In South Korea, there's a show called Hello Counselor. On it, the celebrity panel talks with folks dealing with issues, which are often unusual. A segment on a recent episode introduced a couple dealing with game addiction.
On the show, a 22 year-old woman (above) wanted to know how her husband could overcome his problems with gaming. As noted by tipster Sang and reported on various Korean sites, including Chosun.com, the 30-something year-old husband took out a loan for 80 million won (US$7,300) to buy virtual loot.
The man's wife added that he's already spent another 20 million won ($1,800) on in-game items.
"I can make money by playing games," said the husband, adding that he can get a rare item worth $10,000 and sell it for $8,000 to $9,000. Um, okay!
The husband games for five hours a day during weekdays and nineteen hours during the weekend. He often misses work so he can game, with one of his favorites being Webzen's Mu: Blue.
The couple currently lives with the wife's parents. The wife explained that she was unaware of his gaming addiction before they married.
In his defense, the husband said that other players knew how he felt.
As with anything that appears on television, your mileage might vary, but the Hello Counselor studio audience voted the husband's gaming addiction as the episode's most serious problem.
And if the couple's problem is real (and this isn't simply playing for the cameras), it might be a good idea for them to move out of the in-laws' house. The safety net isn't doing the couple any favors.
‘게임 중독 남편’ 사연 공개, ”뮤블루, 굴착소년쿵 등” 게임에 쓴 돈이 자그마치… [Chosun.com Thanks, Sang!]
게임 중독 남편, "게임 때문에 800만원 대출" [Jose Ilbo]
게임 중독 남편, '뮤블루-굴착소년 쿵'에 천만원 썼다 [SBS]
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