The ESA, which is the entity that created the ESRB, released a statement on the matter:
The ESA is comprised of the world’s largest video game publishers, and it is ultimately most concerned with making sure those companies earn as much money as possible. Considering this, it’s not all that surprising that the ESA has spoken out against the World Health Organization’s decision to classify excessive and uncontrollable gaming as a mental health disorder. However, the ESA’s statement is misleading.
The ESA states that “common sense and objective research prove video games are not addictive.” On the contrary, there is no shortage of evidence that shows video games can be addictive. In fact, virtually anything that brings someone pleasure can be addictive, so saying “video games are not addictive” is just a blatant lie. Furthermore, there are plenty of stories of people choosing video games over more important things in their lives, or even playing video games until they died, which is clearly indicative of a serious mental health issue.
The ESA may not agree with the World Health Organization’s decision, but saying video games are not addictive is sure to raise some eyebrows. Even the most passionate gamers can surely recognize that video games can be addicting, and it’s why some people dedicate so many hours to the medium.
Between this stance and its insistence that loot boxes aren’t gambling, the ESA has made some questionable decisions lately. It will be interesting to see how the gaming public responds to the ESA’s statement.
