Chinese Gamer Sells Meth To Fund MMO Habit

Earnest Cavalli

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Jun 19, 2008
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Chinese Gamer Sells Meth To Fund MMO Habit



A 19-year-old man from China's Zhejiang province was recently arrested for dealing drugs, which he claims is an effort to earn money for his massive addiction to online gaming.

We're depressingly used to hearing stories of gamers from Asia who have taken the hobby to sad new heights. I can't even count how many times I've reported on a story involving a horrifically dedicated gamer sitting in a net cafe for a marathon gaming session only to die in front of his computer. Stories like that are grim and depressing, but rarely are they chock full of irony; a drug dealer slingin' dope to fund his MMO addiction, however? That's a new one.

According to a report by China's Ningbo Online a 19-year-old man named Mouping Wang was recently arrested for allegedly selling methamphetamine to customers of an internet cafe which Wang frequented. Why did he frequent this particular cafe? Both because that's where his meth-addled buyers were located, and because Wang had an addiction of his own: PvP online battles.

When the police took Wang's statement, he claimed that he was selling drugs specifically to fund his gaming habit. He was a long-time player of a game the report fails to specifically mention, though it's described as heavily-focused on player versus player combat. While Wang had been successful at this game, he wasn't the best, and by selling drugs he hoped to be able to turn his illicit cash into virtual money which would give him a leg up on the competition.

This story would be hilariously ironic, if it wasn't such a depressing cautionary tale. According to Wang's statement, his lust for better online gear was well known at the internet cafe and he was approached by a fellow user of the cafe known as Lao San who convinced Wang to push meth. In what seems like a rather lucrative deal for Lao San, the terms of this agreement only left Wang with a paltry $24 USD for each gram of methamphetamine he sold. I don't have up-to-the-minute pricing data for meth right in front of me, but Wang was pretty blatantly getting the short end of the stick here.

Still, Wang agreed to the arrangement, and as a result of an April 2 police raid he's now housed in a local detention center awaiting trial. The bad news for Wang is that China considers drug dealing to be a pretty sizable offense, and has a history of punishing dealers with execution.

Source: Kotaku [http://games.qq.com/a/20130409/000025.htm]

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Chaosian

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Wasn't there a internet cafe stabbing not a week ago too? Man, what's happening Asia?
 

Fappy

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China executes drug dealers? Wow. I mean, I know this is China we're talking about, but still.
 

Milanezi

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Damn Rhizhim beat me to to it... Breaking Bad: Asia ;) I just wonder if he's Pinkerman or Walter White... Or more likely one of those two dumb pushers who are friends with Pinkerman ahaha.
 

Zef Otter

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Fappy said:
China executes drug dealers? Wow. I mean, I know this is China we're talking about, but still.
They always been doing that.

That is how they deal with the opium dealers when they started their war on drugs in the 1950's.
 

kailus13

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As a rough guide to meth pricing, 1 gram costs $80. That's not pure profit though.

Going on this rate, China will just have to police net cafes constantly.
 

Living Contradiction

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DVS BSTrD said:
That much is crystal clear :p
You had to pun it, didn't you? Heh.

Mind you, if they're willing to kill people for selling narcotics, I wonder how long it'll be before someone is executed for selling MMO access. It's a spooky thought, but more than a little possible if folks are willing to sell meth to pay for their online subscriptions.
 
Sep 14, 2009
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DVS BSTrD said:
What won't asians do to keep playing?
rhizhim said:
Chaosian said:
Wasn't there a internet cafe stabbing not a week ago too? Man, what's happening Asia?

yes, there was a stabbing in a cafe. although if you see a man with a machete like knife you would shut the hell up and try to keep a low profile.
That much is crystal clear :p
god dammit you stole my line! i was totally thinking that coming in here.

OT: You can find these kinds of addictions for any sort of hobby/money scheme, if they try to turn this against gaming i'm going to facepalm ridiculously hard.
 

RicoADF

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Fappy said:
China executes drug dealers? Wow. I mean, I know this is China we're talking about, but still.
I wish my country would deal with the problem that way, their too soft on people who are doing what's basically mass torture and murder.

Captcha: question everything - damn right I do!
 

Jedi-Hunter4

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The7Sins said:
Fappy said:
China executes drug dealers? Wow. I mean, I know this is China we're talking about, but still.
It is like that in most Asian countries. They consider rightfully so that the lives destroyed and the people over dosing on the drugs as equivalent to murders committed by the dealers. Thus they get the same punishment as murderers death.
Depends on your opinion of drug's whether you consider it right. It's a topic that divides everyone no matter what side you sit on the political spectrum.

There's the strong Right wing view.
Allot of police officers back the idea of legalizing everything if not most illegal substances, due to it almost being a pointless exercise that primarily puts money to the hands of hardened criminals on the top teir. In effect the attitude is here those that who are going to get into very hard drugs, will find a way anyway (their not about to ban paint thinner)

Then the strong Left wing view
The argument that we all only have one life, if you want to jump off a cliff in a wing suit with enormous risk you can, so why should the government tell you what you can/cannot put in your body.

It's not a clear cut issue. I can't see a rational for banning many drugs that have not been proven to be any more harmful than Alcohol or Tobacco, which are pretty much universally legal, so I can't see a rational for killing people for selling it. In some of those countries you have to bear in mind these Law's apply to selling large amounts of pot, who the F*** has ever OD from doing pot? I don't get this one sided sympathy for users either, no matter what you have been through, no matter what has been done to you, unless someone makes you swallow it or inject it at gun point, you always have a choice, always, anything else is just an excuse. Once they are in that pit they should get help to get out, but it's their fault they are in there, no one else.
 

1337mokro

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Oh wow that sounds like the shittiest game in existence with the blatant "Buy more power" motive.

Couldn't he have sold crack to play a better game? Like that game where you can literally buy virtual land with real money? At least there the entire game is centered around being a virtual land baron.