Video Game Addiction Lawyers

Gaming Addiction Is a Public Health Emergency

Video game addiction is not an accident. It is the direct result of deliberate corporate decisions made by some of the world’s most powerful gaming companies. These corporations use advanced psychological techniques to hook players and keep them playing for hours, days, even weeks at a time. Their goal is simple: increase profits, no matter the cost to human life.

Children and teenagers are suffering the most. Their still-developing brains make them especially vulnerable to manipulation. Adults are also impacted, losing jobs, relationships, and mental health as they spiral deeper into compulsive gaming.

At Mark David Shirian P.C., we are here to fight back. If your life or your family has been torn apart by gaming addiction, we are prepared to hold these companies accountable and pursue justice on your behalf.

Understanding Video Game Addiction

Video game addiction is a behavioral disorder recognized by the World Health Organization and other global health authorities. It involves a lack of control over gaming, prioritizing gaming over daily responsibilities, and continuing to play despite obvious harm.

Gaming disorder causes significant damage to mental, physical, emotional, and financial well-being. It can disrupt family life, ruin academic achievement, damage physical health, and lead to lasting psychological trauma.

The Physical and Psychological Harm of Gaming Addiction

Gaming addiction leads to a range of serious health issues. These symptoms can appear within weeks of excessive gaming and often worsen without treatment.

Physical and Medical Effects

Sedentary behavior leads to unhealthy weight gain, muscle damage, and increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Repetitive hand and wrist movements can result in long-term pain and nerve injury. Poor sleep, screen exposure, and lack of physical activity only worsen these effects.

Common physical symptoms include:

Psychological and Emotional Impact

The emotional cost of gaming addiction is often severe and long-lasting. Victims may experience depression, social withdrawal, explosive anger, and anxiety that interfere with everyday life. In many cases, players lose the ability to focus, regulate emotions, or engage in meaningful relationships.

Common psychological symptoms include:

The Educational, Social, and Financial Toll

Gaming addiction does not just hurt the individual player. It disrupts every area of life and can destroy educational goals, career paths, and family relationships.

Impacts include:

How Gaming Companies Create Addiction

Game developers are not simply creating entertainment. They are designing addictive systems that manipulate brain chemistry. These companies hire psychologists to study how players respond to reward cycles, then use that information to keep players engaged and spending money.

Tactics include:

• Non-repetitive game design that always feels new
• Loot boxes and random rewards that trigger dopamine spikes
• Microtransactions that encourage small but frequent spending
• Exclusive items that create pressure to purchase before losing access
• Tracking of player spending habits and targeting high-spending users with more in-game offers

Examples include:

• Roblox developers earning $29 million on average in the first quarter of 2024
• Fortnite generating more than $9 billion in two years
• The game industry profiting from emotional dependence and behavioral conditioning

Who Is Most at Risk

Children and teens are the most vulnerable. Their brains are still developing, making them more susceptible to manipulation through bright visuals, social competition, and constant rewards. Youth with existing conditions like ADHD, anxiety, or depression are especially at risk.

These young players often lose the ability to concentrate in school, form real-world friendships, and enjoy activities outside of gaming. As the addiction deepens, it becomes harder for them to separate the virtual world from reality.

Games and Companies Named in Litigation

Several major corporations have created and profited from games that are now being investigated for addictive design. These include:

Games involved include:

These companies have made billions by designing games to exploit vulnerable players. Their products are not simply games—they are traps built to keep players engaged at all costs.

The Science Behind Gaming Addiction

Gaming stimulates the brain’s reward center, releasing large amounts of dopamine. This feel-good chemical reinforces the behavior and causes players to return again and again.

Excessive dopamine from gaming can lead to desensitization, reducing interest in real-life pleasures like relationships, exercise, or education. It can also cause emotional instability, lack of focus, and dependence similar to substance abuse.

Hyperarousal, a state in which the brain is constantly on high alert, is also common. This leads to attention problems, difficulty controlling impulses, and increased aggression.

Legal Action: How We Fight for You

At Mark David Shirian P.C., we treat gaming addiction as the serious public crisis it is. Our legal team conducts thorough case reviews to determine whether victims qualify for legal action. If accepted, we pursue full damages for psychological trauma, medical costs, and financial losses.

We specialize in identifying:

• Minors who played addictive games four or more days per week for at least five consecutive weeks
• Diagnosed psychological or physical symptoms related to gaming
• Families suffering loss of income, treatment expenses, and emotional devastation

We build powerful cases by exposing how gaming companies deliberately created systems to trap and exploit users. We use internal documents, expert testimony, and evidence of manipulation to demand justice.

Why Choose Mark David Shirian P.C.

We are not just another law firm. We are a force for justice.

• We fight without fear against the largest corporations in the world
• We understand the psychological science behind gaming addiction
• We work relentlessly for families who have been ignored and harmed
• We treat every client like family, with personal care and fierce legal representation
• We pursue not just individual victories, but industry-wide change
• We will not stop until gaming companies change their behavior and victims are compensated

What You Can Do Now 

If you or someone you love is suffering from gaming addiction, contact our team today. We are currently reviewing cases for individuals who meet the following criteria:

• Under 25 years old
• At least 2 hours of gaming daily for five or more consecutive weeks
• A diagnosis from a licensed professional linking mental or physical harm to gaming

Your family deserves justice. Your pain deserves recognition. Your case deserves to be heard.

Begin Your Legal Battle Today

You are not alone. We are ready to stand beside you.

Call us at 212-931-6530 to start your case review. Let Mark David Shirian P.C. fight back against the gaming corporations who profit from suffering.

About our Counsel

• Shawn Shirian