Getting Off NetHack?

thetan asks: "Like a lot of Slashdot readers, I've played a little NetHack as a teenager. Alright, quite a lot - but it was no big deal and I just sort of grew out of it. Now I'm not proud of this, but I got my gf hooked and she's been using daily for a few years now. After she tired of the game, I tried sating the monkey on her back with new fixes like Angband and ADOM. Now, I no longer want be a party to her addiction and self-destruction. She acknowledges the problem but is not yet ready to take that first step. What can I do to help ween her off? Could interactive fiction act as a methadone - or does it result in just as much harm? What other strategies have users employed to get clean? Does anyone know of NetHack addiction support groups or a 12-step? I'm desperate to get her back!"

Comments

Are you insane?

[Godeke]

To heck with getting her back: introduce her to the world of MMORPGs or even MUDs, if the command line is her thing. Or try the Champions of Norrath/Baldurs Gate multiplayer slashemups for the consoles. Find a Diablo collector's chest for the PC. My wife and I had a lot of fun in all of the above, before she went back to finish her PhD (she is now restricted to 15 minute doses of Nintendogs for her gaming fix during the week and we get in some Champions of Norrath: Return to Arms on weekends along with my son.

Trying to reject the fantasy adventure bug is just silly... use it as a point of common interest. If you insist on allowing her to continue adventuring alone, my wife loves the Heros of Might and Magic/Age of Magic type games on her laptop when traveling. I think you would be ill advised to get between your girlfriend and her enjoyment though. It will be far *more* damaging to *your* enjoyment than just going with the flow.

ditching the habit

[Anonymous Coward]

You are right to be fairly concerned about this. I had a serious addiction to MMO's (1 year logged online in 3 years real time) and the only real way to quit as far as I can tell is to go cold turkey. Every person I know that shifted to a "toned down" game ended up coming back to the original game or finding a new game to fully dedicate themselves to. For me, I sold my character and took the money I made to go live in Italy for a year with my gf (now wife). I put myself in a situation where the only interaction I had with the computer was checking my email at the internet cafe and it helped break my cycle of addiction.

When I got back to the states and felt the urge to play I just turned that energy into something that was more productive/social (I went to grad school, started playing basketball at the local gym, etc...). I don't really have a suggestion about how you should go about doing it because I don't know your friend, but the key is finding a variety of replacement activities (not just one as that will probably become another addiction if that is the only focus).

Go multiplayer.

[6350']

As in, move over to a multplayer roguelike.

http://www.mangband.org/

Because an addiction shared is an addiction you can feel slightly less bad about.

Get real help, not Ask Slashdot help

[epaulson]

First of all, have you tried just asking her to stop using it so much? You didn't say if you want her to spend more time with you, or more time doing other things, or what, but in many relationships you can just ask the other person to change a behavior and they will. You can ask her to quit cold-turkey, or just step it down a little bit. If it's a big deal in your relationship, make that clear to her. If she won't change, try counseling or leave her.

If she wants to quit and can't, or you're concerned that her use is causing her harm, get real help. Computer addiction is real, and psychologists know how to treat it or at least can refer you to someone who does. It may not seem like a serious problem to you, but for some people they just can't quit without help.

Re:Nothing you can do

[Elwood P Dowd]

likely she is using it as a crutch instead of dealing with other problems

Uh... ok. When you break your leg we won't let you use a crutch either.

That metaphor has always boggled me. Since when were crutches bad? Who uses crutches when they don't need to? Is this some kind of epidemic I've never heard of?

Addictions aren't like crutches. They're like addictions.

I'd recommend YoHoHo Puzzle Pirates

[BohemianCoast]

Puzzle Pirates has lots of recovering Nethack addicts. Plus it's a very soothing sort of an MMORPG. The game even sends you little messages saying you've probably been playing too long and perhaps you need some fresh air. Of course, it's also quite addicting. But you can't have everything.

Professional help

[Twylite]

Assuming that you're being serious, the first step is for her to recognise her addiction and voluntarily choose to address it. Encourage her to consider what the addiction is doing to her and people around her; but she must decide that something should be done.

Then seek professional help. Psychologists are trained to deal with addiction issues; not only treating the addiction, but also helping the person to integrate back into their family and social environment. A psychologist will also be able to help you understand what you should be doing to support her (in fact, you may even consider visiting one for advise on how to encourage her to seek help).