Are we falling into a trap of addiction with this game? addicts?

[Redrosetentoes]

this is called something like the sunken ship effect, you can relate this to most aspects of life.
you cant just quit golfing, youre already so good and are making good progress of becoming the best
you cant just stop watching the yearly sports event, you made 3 friends from it
you cant just stop with your university degree, you spent 2 years and money into it
you cant just stop seeing your family, theyve been with you your whole life
you cant abandon ship, thats where your freedom is as a pirate!
the point is, you can just stop doing something if you really wanted to

Wow I think you are on to something with the sunken ship effect. I looked it up and it's called the sunk cost effect. Apparently this effect causes humans to have a hard time giving up on something even if it stops being a good thing for them because they have invested time or money or that they developed some emotional attachment to it. There was a different game called Farmville that had this similar concept of sunk cost fallacy where the players would set alarms in the middle of the night and lose sleep so that they wouldn't lose their crops.

My concern is that most people don't even realize that they have fallen for a sunk cost effect. A lot of kids play these kinds of games and I'm sure they've never even heard of the concept of sunk cost effect. Even I didn't know there was a psychological concept for what I described in my OP. So as you said, you can stop if you really wanted to but it is very real that this sunk cost effect makes it very much harder to stop.

If you don't even realize that you have fallen for a sunk cost effect trap, it makes it that much harder to quit. You don't really expect there to be this sunk cost effect in games. Usually you play and enjoy the game then it ends.

So thanks for bringing the sunk cost effect up. I think that will make it easier for people to recognize when it happens and allow for better decisions to be made. I'm glad I created this OP because I learned something.

[Jixson]

I'm coming up on 8 years of playing when Jan. rolls around. Definitely addicted. I do my 8 legends hits, get my war hits in, chat with my long time clan mates. Addiction, but a nice way to relax after school / work.

[Grimbolg]

What is the difference between a time consuming hobby and an addiction? You can put the hobby aside if more important things demand it ( work, family etc ). In addiction you can not instead you lie and cheat and abuse your family and friends to get your ”fix” be that gambling, alchol, drugs or whatever and ultimately destroy all good relationships.

[Brandonspeck]

Addiction towards any I did in games or life its self felt like being guilty, but if I was happy doing what ever it was , I was more less proud atleast but were all different ya know

[eitiel]

I left my war-focused clan and joined a farm clan. Now I play way less than before. The only account I really play is my main, in legends, and that is enough.