Has any one seen this garbage ass story of bad parenting at it's finest?

http://www.n4g.com/industrynews/News-227106.aspx

Is this real?? They don't mention the cause of death and they go on to blame the childs video game "addiction" for running away. How about paying attention to your kids and I bet the parents bought the "M" rated game for their under age son to begin with. It is terrible that they have lost their son but to blame it on video games, come on.

What is your thought?

They're obviously bad parents, which is kind of obvious as their own child ran away from them. Doesn't that already tell you a bit about life in that family. They just want something to blame their bad parenting on so people they know don't think of them as bad people.

ummmm yeah I'd like to know how he died. Hit by a car? drugs? kidnapped? Kinda makes a big difference ya know?

ummmm yeah I'd like to know how he died. Hit by a car? drugs? kidnapped? Kinda makes a big difference ya know?

Right,but the parents assume instead he died curled up in a ball clutching a COD 4 manual

(maybe a little over the top)

shame he's dead but I blame him for being such a little bitch over losing his 360+COD, and his parents for being stupid ****ing parents. Now if he was murdered or something that is sad but if he hadnt run away......... However i feel the parents need to be held responsible for criminal-negligence, letting your brat run away over a ****ing game and console, thats just stupid. Thats all this is, bad ****ing parents and a overly sensitive brat.

You can't blame the parents for taking away his xbox because he was playing it too much. That's the parents right and there's nothing wrong with it.

Gamers are quick to blame the parents and in many situations that's warranted. However, in this one it isn't.

Looks like an unfortunate tragedy with no fault to the parents. They simply took away something that was being used too much.

So the only one at fault is the kid who ran away over it?

So the only one at fault is the kid who ran away over it?

Hes at fault for being ****ing stupid enough to run away and his parents for being stupid enough to blame a god damn game. i say they need to be arrested for negligence

So the only one at fault is the kid who ran away over it?

Blame Canada

You can't blame the parents for taking away his xbox because he was playing it too much. That's the parents right and there's nothing wrong with it.

Gamers are quick to blame the parents and in many situations that's warranted. However, in this one it isn't.

Looks like an unfortunate tragedy with no fault to the parents. They simply took away something that was being used too much.

agree 100%

depending on what the actual cause of death is, it sounds like just an unfortunate series of events. had he committed suicide with a note next to him stating it's because he can't play his video game, then yeah, maybe his addiction to video games was extreme. i highly doubt that's the case, though. i ran away from home when i was 15 or so... it's just kind of a natural thing to do at that age; rebel against your parents.

Hes at fault for being ****ing stupid enough to run away and his parents for being stupid enough to blame a god damn game. i say they need to be arrested for negligence

The parents didn't blame the video game for his death. The article says,

"Initially, Brandon’s parents believed that the boy’s disappearance was somehow related to his addiction to video games."

In my opinion that is very poorly worded. It's too vague. Are they saying the parents think he ran away because he needed to get his video game fix?

It seems more likely that the parents think he may have run away because he was upset about his games being taken away. The article is way too vague and not enough information is known to throw the parents under the bus.

Homeboy shouldn't have ran away...but even then, no one deserves to die over running away :sad:

I live in the area this teen ran from home. They only got the pathology report in yesterday and the autopsy is scheduled for today. Quite tragic really but I also blame bad parenting.

Who paid for the M rated game and Xbox Live Gold? They obviously weren't aware the 360 had parental controls to lock the system after a certain amount of time. The kid was 15, 5',3" and 120lbs so I seriously doubt he had any chance of defending himself. Yes it is possible he expressed his displeasure of living at home with friends on Xbox Live and some pedophile may have convinced him to meet him somewhere. Who knows.

The lessen here is pay attention to what your kids are doing and don't mock their past times or calling their bluff and packing their bags if they say they'll run from home. We're given freewill and choice in this world and the consequences are there by our actions, not because of some corporation. It saddens me some lives are lost, but more so that uneducated people point fingers so easily because they can't look within.

Sorry for the long rant.

