'Everquest widows' [urbandictionary.com] back in the day.

    • Re:Got It Backwards (Score:5, Interesting)

      by Anubis IV ( 1279820 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @10:29AM (#57323312)

      I knew about a guy who was the main tank for a guild on my server back in the days of World of Warcraft 1.0. The guy went to get a sandwich halfway through a Molten Core raid, only to discover a note from his wife saying that she had taken the kids and was leaving for Florida to be with her parents because he was too addicted to the game (apparently he had logged 120 days of played time in the first year that the game was out).

      He got his sandwich and finished the raid before going after his wife and kids.

      He finally got her to come back by promising that he’d auction his character off on eBay, but then he posted it for a price he knew it would never sell at and then bragged about his cleverness on his guild’s forums...which is when he discovered that his wife read the forums. In the end, he was forced to sell the character for less and their marriage survived, though by the time I quit the game a year later, he was playing again on another character.

      • So he had been playing an average of 8 hours per day since release date? I guess that guy had a job. I can see why the wife wanted to run away.
        I know some women complain when their SOs play even a bit of videogames but in this case she had reason to be angry
        • This kind of article always makes me think about my own life and whether or not I'm treading too close to some line. I probably clock up similar hours on various videos games. But I usually get my share of the household chores done without complaint along with my parental duties. I did give up MMO's though shortly after getting married, I need to be able to pause or walk away from a game at the drop of a hat to take care of whatever thing has come up, and I'd feel badly doing that to a dozen or more people

          • by tlhIngan ( 30335 )

            This kind of article always makes me think about my own life and whether or not I'm treading too close to some line. I probably clock up similar hours on various videos games. But I usually get my share of the household chores done without complaint along with my parental duties. I did give up MMO's though shortly after getting married, I need to be able to pause or walk away from a game at the drop of a hat to take care of whatever thing has come up, and I'd feel badly doing that to a dozen or more people

    • by dargaud ( 518470 )

      Fortnite could be Madden, Call of Duty, et cetera.

      Right. If my significant other (or kids for that matter) had such an addiction, I'd change their hosts file to include a line such as 0.0.0.0 fortnite.com and solve the problem for good.

  • No correlation. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Rip!ey ( 599235 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @03:31AM (#57322464)
    Unless there has been a comparable increase in the rate of change of the number of divorce applications, then this is a non-story.

    People who want a divorce, that are required to give reason to get one, will find one. If it wasn't Fortnite, it would be something else. If it wasn't computer games, it would be something else.
    • Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • by Ranbot ( 2648297 )

      Unless there has been a comparable increase in the rate of change of the number of divorce applications, then this is a non-story.

      People who want a divorce, that are required to give reason to get one, will find one. If it wasn't Fortnite, it would be something else. If it wasn't computer games, it would be something else.

      Relatedly, if a marriage sucks participants may look for ways to escape it mentally and videogames are a form of escapism. That doesn't mean videogames causes divorce. A shitty marriage is still the cause of divorce.

  • Divorce Cool? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by thegarbz ( 1787294 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @03:40AM (#57322468)

    in a way that only 'You walked in front of the screen and a 10-year-old in Wyoming shot me dead so now I'm taking the house' truly can.

    This isn't a description of a "cool" divorce. This is a description of an "inevitable" divorce.

  • by lucasnate1 ( 4682951 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @04:29AM (#57322540) Homepage

    Fortnite is not special, neither is alcohol nor weed nor pills nor social networks. The only thing that IS special, is that our reality is intolerable for more and more people, and they find forms of escape. Can you blame them? For many people, life is just going to work, not having anyone they are close to, and if they are a man, knowing that they are never allowed to cry or express frustration (I guess there is some parallel for women, but I'm not a woman so I do not feel like I should say how they feel). Frankly, I suspect that a lot of modern technology and economy are just dedicated to create ways for people to escape the empty lives that they have.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Kjella ( 173770 )

      The only thing that IS special, is that our reality is intolerable for more and more people, and they find forms of escape. Can you blame them?

      I guess every generation have to find their own sob story about why they're angsty teens, but honestly... what the fuck is so wrong with society today? For the most part we have all our basic needs met, in fact the only thing I can think of is that we're so independent and socially liberal that nobody wants partner with uninteresting people because of economic dependence or social pressure or they got pregnant. Today she gets an abortion, there's no shotgun wedding.

      and if they are a man, knowing that they are never allowed to cry or express frustration

      What? Has there ever been a point in histo

      • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

        by lucasnate1 ( 4682951 )

        the only thing I can think of is that we're so independent and socially liberal that nobody wants partner with uninteresting people

        The thing is, this is how friendships are created, when you have no choice and end up hanging out with people and a connection is created. Today there is a fake feeling of plenty that makes people feel like they always have tons of options, that is, until they turn off the PC/phone and realize they are alone. I think that socially, we are suffering from analysis paralysis, both romantically and just with finding friends.

