The effect of the information technology boom in Vietnam seems to be an infinite topic for many people to discuss. However, it would be a very noticeable shortcoming if we do not mention the disadvantages of information technology. One of them, which is becoming a very serious problem day by day, is the bad effect of online games on students.
Going alongside with the development of the other kinds of software, computer gaming is now a very profitable industry. In the last century, the word “computer game” in Vietnam mostly means the offline games such as Age of Empiresx, Counter Strike or WarCraft. When the internet connection was only a dial-up system with 56Kbps maximum bandwidth, no one could imagine the computer games of today.
The first time online game became popular in Vietnam was the year of 2004, when MU was introduced widely in Hanoi and quickly became a fever. Now after 5 years of developing, online games in Vietnam is such a big world with many kinds of game from the providers such as VinaGame, VTC, AsiaSoft, etc. Online games are built based on various stories with various scenes, from the old Chinese social to a new universe in the future, from the old feuds in Europe to the imagined village in the heaven. However, in general they all share the same similarity: the requirement of time and money, which are very valuable to the students.
In some students’ eyes, those valuable things seem to be very cheap. They use most of their time with the computer, stick to the keyboard and the mouse, and pay attention to nothing else. It is not easy to get a high position when it comes to ranking in a game, when you are ranked base on your achievement. The providers’ latest aim is that the more people play their game, the more money they get. Therefore, the rules of games all require player to play longer which is the better for them.
This is the reason why some “student-gamers’ forget their meals while playing games. Bathing, eating or even studying is nonsense to their eyes. They can spend about twenty-three hours a day in the virtual world, where they are not unhealthy and weak student but the lords, the knight or heroes who can protect their villagers. In those worlds they are respected, they have power and authority, and they seem to consider this their real world. That is the most dangerous thing which is harmful for their minds and growth.
Even a child can point out the disadvantage of getting stuck on games. Your health will go worse day by day with long time of sitting and non-nutritious diet. Your studying results will go down terribly. Furthermore, spending too much money on games can lead you to become a thief, or some kind of criminal. It is sad to say that the gamers seem never to think about their parents who are trying to earn money for them.
There have been many tries by the government, especially the Ministry of Information and Telecommunications and Ministry of Education and Training to deal with this problem. However, it is still a big problem that makes the parents tired. The solution might depend on the students, not any other.
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