Who paid for the M rated game and Xbox Live Gold? The kid was 15, 5',3" and 120lbs so I seriously doubt he had any chance of defending himself. Yes it is possible he expressed his displeasure of living at home with friends on Xbox Live and some pedophile may have convinced him to meet him somewhere. Who knows.


You're assuming way too much without having any knowledge. You're assuming the parents purchased xbox live for him. Maybe they did and maybe they didn't. If they did, does that make them terrible? Nope. Being 15 and playing an M game (especially COD4 which really could be rated T) isn't a huge deal. My 14 year old nephew plays COD4 and he's fine.

The fact that the game was COD4 is trivial. The parents didn't say they were mad about the game he was playing. He could've been addicted to Viva Pinata for all I care...It states that the parents took away the xbox because of his addiction.

Be careful what assume...My point is that there is NOT enough info at this point. It very well could have been something the parents could have prevented...we just don't have enough information to point that way yet.

you're falling on deaf ears dogsdie... you must understand, if you're like 60% of the members of this community (under 18 and you don't really like your parents), you WANT parents to be at fault.

Actually I'm probably older than you both and feel the right to bare children should be outlawed to those that haven't gone through some kind of qualifying course with stricter standards than a drivers permit.

I want to see what the autopsy shows, ifester let us know if you find out

and feel the right to bare children should be outlawed to those that haven't gone through some kind of qualifying course with stricter standards than a drivers permit.

that's purely awful. sorry. i can't agree with that in the least.

In a way I blame the parents for letting it get that far, it can't possible have escaped their attention that he was becomming addicted, but then again, where do you draw the line for addiction? How do you deal with it? If the kid is upset enough to run away from home I think there may be more to it than just a console :/

Edit: I agree with you iFester.

Actually I'm probably older than you both and feel the right to bare children should be outlawed to those that haven't gone through some kind of qualifying course with stricter standards than a drivers permit.

sounds good to me mate. just cause you can have kids dont mean you should.

there are way too many factors here that haven't been taken into consideration. after all, we don't even know if it was his intention to run away from home, or if he just wanted to blow off some steam. I think if he really felt the need to pack up and leave home, he would have grabbed more than his bike and backpack. seeing as he was found in the woods, and far off the beaten path, any number of things could have happened, and the death may have been accidental. The only thing we know so far is that the kid liked video games, and that he had hormones. its true for enough of us here.

Rest in Peace to him too. It's sad. I used to want to play games all the time now. Like computer games, I wanted to play them all the time. I realized it's not worth it.

people disgust me. i mean that was stupid what the kid did! i mean he could have earned it back but now guess what? he is dead. Try playing the 360 when you are in heaven (or in some cases "fertilizing the earth"(and in some more cases "reincarnating into a cat"))you see I thought about the atheists,and Buddhists/Hindus (im a little rusty on my religion) even though I'm catholic and i almost disbelieve everything they believe in :thumbsup:

Ok I'm gonna go out and say what I think is wrong here. Games, are to a certain degree, addictive. You lose grip of time, and you 'want' to play them. I'm guessing this kid thought that he had respect and a 'family' in COD4, and when his parents took it away he snapped. I think video games are responsible, but only in this case.

Now bring forth the hate post :lol:

Ok the kid was mad enough to run away cause his folks took his video games that shows he was messed up in the head. Im glad hes dead, anyone that stupid doesnt need to live.

Now, Bring forth the hate

I don't know who or what to blame for this one, if anyone. Was he truly addicted to video games, or was it "Just 5 more minutes!" that some parents may take for addicted? Did the parents do anything for this "addiction"? How was his behavior 3 months before this incident? 6? 12? (Semi-Stupid question to ask since he was going through puberty) Hopefully we are able to get answers to some of them in the future.

While the media may be ignorant and blame video games with little to no information, we as gamers can not steep to that level and blame the parents with the same info. While I'm not a parent, I presume it is harder then ever to be one. The level of connectedness that we have with the outside world is amazing. We have changed to a time when you had to warn your kids to not help that stranger look for his puppy to a time when you have to warn them that that new friend request on MySpace by "FallOutFan94" may not be real. Some parents have yet to see the threat at 100% magnification.

