Playing Trivia Crack

[McatholicN]

I’ve recently become hooked on the new smartphone game called Trivia Crack, but my (oftentimes scrupulous) conscience is bugging me about it.

The game’s title is almost certainly a reference to crack cocaine, meant to emphasize the addictiveness of the game. Would the fact that it is named after this make the game sinful to play?

Also, the question of pride comes in. When I play, my goal is often to prove my intelligence to my friends. The games get really competitive and I really get caught up in showing that I am smarter than my opponent.

 

[on_the_hill]

Nope, not a sin.

Maybe the name in in poor taste, but that’s not a mark against you.

My experience with “addictive” games is that eventually a person gets tired of them and quits. I was “addicted” to Bejeweled, then Angry Birds. Now I play Sudoku, but it’s challenging, and doesn’t have the immediate gratification of some of the others.

(in that way, it’s like one of the newly formulated non-addictive opioid analgesics).

 

[Lou2U]

No, it is not sinful to play the game. Competitiveness is good, unless it becomes too extreme.

Lou

 

[Jared2914]

The name could possibly be scandal in that you are slightly harming your good Catholic reputation by playing a game with title. However, that word is used casually for a lot of things these days (“Crackberry”, “Evercrack” just to name two examples). It doesn’t have the same weight that it used to. I couldn’t see it being any worse than venial sin, if even that, but ask your priest to be sure. Competition is fine as long as you aren’t trying to harm the other person. Playing addictive games is also fine as long as you are meeting your responsibilities to God, others, and yourself.