        What? Has there ever been a point in history where the male role has been less macho?

        Both patriarchy and feminism still deny a man from crying, the first because he should b

        • feminism still deny a man from crying,

          No it doesn't. This is you getting your idea of what feminism is from Reddit or Gab.

          While I personally think that the 70s were better

          If you were a well to do straight white dude, then maybe?

          • No, this is me getting the idea of feminism from most feminists I have met, which were, btw, much more privileged than me. I am neither white nor did I start very well to do in comparison with many blleding hearts.

            Did you ever notice this btw? How people in the populist right are always poorer than those of the populist left? Or maybe it is just in my country.

            • No, this is me getting the idea of feminism from most feminists I have met, which were, btw, much more privileged than me.

              Sounds like you haven't been listening very hard then. "Male privilige" (a somewhat silly word, but there you go) doesn't mean that every man is more priviliged than every woman. Not does it mean that feminists can't come from priviliged backgounds.

              You culd ask your feminist friends about the privilige concept and what it means if you like.

              Did you ever notice this btw? How people in the

              • I live in Israel, as can be seen by my signature (there's not plenty of people who would be interested in hebrew outside of Israelis).

                I had a lot of talks with my feminist friends and my conclusions are based on them. I do agree that the the older generations (people above 35 or 40) ususally have saner definitions of feminism, but the young generation is mostly privileged little assholes (people with money from their parents, who don't have to work).

                Regarding the UK and the US, where can I find any referenc

            • by robsku ( 1381635 )

              If I may ask, what country is that? I'll go first: I'm from Finland, and men can cry here without anyone but the lowest brows thinking that he is not a man because cry.

      • For the most part we have all our basic needs met,

        I don't think that we do.

        in fact the only thing I can think of is that we're so independent and socially liberal that nobody wants partner with uninteresting people because of economic dependence or social pressure or they got pregnant. Today she gets an abortion, there's no shotgun wedding.

        That example is progress. It means less spouse abuse. But you're right, we don't have communities any more. Nobody wants to try to work with people they don't like. Instead, they just shit all over them until they go away. Or, you know, commit suicide. Or lash out, and hurt other people.

        We used to have acceptable forms of behavior. People who couldn't fit into them were persecuted. Now we don't, and everyone acts like an asshole. We went from losing to losing.

      • I guess every generation have to find their own sob story about why they're angsty teens, but honestly... what the fuck is so wrong with society today?

        Same as it is every day. It's inhabited by a monkey[*] evolved primarily to live on the African planes. Turns out that monkey is only so-so at living in a high tech area where gorging on everything in sight is not a good survival strategy.

        in fact the only thing I can think of is that we're so independent and socially liberal that nobody wants partner with uni

      • by mjwx ( 966435 )

        and if they are a man, knowing that they are never allowed to cry or express frustration

        What? Has there ever been a point in history where the male role has been less macho? In fact, many men struggle to find the balance between still being a gentleman and not behaving in a way a modern woman finds condescending. And how to functionally date when it's not like I'll wine and dine you and you'll sleep with me. And use #metoo as an excuse to say that ordinary flirting and dating has become impossible, as if "grab her by the pussy" is ordinary dating behavior. If you think that, maybe that's the problem...

        Yes, most of history. The idea of "machoism" is a very modern one, previous to the 1900's and a romanticism about the wild west, Nelson's navy and other things that are falsely portrayed, people were broadly divided into the ruling elite who were quite effeminate (see: fops v dandies) and the working class who were quite submissive.

        Prior to the 1800's systems were existed to enforce gender roles, I.E. women weren't permitted the vote or in many countries simply to work. The idea of universal suffrage is

    • Fortnite is not special, neither is alcohol nor weed nor pills nor social networks. The only thing that IS special, is that our reality is intolerable for more and more people, and they find forms of escape. Can you blame them? For many people, life is just going to work, not having anyone they are close to, and if they are a man, knowing that they are never allowed to cry or express frustration (I guess there is some parallel for women, but I'm not a woman so I do not feel like I should say how they feel). Frankly, I suspect that a lot of modern technology and economy are just dedicated to create ways for people to escape the empty lives that they have.

      Reality has gotten really grim for many people because upward mobility is difficult, if not impossible now and people are looking for a way to escape the reality. This might also be a reason for the uptick in gun violence. The problem is the ever widening gap between the wealthy and working classes.

    • Exactly. Also, this situation is perfect for the ultra rich, and why there is such a high tolerance amongst execs for piracy. It keeps everyone else distracted with their media consumption while they continue to take the majority of the wealth.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      So, you realize things are better for humanity than they have ever been in history, right? Because they are.