Ok I'm gonna go out and say what I think is wrong here. Games, are to a certain degree, addictive. You lose grip of time, and you 'want' to play them. I'm guessing this kid thought that he had respect and a 'family' in COD4, and when his parents took it away he snapped. I think video games are responsible, but only in this case.

Now bring forth the hate post :lol:

Video games was only the unlucky suspect here. There are many things that kid can and will get addicted to. Sports, MySpace, other friends they shouldn't be hanging around with, modeling, the list goes on and on. This kids thing was gaming, and since video games is still relatively new, it is looked at harsher, same with MySpace. We will get to a point in time that these two things will be more accepted and we will be blaming whatever the next generation makes as making crime and killing kids.

Ok the kid was mad enough to run away cause his folks took his video games that shows he was messed up in the head. Im glad hes dead, anyone that stupid doesnt need to live.

Now, Bring forth the hate

That's just evil. Do you think that people who play video games too much deserve a death sentence. Seriously, you've got something very wrong with you.

Ok the kid was mad enough to run away cause his folks took his video games that shows he was messed up in the head. Im glad hes dead, anyone that stupid doesnt need to live.

Now, Bring forth the hate

I am sorry dude but trolling around in the forums just to place a post to get a rise out of people and "bring forth the hate" is just immature.
I mean just read your post outloud do you feel good??

That's just evil. Do you think that people who play video games too much deserve a death sentence. Seriously, you've got something very wrong with you.

not at all, i think if your dumb enough to run away just cause mommy takes away your games something is seriously wrong with you. Think about it, he could have prooven be doing chores or getting good grades in school he could handle video games but no, he decided it would be a good idea to run away. Its a bit harsh of me to say he needed to die but what he did was just ****ing stupid. hard to play games when your 6 feet under.

I think I would die if I was separated from my xbox for too long...

This story really makes you think....Infinity Ward made an awesome game!

@Wrath99
amen brother

not at all, i think if your dumb enough to run away just cause mommy takes away your games something is seriously wrong with you. Think about it, he could have prooven be doing chores or getting good grades in school he could handle video games but no, he decided it would be a good idea to run away. Its a bit harsh of me to say he needed to die but what he did was just ****ing stupid.

Listen Wrath99 just shut up. You're just trolling in the forums because it makes you feel good, as Juiced Pirate said, and trying to stir up trouble. Well it's not going to work and if you really find annoying people makes you feel good then you're probably just some nerd who gets bullied and tries to annoy others from behind a computer screen. Yeah that really makes you look big :roll:.

not at all, i think if your dumb enough to run away just cause mommy takes away your games something is seriously wrong with you. Think about it, he could have prooven be doing chores or getting good grades in school he could handle video games but no, he decided it would be a good idea to run away. Its a bit harsh of me to say he needed to die but what he did was just ****ing stupid. hard to play games when your 6 feet under.

How do you know that's why he ran away?...you're assuming too much. His leaving may have been completely unrelated to his parents taking away his video games. It doesn't even say WHEN he ran away. We don't know if it was 5 minutes after his xbox was taken away or the week after.

You sir are a douchebag....(no offense Ala Douche!)

How do you know that's why he ran away?...you're assuming too much. His leaving may have been completely unrelated to his parents taking away his video games. It doesn't even say WHEN he ran away. We don't know if it was 5 minutes after his xbox was taken away or the week after.

You sir are a douchebag....(no offense Ala Douche!)

by all means prove my assumption false.

get him, preach on brother

ive made my point, im done on this topic.

by all means prove my assumption false.

I can't!!! THAT'S MY POINT! read my posts man....All of my posts say that we don't have enough information to assume ANYTHING!!

The kid MAY have been nuts, and the kid MAY have been perfectly fine.

The parents MAY have been power tripping, and they MAY have not.

It takes an ASS to ASSume, and you fit the description perfectly....

/e rant off

not returning to this post

I have to aggree with Wrath99. Why else would he run away?

im the top of the page =)

Wow. who ever blames the Xbox 360 has seriosly run out of excusses 2 use.

well the PS3 is a last resort lol XD

true... heh

way to renew a post

ttyl lets go ruin a different thread lol

kk =).

