Intriguing study shows that some people may experience hallucinogenic side effects after playing games for extended periods

Disclaimer for all study-based posts: This is not meant to be taken as positive or negative, nor is it wholly conclusive. It’s an intriguing set of data with which you can do what you please– not a moral conclusion in and of itself.

Researchers at something called the “Nottingham Trent University International Gaming Research Unit” have gathered data leading to an interesting observation: A portion of gamers experience minor visual/aural alterations to reality after playing games for an extended period of time, presumably 4+ hours straight. These alterations are called similar to hallucinations but not entirely the same thing.

The study covered 483 gamers and “656 experiences” that were gathered via online forums, and did not include a psychological profile of players. Researchers say that, after playing for long periods of time, some gamers continued to “see” (in a non-literal sense, of course) elements of the game that in some cases prevented them from sleeping or caused strange behavior. The professor of psychology at Nottingham Trent admitted that the study was not necessarily representative of gaming as a whole, but finds it interesting nonetheless.

Read more about the study over at Gamespot.