In 2018, playing video games obsessively might lead to a diagnosis of a mental health disorder. In the beta draft of its forthcoming 11th International Classification of Diseases , the World Health Organization includes "gaming disorder" in its list of mental health conditions. The WHO defines the disorder as a "persistent or recurrent" behavior pattern of "sufficient severity to result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning." The disorder is characterized by "impaired control" with increasing priority given to gaming and "escalation," despite "negative consequences." How to resist technology addiction Video game playing, either online or offline, must be "normally evident over a period of at least 12 months" for this diagnosis to be made, according to the beta draft guidance. However, if symptoms are sev...