What does renew a post mean?

Oh and also stop being so harsh on this boy and his family. For all you know they could have had serious issues at home and he could have been struggling to cope with all. Stop making dumb assumptions about this kid because none of you have actually ever met him, have you?

this has been on the radio for a while. they haven't actually identified the body yet, but it pretty much has to be him. We don't know when or how he died though. they had a search going for like two weeks.
anyways, it ticks me off that this is going to get alot of people thinking gaming is always an addiction. anything can be an addiction...

no one posted so my friend had 2

@strika234

agreed

Oh and also stop being so harsh on this boy and his family. For all you know they could have had serious issues at home and he could have been struggling to cope with all. Stop making dumb assumptions about this kid because none of you have actually ever met him, have you?

I agree fully, right now we take what we know, which is that no xbox = run away. It might have somthing to do with it, it might not, we just don't know.

agreed

see ya peeps

its just like that guyjack thompson

its just like that guyjack thompson

how is it like that at all?

I think that's just the parents passing the buck onto games for them losing him.

I don't think video games can push someone to kill someone else. How do the parents know that it was COD4? The guy could be mental or clinically insane.

"Hello, Clarice. Do you hear the Xbox's screaming. The Red rings call for you."

"I ate the PSP with fava beans and wit h a nice PS3."

IN case you didn't know, that was Silence of the Consoles.:shocked:

I don't think video games can push someone to kill someone else. How do the parents know that it was COD4? The guy could be mental or clinically insane.

"Hello, Clarice. Do you hear the Xbox's screaming. The Red rings call for you."

"I ate the PSP with fava beans and wit h a nice PS3."

IN case you didn't know, that was Silence of the Consoles.:shocked:

he was a 15 year old boy. who went to high school. and ran away because they had an argument about him playing too much xbox. didn't really have to do with murder, and they don't know how he died...

Man, this is horrible. I'm almost sure the kids gaming addiction had nothing to do with it. I think he was dumbass, got some pedophile to meat up him at a soda parlor, and BAM, Dead Gamer.
And... on the subject of parents and gaming. I'm only aloud T games, and my parents blaming me punching Digit (http://sarcasticgamer.com/forums/member.php?u=2871) in the face on Games. Douche bags, i SAY! Although, I do love my parents... but my dad has no ****ing idea what he's talking about.

lol, I'd have simply ignored my parents telling me to put my 360 away or cod4... I own my stuff for that reason because then I can just simply play regardless as to what they say...

When they make me take it out of my room, I just oblige to prevent it from escalating any further...

Imagine all the kids who are going to die tonight with the release of Gears 2. Let the pedophelia BEGIN!

Cliffy B says he can pull 15yr olds check it out on N4g.com

Something no one mentioned is that the body was found 4KM from his bike, thats pretty far to be hoofing it, also, the place it was found, you could clearly see a house, not 100 yards away...to me that points to foul play.


Also, I can't belive some of you people, just so fast to jump on the "Blame the f***ing parents" bandwagon, so what if his parents bought him CoD4 and XBL gold, my parents bought me cod4 for christmas last year, does that mean I have horrible parents? Maybe his parents used their brains and, oh, I don't know, made a choice...
Some of you are ridiculous, I mean, dogsdie has been almost completely disregarded, he has the point of "Not enough information", EXACTLY!

I am not insinuating that parents are not always to blame, sometimes they are, but, as dogsdie said, WE NEED MORE INFO, all you guys have done is speculate negatively, has anybody thought to take the parents perspective?

consider them.
-Dark sora

That story is a HUGE deal where I live seeing as town he lived in is like 20 minutes from mine, but I think it's bullshit either way. It's sad that he died, but he's the type of person who makes all gamers look like idiots.

Something no one mentioned is that the body was found 4KM from his bike, thats pretty far to be hoofing it, also, the place it was found, you could clearly see a house, not 100 yards away...to me that points to foul play.


