( CNN ) Earlier this month , a 32-year old male gamer was found dead at a Taiwanese Internet cafe following a non-stop three-day gaming session . This followed the death of another male gamer who died in Taipei at the start of the year following a five-day gaming binge . While these cases are extremely rare , it does beg the question of why gaming can lead to such excessive behavior . I have spent nearly three decades studying videogame addiction and there are many studies published in both the medical and psychological literature showing that very excessive gaming can lead to a variety of health problems that range from repetitive strain injuries and obesity , through to auditory and visual hallucinations and addiction . I have to stress that there is lots of scientific research showing the many educational and therapeutic benefits of playing but there is definitely a small minority of gamers that develop problems as a result of gaming overuse . But what is it that makes gaming so compulsive and addictive for the small minority ? For me , addiction boils down to constant reinforcement , or put more simply , being constantly rewarded while playing the game . Gaming rewards can be physiological ( such as feeling `` high '' or getting a `` buzz '' while playing or beating your personal high score ) , psychological ( such as feeling you have complete control in a specific situation or knowing that your strategic play helped you win ) , social ( such as being congratulated by fellow gamers when doing something well in the game ) and , in some cases , financial ( such as winning a gaming tournament ) . Most of these rewards are -- at least to some extent -- unpredictable . Not knowing when the next reward will come keeps some players in the game . In short , they carry on gaming even though they may not have received an immediate reward . They simply hope that another reward is `` just around the corner '' and keep on playing . Added to this is the shift over the last decade from standalone console gaming to massively multiplayer online games where games never end and gamers have to compete and/or collaborate with other gamers in real time ( instead of being able to pause the game and come back and play from the point at which the player left it ) . Many excessive gamers report that they hate logging off and leaving such games . They do n't like it as they do n't know what is going on in the game when they are not online . The last five years has seen large increase in the number of scientific studies on problematic gaming . In May 2013 , the American Psychiatric Association published the fifth edition of the `` Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders '' ( DSM-5 ) . For the first time , the DSM-5 included `` internet gaming disorder '' ( IGD ) as a psychological condition that warrants future research . Throughout my research career I have argued that although all addictions have particular and idiosyncratic characteristics , they share more commonalities than differences such as total preoccupation , mood modification , cravings , tolerance , withdrawal symptoms , conflict with work , education and other people , and loss of control . These similarities likely reflect a common etiology of addictive behavior . So when does a healthy enthusiasm turn into an addiction ? At the simplest level , healthy enthusiasms add to life and addictions take away from it . But how much is too much ? This is difficult to answer as I know many gamers who play many hours every day without any detrimental effects . The DSM-5 lists nine criteria for IGD . If any gamer endorses five or more of the following criteria they would likely be diagnosed as having IGD : ( 1 ) preoccupation with internet games ; ( 2 ) withdrawal symptoms when internet gaming is taken away ; ( 3 ) the need to spend increasing amounts of time engaged in internet gaming , ( 4 ) unsuccessful attempts to control participation in internet gaming ; ( 5 ) loss of interest in hobbies and entertainment as a result of , and with the exception of , internet gaming ; ( 6 ) continued excessive use of internet games despite knowledge of psychosocial problems ; ( 7 ) deception of family members , therapists , or others regarding the amount of internet gaming ; ( 8 ) use of the internet gaming to escape or relieve a negative mood ; and ( 9 ) loss of a significant relationship , job , or educational or career opportunity because of participation in internet games . The good news is that only a small minority of gamers suffer form IGD . Most online games are fun and exciting to play . But like any activity that is taken to excess , in a minority of cases the activity can become addictive . Any activity if done for days on end could lead to severe health problems and even death -- and gaming is no exception . Instead of demonizing games , we need to educate gamers about the potential dangers of very excessive use .
Earlier this month a man was found dead in a Taiwan cafe after a three-day gaming binge . Any activity taken to excess can become addictive for a minority , writes Mark Griffiths . The study also looked at the effects of alcohol on brain function and how it affects people with mental health problems.