«We dream of our children playing in the forest more often»
Anna: «All our children play games, the two boys sometimes too much. But they also do a lot of sport, the two older ones play the piano and all three are doing well at school.»
Matthias: «Caspar and Matilda devote themselves to gaming to an extent that I consider appropriate. With Balthazar, however, I've noticed that he plays for much longer than is recommended for his age. His immersion in the gaming world to the point where he completely ignores his surroundings makes me think and shows how caught up he is in the game.»
We used to be more interested in playing. Today we play to talk.
Caspar, 16 years old
Balthazar: «It's just cool and you always want to keep going to get better. But I'm not allowed to game during the week anyway. Except when I've got a good grade. If I get a 5, I get one hour, if I get a 6, I get two hours of gaming time. At the weekend, I'm allowed to play for one and a half to two hours - preferably Fortnite with friends. I honestly think the shooting is cool. And if you're the only one who survives, you have an epic victory. I've done that many times. More and more often, I also play together with Matilda, which makes our mum happy.»
Matilda: «I actually only play on Friday evenings when I'm not out with my friends. Then I play Fortnite with a few colleagues or with my best friend. I don't realise why more girls don't play. It's somehow always been more of a boys' thing. Without mybrothers, I probably never would have started. It's cool and fun, but when it comes down to it, I could easily do without it. Sometimes I play Brawl Stars with a few friends on my mobile phone now.»
Anna: «Matilda has other addictions, Snapchat for example. Caspar doesn't play so much anymore either. But there were also discussions with him for a while.»
Caspar: «Two years ago, I did a lot more bunting. I simply had nothing better to do. Now I rarely game during the week, but on Friday and Saturday evenings after going out, usually with a friend. When we get home, we go «on» and play «Call of Duty: Warzone» for another two hours. It's a shooter like Fortnite, but more realistic. We used to be more interested in the game. Today we play to talk.»
Playing directly after getting up at the weekend is taboo.
Anna, 48 years old
Anna: «Matilda and Caspar have it well under control. It's just that Balthazar ...»
Matthias: «The rules that Balthazar described are right. But we are often too lenient when it comes to implementing them.»
Anna: «Gaming is an effective way to motivate him. If I promise him that he can play as soon as he has tidied his room and read three chapters, he completes these tasks immediately. However, there is one firm rule: playing is taboo immediately after getting up at the weekend. Only when he has spent an active morning, such as fishing from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., am I more lenient. Then he's allowed on the console for three hours.»
Matthias: «I find it difficult to understand our children's fascination with gaming. Probably because I've never had it myself. But the fact that I don't like gaming doesn't mean they shouldn't do it. It's part of life today and should be part of their development.»
Anna: «But we still dream a little of them playing the piano, reading and playing in the forest all day long on their own initiative.»