Also, I can't belive some of you people, just so fast to jump on the "Blame the f***ing parents" bandwagon, so what if his parents bought him CoD4 and XBL gold, my parents bought me cod4 for christmas last year, does that mean I have horrible parents? Maybe his parents used their brains and, oh, I don't know, made a choice...
Some of you are ridiculous, I mean, dogsdie has been almost completely disregarded, he has the point of "Not enough information", EXACTLY!

I am not insinuating that parents are not always to blame, sometimes they are, but, as dogsdie said, WE NEED MORE INFO, all you guys have done is speculate negatively, has anybody thought to take the parents perspective?

consider them.
-Dark sora

I beleive hunters found this body, so why would thay be hunting 100m away from a house?

So...all we know is that he's dead and that his parents took away his xbox? Because that's a good reason to run away. It's a terrible loss, but both parties involved are equally stupid.

The kid for running away for his freaking XBox. I've had my PS1, my N64, my Dreamcast, my PS2, my DS, and my Gamecube (all at different time periods) taken away. It made me angry, but never enough to run away like a stupid person. I got it good where I'm at.

The parents, not for taking the games away, but for buying him the stuff in the first place. If he didn't want his parents to be able to take it away he should have saved up money. That's what I did for my DS.

I agree with dark sora in the fact that they made a choice to take it away, but the fact that they didn't make a more educated and even smarter choice in buying CoD4 for a young boy puts them at fault as much as the kid. I'm not saying that all kids are stupid enough to do stuff like this, but it's up to the parents to evaluate the child's behavior and choose for them. I don't know any young kid, when faced with the decision, says no to a heavily hyped game that's an M rating.

EDIT: For every Extra Life, there's something stupid like this to make a dent in the progress.

I heard from a very realible source that the xbox came alive and shot COD4 Discs at him

BLAME IT ON THEM DAMN VIDEO GAMES!. That was pathetic. Those parents need to get some parenting advice or some shit.

I beleive hunters found this body, so why would thay be hunting 100m away from a house?

hmm, I was watching global and they showed a spot about that far from a house saying, "this is the ditch they found him in."

Maybe I misheard, but I remember them saying the spot was really close to a farmhouse.

@Deadpoolskye,
I agree with you, his reaction was stupid, for as long as I can remember, I have had consoles taken for a week, or even two months(TORTURE).

I, however, disagree with you on what you said, " he should have bought it himself, they wouldn't be able to take it" or something like that, I am about 1-2 years older than this kid, I bought my PS3 with my own money, yet that was what my parents took for two months.

Other than that, your spot on!:thumbsup:

I always figured that it's your money and what you buy with it belongs to you. My DS is punishment proof because of it. I could be sitting in my room, grounded, with nothing but my bed and dresser...but I'd still have my DS and all the games for it.

Maybe other peoples parents function differently. Are you sure yours aren't broken?

@Shawnanswer:
Thats most likely what happened. Just rode out to blow off soem steam and fell off some loose stone.

@Wrath99
You are a ****ing idiot

@Satandude & Spartan119
Go have internet relationship some where else.

@ Lord Nacho
I f*cking hate you :lol:

@ Otacon
:lol:

the body was found 4KM from his bike, which I did mention...

the body was found 4KM from his bike, which I did mention...
DO we know how he died yet?

population control at it's finest

Was reading Kotaku today, they say his injuries were from a fall (http://kotaku.com/5081089/autopsy-no-foul-play-in-crisp-death), not from someone. Most likely (like said before) the kid went to blow off steam, carelessly climbed a tree, lost his footing and fell.

Was reading Kotaku today, they say his injuries were from a fall (http://kotaku.com/5081089/autopsy-no-foul-play-in-crisp-death), not from someone. Most likely (like said before) the kid went to blow off steam, carelessly climbed a tree, lost his footing and fell.
Fell 50km away from his bike?
I doubt it,
But I agree with his blowing off some steam.

Fell 50km away from his bike?
I doubt it,
But I agree with his blowing off some steam.

not 50 kms, 4 kms.

big difference.

not 50 kms, 4 kms.

big difference.
Sorry about that,
I thought it said 50km in some other post.
Now i believe it more.

Stupid parents! Why did they buy him an X-Box?!?!

