You’re acting like he said it’s all he does. Nothing wrong with a couple hours of gaming to unwind every week. Many of us have great careers, attentive to our families, hobbies, etc. It’s okay to take a bit of time to do something you enjoy that has no tangible “benefit”. The stress relief is a benefit. Not to mention there are many games that activate the strategic part of your brain. Look at games like Factorio, AOEII, and others. They’re mental puzzles disguised as games.
Because the companies that make those kinds of games want you to be "always-on" in their games, so you're always looking for the next big event or new boss or next level cap and thus potentially pouring more money into their pockets. Perhaps most of you in this group aren't their biggest profit group, but if you're involved with them then most likely you're not with their competitors or doing anything else.
Of course, MMOs as a genre are not a problem in and of themselves, and integrating MMO-style mechanics into other games isn't always a bad thing if it's implemented well. In this case it's a matter of doing this for the sole purpose of getting people hooked on your product, not providing a novel experience for players to enjoy on their own time.
You’re acting like he said it’s all he does. Nothing wrong with a couple hours of gaming to unwind every week. Many of us have great careers, attentive to our families, hobbies, etc. It’s okay to take a bit of time to do something you enjoy that has no tangible “benefit”. The stress relief is a benefit. Not to mention there are many games that activate the strategic part of your brain. Look at games like Factorio, AOEII, and others. They’re mental puzzles disguised as games.
Because the companies that make those kinds of games want you to be "always-on" in their games, so you're always looking for the next big event or new boss or next level cap and thus potentially pouring more money into their pockets. Perhaps most of you in this group aren't their biggest profit group, but if you're involved with them then most likely you're not with their competitors or doing anything else.
Of course, MMOs as a genre are not a problem in and of themselves, and integrating MMO-style mechanics into other games isn't always a bad thing if it's implemented well. In this case it's a matter of doing this for the sole purpose of getting people hooked on your product, not providing a novel experience for players to enjoy on their own time.