This blog entry is both interesting as an insight into the life of a hardcore catasser and a bit holier than thou now that he's out.
The basic gist of the entry is this:
I just left WoW permanently. I was a leader in one of the largest and most respected guilds in the world, a well-equipped and well-versed mage, and considered myself to have many close friends in my guild. Why did I leave? Simple: Blizzard has created an alternate universe where we don't have to be ourselves when we don't want to be. From my vantage point as a guild decision maker, I've seen it destroy more families and friendships and take a huge toll on individuals than any drug on the market today, and that means a lot coming from an ex-club DJ.
That last part I bolded because it really cuts the heart his is complaint against WoW. That it's more addictive than drugs and destroys lives. To that I say a definitive maybe.
Can WoW be addictive? Definitely. Can it ruin lives? No. Why? Because people make choices to do things. Now, to be fair, to some people, WoW may be like gambling to others. It may be that addictive, I don't know. But for most of us, it's a choice. A hard choice depending upon your situation, a choice you might not realize you need to make, a choice that might require you to stop playing WoW. As someone else I talked with about this mentioned, WoW is probably a symptom of the problem in most cases, not the actual problem. They might be playing something else to avoid their problems, they might be drinking, they might be doing any number of things that helped numb them out to real life. If you're playing WoW at the expense of your life, you need to look at why. WoW is the numbing solution you're currently using, it's not necessarily the problem.
Also, Mr. I've left and now I'm better than you, let that be. You found your life again and you're happier for it. Great. But I don't think you have to be quite so judgmental of all the people still playing… imho.
What Would Matt Do: Follow this simple tip, if you're playing WoW more than do all the other things, minus sleep and work, combined, you've probably got a problem and should reassess things.