Just joking :P

We all know what REALLY happened here. Kid was climbing a tree and stepped on a squirrel.

Now what they kid didn't know was that this squirrel just had a really bad day. Not only was he laid off, but when he got home from work, he walking in on his wife, Jasmine, cheating on him with his best friend Bill. When he broke down in tears asking Jasmine why, she said it was cause Bill had the tastier nuts.

So imagine going threw all of that, and then have some little dipshit whos crying about not being able to play his videogames step on you. Yea I would have pushed the little douche off the tree too.
:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol: :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

I;m sorry for their son's death but video games can't be blamed. They should have saw the signs of him wanting to run away.

Well you know what didn't kill him? Smoking

We all know what REALLY happened here. Kid was climbing a tree and stepped on a squirrel.

Now what they kid didn't know was that this squirrel just had a really bad day. Not only was he laid off, but when he got home from work, he walking in on his wife, Jasmine, cheating on him with his best friend Bill. When he broke down in tears asking Jasmine why, she said it was cause Bill had the tastier nuts.

So imagine going threw all of that, and then have some little dipshit whos crying about not being able to play his videogames step on you. Yea I would have pushed the little douche off the tree too.

Everyone stop using the forums. There's no way you can make anything greater then that.


It was fun while it lasted I guess.

Well you know what didn't kill him? Smoking
Obscure Family guy References FTW!!!!

Otacon-I laughed for like ten minutes at that squirrel post.



I want to know exactly how this is the parent's fault? They bought their kid the console, game, and XBL, but how does that make them bad parents? Are you seriously saying all parents who buy their kids video games are bad parents? You're really that stupid? They thought the kid was playing it too much. Maybe it was affecting his grades, or even his health. You don't know. They did what they had every right to, and took the Xbox away. Seems like fine parenting to me. It's the kid's fault, but that doesn't make him stupid, nor does it mean he deserved to die, like some stupid dickheads here seem to think (Wrath). His parents took something he loved from him, and he overreacted, ran away, and got killed by Otacon's pissed off squirrel. Don't really see how any of them are stupid.

Otacon-I laughed for like ten minutes at that squirrel post.



I want to know exactly how this is the parent's fault? They bought their kid the console, game, and XBL, but how does that make them bad parents? Are you seriously saying all parents who buy their kids video games are bad parents? You're really that stupid? They thought the kid was playing it too much. Maybe it was affecting his grades, or even his health. You don't know. They did what they had every right to, and took the Xbox away. Seems like fine parenting to me. It's the kid's fault, but that doesn't make him stupid, nor does it mean he deserved to die, like some stupid dickheads here seem to think (Wrath). His parents took something he loved from him, and he overreacted, ran away, and got killed by Otacon's pissed off squirrel. Don't really see how any of them are stupid.
What about the squirrels wife: Jasmine :lol:

What about the squirrels wife: Jasmine :lol:

Yeah, it's that bitch's fault.

i say this, if he did not have an Xbox he would be addicted to TV or something else.
Now we have frozen to death and death by fall. Take your pick. I know when i need to get out of my house i go to the old farmhouse that my grandfather built. It abandoned but in good shape and it is a great place to hide for an hour.

Thinking about it, if you are addicting to video games, how can your fat ass climb a tree?

Thinking about it, if you are addicting to video games, how can your fat ass climb a tree?

not every gam er is fat. he happened to be quite thin and short actaully...

Sad. But the parents can't really blame CoD4 for him falling, I mean, did he try to jump off a boat into a moving chopper?

Right,but the parents assume instead he died curled up in a ball clutching a COD 4 manual

(maybe a little over the top)

My God thats ****ing stupid.Did he cut himself with the paper or what?

Obscure Family guy References FTW!!!!

I was wondering where I heard that:lol:!

I don't think thats true

Inside the spoiler is the original story I read when the boy first went missing.

The article clears a few things up and I would say its just a tragic incident with neither the parents or computer games to blame really.

