Yanking the game not always the solution...

Regarding the tragic death of Brandon Crisp:

Investigators eyeing the death of gamer Brandon Crisp are speculating that the 15-year-old likely succumbed to hypothermia, according to media reports Friday.

Crisp's body was found Wednesday in an undisturbed condition by deer hunters in a wooded area several miles from his home. Police said they do not suspect foul play.

Crisp had been missing for about three weeks from his house in Barrie, Ontario, a small Canadian city about 60 miles north of Toronto. Crisp bolted after a dispute with his parents over the amount of time he spent playing Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare on his Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) Xbox.

Crisp was "addicted" to playing online video games, particularly Call Of Duty 4, over Microsoft's Xbox Live online gaming service, according to reports. The game allows players to assume the character of a contemporary combat soldier.

This case is a tragic example of why "take that game away" is not always an appropriate solution when it becomes apparent that something is going wrong in a young person's life or within the family system. Gaming may be part of what's wrong - it may not be the only thing that's wrong. And if an individual is using gaming to cope with other problems, just pulling the game away without adequately dealing with other co-occurring disorders can have disasterous consequences.

It can be difficult to understand why some people play too much, and there are more variables than can be predicted. As I always say, "it's complicated" and ideally professional help should be sought from mental health clinicians who understand gaming and internal player dynamics, behavioral addictions, and family system therapy.