      This whole, "*whine* but it's not perfect" attitude needs to die in a fire.

      • Yeah sure, everybody who does not agree with you need to die in a fire, goddamn ingrates should appreciate the fact that they live in a world where nobody thinks they should burn for their opinions.

        • I said the attitude needs to die in a fire, genius. Way to deliberately misunderstand what I said, just because it made you feel bad.

          Things are better today than they have ever been in human history. Ever. And morons STILL can't think of anything to do but complain that everything isn't perfect. Boo-hoo-hoo. Jesus Christ, the ingratitude. The total lack of perspective.

    • by Applehu Akbar ( 2968043 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @09:35AM (#57323122)

      Fortnite is not special, neither is alcohol nor weed nor pills nor social networks. The only thing that IS special, is that our reality is intolerable for more and more people, and they find forms of escape. Can you blame them?

      Actually I do blame them, because I’m old enough to remember how much worse life was fifty and sixty years ago compared to today. Racism everywhere, huge wars being fought over totally pointless causes (Ask your nail girl to describe her childhood), three billion people starving to death in India and China, massive urban air pollution, and the threat of thermonuclear annihilation hanging over our heads.

      Those who forget the past are condemned to bitch about the present.

      • Actually I do blame them, because Iâ(TM)m old enough to remember how much worse life was fifty and sixty years ago compared to today.

        True enough, but anyone has a probability of ending up in a really shitty situation. Even if it's a small probability, the fact that there are so many people on this planet means some will slip through the cracks.

        Look, if the worse conditions of days past compared to today was the only thing keeping everyone from attaining happiness, then we probably would have solved th

      • Guess if I was chinese or indian I would be happy about it. Are you?

      • Those who forget the past are condemned to bitch about the present.

        Humans are condemned to bitch about the present. That's how humans work.

      • by mjwx ( 966435 )

        Fortnite is not special, neither is alcohol nor weed nor pills nor social networks. The only thing that IS special, is that our reality is intolerable for more and more people, and they find forms of escape. Can you blame them?

        Actually I do blame them, because I’m old enough to remember how much worse life was fifty and sixty years ago compared to today. Racism everywhere, huge wars being fought over totally pointless causes (Ask your nail girl to describe her childhood), three billion people starving to death in India and China, massive urban air pollution, and the threat of thermonuclear annihilation hanging over our heads.

        Those who forget the past are condemned to bitch about the present.

        I remember being a poor kid in 80's Australia (we still had a lot of racist dickheads back then, particularly in poor white neighbourhoods). Apart from the better music and maybe a nice manual MKIV Supra RZ (unmolested, they're as rare as hens teeth now), I don't really want to go back.

        However I don't blame people for wanting play Fortnite, games are fun. Who I blame are the people trying to call it an addiction. If people are getting divorced because one party is playing too much Fortnight then that's a

    • I divorced my exwife mainly because of World of Warcraft.

      Addiction can be real! It isn't just a hobby as WOW in particular is designed or was in the early days to get you included and hooked. Leveling is great ... but man you want to see that new continent or get that awesome purple dagger to kick ass well shit you need to do the time and get some gold. Ok now you have that purple dagger but you SUCK at PVP ... you need rep points with the Korin Tor at Dalaran. That takes A LONG while. Wahoo now you don't s

      • I quit a different MMO because the constant grind to be competitive was taking over my life. Sure I can sink a lot of time into offline games and matches of multiplayer games with a few players but I don't need to be online 24/7

  • by Qbertino ( 265505 ) <moiraNO@SPAMmodparlor.com> on Sunday September 16, 2018 @05:00AM (#57322594)

    A friend of mine is hooked. He was in a multi year layoff phase and this summer finally departed from his employer. He got himself a ps4 a few years back and started playing division and WoT. After posting with his employer he's been doing that full time basically.

    The thing is I totally get it. A good game and a good clan can keep you hooked for years. It's like surfing, climbing or some other awesome pastime. I was hooked to Argentine tango for 10 years. My life revolved around travelling around and often dancing 5 to 7 times a week, swapping my career for the tango bum life. I met women men usually can only dream of and had the most amazing pr0nstyle sex imaginable. But the big plus of tango that is that it comes with a very special kind of social life, which is why it's so awesome.
    I also was hooked to unreal tournament back in 2000 and played that for a year or two a few hours per day.
    But here's where I see addiction: I didn't totally void my social life and - this is the most important thing - didn't feel bad about it. So yea it had qualities off addiction, but I didn't use it to avoid uncomfortable situations. I actually made the active decision to live as a Tango bum and a hardcore gamer and kept up with my non addicted peers. Sort of.