Teen who ran away after Xbox dispute 'addicted' to playing online war game, father says
Oct 22, 2008 04:30 AM
Theresa Boyle
Staff Reporter

Steve Crisp's best hope for his missing 15-year-old son is that the lad is hiding out in a luxury cottage somewhere northeast of Barrie.

But his worst fear is that Brandon, a Grade 10 student, has ventured too far into the fantasy world of a video game to which he was "addicted" and has run into trouble.

"I'm worried he has met someone online through this game. It could be organized crime or someone involved in Internet gambling. Pedophiles can stalk kids through these games," the tormented father said in an interview last night.

Brandon ran away from home in north Barrie nine days ago and has not been seen or heard from since. He left home following a dispute with his parents over the Xbox online war game, Call of Duty 4, which he spent countless hours and days playing over the last 18 months.

"I told him he wouldn't be getting his Xbox back. He said, `Then I'm going to leave home.'"

Steve called his son's bluff and even helped him pack his knapsack.

"I really thought he would be home later that day with his tail between his legs," said Steve, who remembers running away from home once when he was a boy.

Brandon took off on his yellow bike, which was spotted just hours later in a ditch about eight kilometres northeast of the family's home. Steve suspects the 5-foot-3, 100-pound boy was on his way to meet some friends in Oro-Medonte Township. His three best buddies from school were also members of his "Call of Duty Clan."

Steve has since learned from these friends that Brandon may be part of another clan, but the friends have no idea who those members are. He fears the boy was lured into meeting someone from that clan and is now being held against his will.

Barrie police and OPP have conducted ground and aerial searches and yesterday added reinforcements, The Canadian Press reported. Police and the Crisp family yesterday urged cottagers and homeowners in the area to check their properties for any sign of Brandon.

"It's a very high-end area of Barrie where there are multi-million-dollar cottages owned by (people) who only use them two or three months a year. My best hope is that Brandon is having a great time, eating all their food," Steve said.

Brandon has never run away before and would've called if he knew of his family's distress, he added.

"He has a good heart," Steve said of his son, who was a straight-A student until his obsession with gaming started in 2006. The boy purchased Call of Duty with Christmas money and Steve subscribed to Xbox online at his son's urging.

"It was peer pressure. He wanted to play with his three best friends but they live half an hour away. So they would put their headsets on, meet up online and play a game," Steve explained.

But he said the game became an "addiction" and "obsession" for the teen who played against other teams around the world, staying up all night and spending his summer holidays indoors.

Steve said he had taken the game away from Brandon more than 20 times in the past, including the Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend after learning the boy had skipped school the day before and taken $20 off the kitchen table, meant for one of his two sisters. But the following day, Brandon was playing the game again after finding it hidden in his father's bathroom vanity. So Steve, a renovator, removed it for good, this time taking it out of the house to his workshop.

"I just want him to know we love him dearly. It doesn't matter what he's done. He won't be in trouble when he comes home. We're going to work things out," his father said.

This part makes me :sad:

"I told him he wouldn't be getting his Xbox back. He said, `Then I'm going to leave home.'"

Steve called his son's bluff and even helped him pack his knapsack.

Despite the fact this kid should not really acted like a complete and utter p***s his parents really should of been better informed about games and perhaps played with their son on the XBOX!!! (...GASPS for sarcasm...)

http://media.playfire.com/site/trophy_widget/psn/forward2.png (http://www.playfire.com/a/create_widget)

It seems to me like they were informed. The way it's being described, the kid was addicted, and it was causing serious problems.

Super stupid parents

If his parents took away a favorite toy, or in this case a game console, he's probably going to be really pissed at them. But blame the game company for his death? That's ridiculous.

That's like saying that the parents should sue Louisville Slugger for the death of their kid because he was playing baseball too much and they took his bat away.

If his parents took away a favorite toy, or in this case a game console, he's probably going to be really pissed at them. But blame the game company for his death? That's ridiculous.

That's like saying that the parents should sue Louisville Slugger for the death of their kid because he was playing baseball too much and they took his bat away.

I agree with you man 100%

It's a classic case of parents covering up for their bad parenting. Games are the lowest common denominator when it comes to these cases and it really fu*king angers me that the media will take this and run with it.