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You say that playing this game is a natural extension of your day to day life (Thats how I understand you) and I see no grounds for doubting that.
While I dont share your perspective on wealth being in any way similar to the emotional gratification a game may give, and certainly "delude" myself into considering money bearing greater weight to my entire existance than just the data from this game, I understand your perspective and respect it. Nuff said.
It merely struck me with the large narrative that you were indeed taking this game more seriously or time consuming than what I consider healthy, and so I couldnt keep my trap shut about it (my bad).
We can continue debating the issue of real life versus cyberspace life to great lengths without really approaching each others viewpoints, suffice to say I plainly disagree with anyone claiming that they can substitute eachother ad lib. Cyberlife is good up to a point, then it has a negative effect on the human psyche - and in many ways far more unnecessary than forming "real" (as in real life) bonds with people. The difference that the physical presence of another person presents as contrary to the digital disembodied presence I find very difficult to describe in words, so Ill just agree to disagree with you there.
That said tho fun is fun, and as you described real life or a lack thereof does not seem to be a problem for you, I merely formed a wrong assumption and apologize.
But like I stated earlier - play on, its not really important to me what other people do or dont.
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Let me offer two alternate perspectives:
First, as a husband (yes believe it or not I can play this game AND hold onto a marriage), student, programmer, writer, and adult who actively pursues many hobbies, I'm well capable of multitasking and achieving productivity levels you don't seem to have considered. Simply put, I don't actually put that much time into this game. Instead, I develop tools like HarmlessButler which manages my game activity like a day planner manages my meetings and project deadlines. (I also gain a lot of experience in an area of web programming where I was previously rather weak.) I work in spaces like my wiki which is designed to bring everyone's effort to mutual benefit. And ultimately, I rarely do just one thing at a time when I'm sitting in front of a computer. When I'm reviewing my account and talking to my alliance mates on the forums, I'm usually at the same time watching a show or movie, weaving chain maille, programming, or all of the above. And, incidentally, most of my "legitimate" work and personal projects involve use of a computer, so I'm "here" with or without Illyriad anyway. The only activities with which an open Illyriad tab significantly interferes are those which require substantial reading, such as working on my thesis or writing short stories.
Second, it irritates me to no end when people disregard anything done online as "just a fleeting parcel of cyberspace." Your bank account balance is "just a fleeting parcel of cyberspace," and the internet stopped being this "not real life" thing a long time ago. My alliance mates are real people, and my relationships and interactions with them are therefore real and meaningful to some extent. My accomplishment is also in contest against other real people and not simply success at doing what the game tells me. My reward for playing this game is emotional and not financial, and that's fine--I can't take money to the grave, so why does everything have to be about that? I'm content to die happy instead. Maybe it's about "going outside?" I do that too--cycling aggressively at least 30 minutes per day except in deep winter, biking off-road on summer weekends, hiking, camping, swimming, and enjoying the occasional tennis match when I can find a partner (wife has bad knees).
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All the other members of Harmless for whom I'm informed enough to speak share similar stories. They are adults well capable of balancing many activities with "healthy" lives consisting of all the other "normal" things we expect, like girlfriends or wives or *shock* husbands, jobs, friends, hobbies, etc. Now maybe I need to be shown an alternate perspective, but most people who I see crying out "obsession" are just whining out of their own jealousy--they couldn't be as proficient whether they were obsessed or not. It's a shame that we aren't obsessed--people with obsessions do amazing things like starting new industries, ending World War II, or making the entire world laugh (and getting paid for it).
Ultimately, browser games have this huge meta-element which is an imaginary equivalent to structured governance and political intrigue, all the "spy vs spy" stuff (moles, counterintel, cons, canary traps, disinfo, clever electronic traps, etc.), and Cold War all in one package. I get to be a part of all of that, and it's FUN. Where offline could I be a part of all that? I could do some of it in the physical world and even get paid...and be shot, bombed, tortured, or at least in genuine fear for my life and well-being not to mention the safety of my family.
I'm good with just the fun part. Sometimes exercising your interests/talents using something that is "not real life" is better. And you know what? It's educational too, if you're watching for the useful lessons, especially in human behavior.
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