Scheming Brother

Come to think of it, this was not the first scheme my dear brother played on me. The fact that I am playing this game is actually the result of his scheming.

Knighthood Online, the MMORPG game we are playing, is not Theo's first online game. When he was fourteen he got addicted in a different online game called Strike Force which involves guns, tanks, and killing. He was so hooked on that game that he almost failed in his studies. I was in my last year of my bachelor's degree at that time and I remember our parents were so angry with Theo that they had quite a fight. Yeah, my brother was on a bit of rebellious stage during those times which we link to the violent theme of his game. But just a bit, because besides that one time where he talked back to our parents because of that game, he is usually obedient and polite to everyone.

In fairness, our parents did try to control my brother's time in playing but being the addict that he was, we later on learned that once everyone was asleep, he'll turn on the computer and play till before dawn. And there were also times where he went playing outside under the guise of doing research and group studies.

It was really such a mess that my parents tried to ask for my help. Theo grew up really close to me, I spoil him a lot even until now. So i tried talking things out with him. That was also the time when we received his report card from school. So I guessed when he saw how low his grades were and how his future studies will be compromised, he conceded.

After the talk, he agreed to uninstall his game in his computer, but not without terms. One of the things that we have in common is our love for anime. And he introduced me to different kinds of online games, especially the ones in which the avatars look like anime characters, which are mostly MMORPG. We agreed that once he can manage his studies well and I start working, he will look for an online game that will interest me and we will play together. And if I don't like the game or he take his studies for granted again then it will be uninstalled. Why do I need to have a job at that time? That's because he hates how slow our internet connection is for online games. Well, I can't agree more because the purpose of our internet connection was for studies and research only. So once I have a job, and before we start with a new game, I have to upgrade our internet connection. Anyways, during that time I was thinking he'll probably forget about gaming by that time and if not, I'll just say I don't like the game whatever that may be. So much for my conviction, eh.

After two years of him focusing on his studies and me finding my first job as a Junior High School Teacher, he introduced Knighthood Online. At first I did not even give it a glance. But the weekend after that, I was so stressed out with work and stuff that i said - what the heck, let's give this game a shot. So this time, to make sure that this game will not be removed, he slowly hooked me with the good graphics and story line of the game. And in just a few days I was hooked.

So now, even if our parents still disapprove of this game, they can't do anything against it because I am also playing. But mainly because they see that I am strict with the amount of time we are online. And somehow, being on the same game has its perks. I added in my friend list some players that are also friends of my brother in-game and asked them to inform me whenever my brother goes online outside our playing time. I guess he did not see that coming though because the first time that he went online past his sleeping time he was surprised when I nagged about it and reminded him about our agreement the next morning. In fear of losing his new game, he obliged.

But still, he just won't stop with thinking of ways to benefit more from our agreement. He talked me out of the importance of buying in-game boosts using real money. I started with just one recharge card for the first three months of playing, each for the two of us - i bought the cheapest card available, then it became monthly. He tried to talk to me about increasing the amount but somehow I found my rational voice and said no. Ain't I smart huh?