It used to be the prevalent anti-drug message was that you’d either overdose or end up in jail, but it appears that the current administration is taking aim at something a little less serious: Gamerscores.
In a new anti-marijuana push, the anti-drug site Above the Influence cites pot as a detriment to gaming ability, blaming the drug for inhibiting reaction time, memory and perception. The site cautions that getting high will do nothing but hurt your ability to pull off headshots or slay magical dragons.
The site also includes two Second Life caliber videos detailing a pair of videogame characters injured as a result of their teammate’s altered state. A pink haired, pink eyed anime ninja from the video: “I used to have a good time with Lyle. We made a good team. He had skill. He had swiftness. Well, he used to, anyway. Then our last fight, Lyle decided to get high. And it was simply: sayonara skill, sayonara swiftness.” So not only will you be ruining your personal kill/death ratio, but you’ll also be letting down your guild members and clan teammates.
The site describes THC’s effect on perception thusly: “Smoking pot affects alertness, concentration, perception coordination and reaction time – many of the skills required for winning a battleground, defeating an opponent, beating games in addition to safe driving and other tasks.” The addition of driving at the end of the list seems a bit ridiculous – it seems logical that if you shouldn’t be playing GRID while high, you shouldn’t be driving in real life, either. The site makes an effort to target both individual and multiplayer games as well, so even if you’re just playing through the story mode, you apparently could be doing it more effectively.
It seems pretty ridiculous that lung cancer, big fines, and criminal charges are taking a backseat to hindering someone’s ability to get onto a leaderboard or score some rare gear for their avatar, but I imagine it’s a direct consequence that’s a lot more tangible for a 15-year-old. Of course when that same 15 year old sees “RenegadeTHC” at the top of the 50 Cent: Blood on the Sandleaderboard, he might have to think twice.
Source: Above the Influence
