For many people, video gaming is serious business. For a 19-year-old boy in China, it’s an addiction. This week police in China found the young gamer lying unconscious under thick bushes near a set of railroad tracks. An ambulance was called and police informed the medics that there was a putrid smell coming from the man’s feet. Hospital workers removed his shoes and found that his feet were so badly infected, they had begun rotting.
When the man awoke, he asked for a drink of water and explained that he had spent all of his money playing video games at an Internet cafe and that he had not eaten nor slept for several days. When he ran out of money, he left the café and collapsed from exhaustion.
The man’s parents confirmed that “all he did was play video games on the Internet” and explained that he had left home several days prior and had been “missing” since.
Chinese media say that young man’s rotting feet were caused by “poor hygiene and lack of sleep”. Police told reporters that if they hadn’t found him, he probably would have died.