Pubg Addiction

places in India as gaming addiction can give rise to a host of health problems (Photos: commons, PTI) HIGHLIGHTS Gaming addiction is recognised by WHO with a long list of health problems caused by it PUBG and Candy Crush are both addictive - why ban one but not the other? Why do we get so easily hooked on to PUBG? With almost each of us possessing a smartphone, playing video games is no more restricted to only those with gaming consoles or gaming computers. When Candy Crush was released in 2014, it became a hit with children and adults alike. Wherever we looked, whether it is on a public transport, or in college campuses, or outside schools, multiple people had their heads stuck in the mobile game, sliding similar coloured candies to match them up and get the adrenalin rush that comes from completing a level. However, no one spoke about a Candy Crush ban as it was not perceived as a dangerous game. Now, mobile game lovers have turned towards yet another addictive first person shooter game - PUBG. Almost 400 million people around the world play Player Unknown's Battle Grounds (PUBG). In each game, up to one hundred players parachute onto an island and then look for weapons to kill the others without getting killed themselves. The last player or the last team standing wins the game. The thrill of being the last one standing, the instant gratification, and the rush of adrenalin - what's not to like? Most of us simply keep coming back to PUBG for more. We cannot seem to get enough! The Battle Royal-style game is nothing new as similar games such as H1Z1, Fortnite and Rules of Survival have existed for years. So why is PUBG becoming such a big problem that states are calling for an outright ban on a mobile game? To understand why PUBG is so addictive to both children and adults, and how it is different from Candy Crush, we spoke to a few experts -- a child psychologist, the founder of a futuristic group of schools, a parenting expert, and the CEO of a leading ed-tech company that is transforming education with gamification and other modern approaches.