Case guide
Gaming disorder requires serious effects on daily life. Ask a care provider to assess your concerns.
Updated Oct 4, 20267 sources
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Updated Oct 4, 20267 sources
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World Health Organization · Publisher of clinical classification guidance
Finding: WHO describes gaming disorder as loss of control, games taking over daily life, and continued play despite harm. Its October 22, 2020 guidance says diagnosis also requires serious harm to daily functioning.
WHO questions and answers on gaming disorder (opens in a new tab) · Oct 22, 2020 · Checked Oct 3, 2026
Karen K. Caldwell · United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation · Chair of the Panel listed in this order
Finding: The Panel’s December 10, 2025 order refused to group the gateway-game claims in one federal court. The order concerns case grouping, not a finding that a game caused a child’s harm.
Gateway-game order denying transfer (opens in a new tab) · Dec 10, 2025 · Checked Oct 3, 2026
World Health Organization · 2020
Read the source: WHO guidance on gaming disorder (opens in a new tab) · Checked Oct 3, 2026
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Gaming disorder requires serious effects on daily life. Ask a care provider to assess your concerns. This page does not diagnose you.
WHO describes loss of control and games taking priority despite harm. Its definition also requires serious daily-life effects. The guide does not diagnose a reader.
Describe the concerns you want assessed in your own words. Ask which changes matter to the care provider and how they would evaluate them. A list of games or hours is not a substitute for that conversation.
WHO says the pattern normally would have been evident for at least 12 months. That is clinical context. It is not a lawsuit acceptance rule or filing deadline.
Ask a care professional how the duration relates to the rest of the assessment. Do not wait for a number in this guide before raising a concern about health or daily life. Ask a lawyer separately about legal time limits.
It does not by itself decide a civil claim. WHO’s guide defines a health condition; it does not test a named game. The civil court must address the alleged harm and legal responsibility.
Ask the lawyer which evidence would be needed beyond a diagnosis. Keep a care provider’s role separate from claims about a company’s conduct. Do not ask a child to use a diagnosis merely to match a legal form.
Ask how a provider would assess your concerns and what records would help. WHO advises watching effects on daily life and health. Explain the changes that prompted the visit.
Bring questions about privacy, consent and the next step as well as observations about daily life. If you are a parent, ask which information can be shared with you. This page does not choose a diagnostic instrument or treatment.
Ask how daily-life concerns would be checked and what care is proposed. A legal review should not choose the diagnosis or care.
Ask how each care record relates to the claim. Check access rights and the terms before you release a child’s full file.
fMRI scans show striatal dopamine release during gaming comparable in magnitude to that produced by psychostimulant drugs
Adolescents who spent money on loot boxes were 3.4 times more likely to meet criteria for problem gambling than those who did not
Global prevalence of Gaming Disorder among youth gamers estimated at 3–10%, with significant variation by region and screening instrument
The review is free and private. Asking for it doesn’t commit you to anything.
Ask a law firm to review your caseGaming Disorder is classified under code 6C51 in the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision (ICD-11). It is categorized under “Disorders due to addictive behaviours” alongside gambling disorder. The diagnosis requires three core features: impaired control over gaming, increasing priority given to gaming over other activities, and continuation or escalation despite negative consequences. These features must persist for at least 12 months and result in significant functional impairment. The ICD-11 classification was adopted in June 2019 and provides the medical foundation for video game addiction lawsuits by establishing gaming addiction as a recognized medical condition, not a behavioral preference.
The WHO page does not name specific screening tools. It defines gaming disorder as a pattern of gaming behavior involving impaired control, increased priority, and continuation despite negative consequences, with significant impairment normally evident for at least 12 months. Ask a qualified medical provider about diagnosis.
Source: WHO: Gaming disorder · as of Oct 7, 2026
No. WHO says Internet Gaming Disorder was included in DSM-5 as a condition for further study, while gaming disorder was included in ICD-11 as a clinically recognizable syndrome. That distinction does not decide legal fault or causation.
Source: WHO: Inclusion of gaming disorder in ICD-11 · as of Oct 7, 2026
Checked against 7 primary sources by People's Justice editors · Updated
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