When the Game Plays You: How Online Gaming Becomes a Compulsion
Research reveals how compulsive video gamers can return to recovery.
Posted May 22, 2025 | Reviewed by Gary Drevitch
Co-authored by Jayson Carmona
"I quit for months and then signed up again… I was obsessing about leveling my new character… what the hell is it about this game!?" —Online player of World of Warcraft
We live in a culture of escapes, distractions, and dopamine , and many become entangled. As a professor and therapist, I work with people who struggle with compulsive behavior of many kinds. In one of my research classes, doctoral student Jayson Carmona chose to study World of Warcraft (WoW) players. Our study that resulted from this project—"Escaping the Escapism: A Grounded Theory of the Addiction and Recovery Process in Online Video Gaming" — analyzed stories of those whose gameplay turned from fun to obsession.
Jayson was specifically interested in WoW because of personal experience. As a college freshman he was struggling and turned to online gaming to cope. He went down the rabbit hole, becoming entangled in his quests and WoW tribe, and ended up dropping out of college. It took some effort to detox, delete his account, and get back on track, ultimately pursuing a doctorate in marriage and family therapy .
Ironically, years later when he got involved in this very project, he fell back in the trap. “I decided to play WoW as part of this research and found the same pattern of the cycle of addiction,” Jayson said.
He recalled: “[I was] feeling inadequate in my current offline hierarchy, escaping to an online gaming hierarchy, allowing online goals to supersede offline goals, and experiencing friction in my offline relationships. I played an average of 5 hours a day for two weeks. . . I used WoW to escape off to another world where offline problems are out of sight and mind. In the offline world, I am a graduate student with many different responsibilities pulling on me from academic to family duties. In the online world, I could be a warrior of the light ready to mete out judgment . . . [Instead of attending to my school and domestic duties, I] “was ignoring my wife and kids in order to squeak in two hours of play.”
What is it about these games that can become so problematic?
World of Warcraft is a beast in the gaming world. It is a massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) full of epic battles, quests, and complex social interactions, but that intoxicating combination can trap people in a cycle of play that’s hard to break. Players start logging hours, leveling up, accumulating treasure, and bonding with their tribes, and for some this becomes more than just a fun diversion.
Is Internet Gaming a Disorder?
Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) isn’t in the official diagnostic bible of mental health (the DSM-5 ), but it is under consideration. In our study, we explored how people described their wrestling with WoW symptoms, and what we found was that the themes in these stories looked an awful lot like a typical descent into addiction, including withdrawal, loss of control, and real-life impairment. WoW compulsion did damage, and it took a lot of work to find recovery. An analysis of hundreds of these online stories online showed how the cycle typically went:
But these stories also included resilience and recovery. Some found motivation from the toll the game was taking on them. As one said, "Only after losing [every] valuable thing to me in life (Girlfriend, Job, friends, REAL LIFE…) did I stop playing." It took work, but many made changes, including:
As with other online activities, most gamers are responsible, but some become compelled and suffer because of their online gaming. The good news is that resources exist to help. If you or someone you know is struggling, reach out to personal and professional sources. There are online resources, support groups, and professionals who are trained in addiction and recovery who can help with an assessment of what is happening, and what steps should be taken. As the voices in this project demonstrate, video gaming can become a deep virtual realm to live in, but there are paths back to finding a fulfilling life in the real world.
To find a therapist, visit the Psychology Today Therapy Directory .
Carmona, J. & Whiting, J. B. (2021). Escaping the escapism: A grounded theory of the addiction and recovery process in online video gaming. The Qualitative Report, 26(7), 2171-2188. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2021.4643
Share this post Facebook Bluesky Linkedin Email
There was a problem adding your email address. Please try again.
By submitting your information you agree to the Psychology Today Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy
Jason Whiting, Ph.D. , is a professor at Brigham Young University and a licensed marriage and family therapist.
Get the help you need from a therapist near you–a FREE service from Psychology Today.
This article is part of the Bringwise Psychology Journal — daily insights on human behavior, mental health, and personal growth.