Do You Have Nintendoitis?
from the video-game-injuries dept
Twenty years ago, or so, (uh oh, dating myself) I remember playing a track and field game on my Atari 800, which involved having to move the joystick back and forth as quickly as possible. It wasn't long before I worked out the most efficient method: place your palm flat on the top of the joystick and move it as fast as possible. This was much faster than actually holding the joystick and moving it back and forth, but it did have one negative: it really hurt. You would rub raw a circular spot in the middle of your palm that could hurt for days. While I may have been an early victim of video game injury, it's clear that I wasn't the last. Players of video games are discovering all sorts of ways they can injure themselves while playing games. Taken to extreme levels, players can get RSI problems, somewhat jokingly referred to as Nintendoitis. Another problem some players get is that the players "over develop" the muscles on one side of their body - which has the sound of an urban legend written all over it, but apparently has happened. Others report that they have "Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome", which is more commonly seen among jack hammer operators. There are, also, less direct risks: such as tripping over cables and getting beaten by a "girlfriend/partner/housemate" who wants you to stop playing video games all the time.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
Cryotherapy
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Yep, Track and Field Arcade
[ link to this | view in thread ]
No Subject Given
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Atari track and field
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Atari track and field
[ link to this | view in thread ]