WASHINGTON ST.—A University of Iowa sophomore was reportedly hospitalized Wednesday after playing the newly released XBOX 360 game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 for nearly 150 hours straight, missing his family’s Thanksgiving meal in the process.
“I started playing last Thursday when everyone was leaving town,” Brett Munchausen told The Iowa Iowan in a phone interview from a UIHC rehabilitation facility. “I prestiged, like, at least nine times.”
Authorities were alerted to Munchausen’s possible disappearance when they received a call from his mother who claimed Munchausen hadn’t shown up for Thanksgiving at his family’s residence in Waterloo, IA.
“My boy never misses my mashed potatoes,” Mrs. Munchausen said, “As soon as we were seated at the Thanksgiving table and no one was eating them, I realized he was still in Iowa City.”
Munchausen, who lost nearly thirty pounds during the gaming binge, says this isn’t the first time something like this has happened.
“When World of Warcraft first came out and I ran out of food, I was living on my own hair and fingernails for a while. Definitely worth it.”
