The future of gamers, imagined in extremes

[Update: the painting is actually called 'Reality' and was created by Eran Cantrell. The title Warcraft Players in 2030 was taken from this Digg -- sorry for the confusion] As I slice open this wheel of cheese I dare say it -- an alternate dimension is coming. No really, hear me out. Unlike science fiction movies where people step into a vortex, you'll be paying a couple of hundred bucks at Wal-Mart for it and a low monthly fee to be a member and a few of you will forget the life you had before you plugged in. That's the artist's vision in the painting "Warcraft Players in 2030" -- a chilling look at what happens to obsessive players who reject real life when gaming technology matures to rival terrestrial experiences. Yes, the future does have mattresses and extension cords, but he's sold everything he owns for one last month of membership before he has to beg in the streets for some plat. The same obsessive players you know that left their wives and stay up all night in high level raids will have but all forgotten their exterior; transfixed in their game near the electric socket. Either that, or this is fatalistic crap. Whatever your position on the matter, we are bound to see the age old MMORPG debate that began with Evercrack heat up again with technology advances. Some people that don't believe that this is actually going to happen, but it has been been roughly 20 years since we've abandoned black and white TV's and NES systems in favor of 1080p picture frame televisions and Playstation 3's. This isn't stopping at fancy GeForce cards -- we want to jack into the Matrix. Even without Alien technology in our gaming this is happening to a few. You've all seen the news and probably know a few widowers who never looked back. I personally know a guy who quit his 80k a year job, sold his car, and rented a tiny efficiency for a year to work on his character until the money ran out. The man would not leave his house, but he was a level 65 with some crazy gear and that made him happy. It didn't last, but to him it was heaven for a few months before he decided money might be useful. But then again, we all know gamers who make money with their games. As more players come online, the opportunity to monetize your time in games can only increase. But total abandonment? It sounds like the Orwellian vision of 1984. We want the Blue Pill, but we want the other pill too for sex, bathroom breaks, and trips to that delicious little Chinese place around the corner. I don't doubt it will happen to a few unbalanced individuals, but I think the rest of us will have a jolly good time and still hit the beach and visit mom with hairs neatly combed now and then. In my mind, this painting should be entitled "my good for nothing cousin won't get off his Dark Elf ass." So what do you think of this illustration -- are we doomed to slither away in isolation in a house with bad wallpaper, or will we be rocking out on our sofas like we do today? Will there be a shift in more good for nothing cousins? Maybe so. On the bright side, teen violence should continue to drop and there will be less newbs online.