    My buddy OTOH won't even open the door for me or answer my texts for 3 months on end. Everyone is worried. His landlord, his brother, his mother, me, my daughter -who's uncle he basically is ... And so forth. That's not healthy. AFAIAC he can game for 10 years I a row. He had no family, enough resources and lives alone. Bit out is blatantly obvious that he's in a rut and needs a friendly asskick from his best friend the next the next time I get to see him.

    So yeah, divorcing over fortnite? ITotallyGetThat.

  • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @05:53AM (#57322650)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • by Anonymous Coward

      Of course, none of that is pertinent because this is a UK based divorce solicitor. The UK does not have "no fault" divorce, so this is merely the latest in a long line of fad reasons to cite for "unreasonable behaviour". That's the fastest way to divorce aside from adultery. Just walking out on a marriage can take 5 years before you're even allowed to start the divorce process.

      • Comment removed based on user account deletion
        • All your wife has to do in the UK, 2018 to get rid of you is pay someone to photoshop you Nazi LARPing and posting a bunch of racist stuff on your FB account. Then once the police nab them another "bigot" she can probably divorce you for cause. So don't get too cocky with us Americans, mate.

          This sounds entirely like something you simply made up because... actually I have no idea why you made it up. If you're going to attack divorce laws in the UK why not do it for one of the myriad good reasons?

    • If you can survive to be my age, it’s Surf City: two girls for every boy.

    • and allows women to say "well, I'm just not in lurrrvv with you anymore, so bye

      There's plenty indefensible in the divorce system, but that isn't one of the bit. No one should ever be obliged to stay with someone they don't want to. Men just as much as women can in sane places (not the UK right now!) leave at any time for no reason.

      As for alimony and whatnot, yes if one partner went to work and the other stopped a career to raise the family, keep house etc then yes the labour was split so the proceeds of it

    • by Dusanyu ( 675778 )
      its also the fact that people thing that a marriage is throw away why bother to work things out when you ccan just get a Divorce its cheaper than marrage counseling. Also Guys is a silly video game worth half of your Crap and Not seeing your Kids ever again. because the family court system will F you over.
  • by markdavis ( 642305 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @07:11AM (#57322784)

    >"Addiction To Fortnite Cited In Over 200 Divorce Petitions"

    >"received over 200 petitions citing addiction to Fortnite and other online games as one of the reasons"

    >"also citing online pornography and social media."

    So which is it? 200 for Fornite, or the 200 games including Fortnite, or 200 computer addiction citings that include Fortnite? So it is all about addiction to Fortnite, gaming, or computers?

  • by Anonymous Coward

    And the games are an escape from that reality. Leading the the already inevitable divorce

  • So what is it that makes this one particular game so much more addictive than all the other games? Is it being distributed by French-Canadian wheelchair terrorists, or something?

    • by epyT-R ( 613989 )

      No. It's just one of the most popular right now. A Big fat target for those with ideological axes to grind.

  • Cause vs Effect. (Score:4, Interesting)

    by gurps_npc ( 621217 ) on Sunday September 16, 2018 @10:19AM (#57323276) Homepage

    In general, everyone believes the 'minor' pleasant activity is a cause of the 'major' problem, when in fact it is almost always the opposite.

    I.E. when you have a major problem you tend to look for minor pleasures to make your life better.

    So when you are stuck in a crappy marriage with a slimy husband cheating on you (or a nagging wife - doesn't really matter which) then you start playing Fortnite. When they make your life really bad, you starting playing a LOT.

    Then when you get a divorce, they point at your constant Fortnite playing rather than admit their behavior was horrible.

    (General note, outside of arranged marriages, I have never ever seen a divorce that was even mostly one person's fault. At the very least the 'innocent' party knew the shmuck was a shmuck, decided to ignore the shmuck's bad behavior, married the shmuck, then complained that they were a shmuck. Duh.)

  • Way back when my team was in a chat room setting up line-ups for a match we were starting. Quake 2. One guy, someone who recently practiced enough to be one of our best (he was playing ALL THE TIME) says this:

    "My wife just left"

    "& I don't think she's coming back"

    Next think ya know, he drops from IRC. We don't see him online for months. He actually saved his marriage. It's just a story but my point is that divorce over video game addiction (or golf, gambling, crack) is nothing new.

  • by Anonymous Coward

    When your country's women are masculine and fat, of course men are going to choose other interests instead of the women. This isn't addiction. This is choosing the better offer.

  • To summarize the summary and comments:
    Addiction breaking up marriages is not new, Fortnite and other online games are the current example of an old problem
    What people are trying to escape with addictive behavior (including crummy spouse behavior) might be the real problem.
    UK doesn't have no fault divorce and that can lead to pretexts to claim fault.

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