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NERDS... GEEKS... cyber-junkies, computer game players have long had a bad rap. Ever since Pacman and Space Invaders gave way to labyrinthian adventures such as Dungeons And Dragons, players have been stereotyped as pallid-faced youths, shoulders hunched over keyboards and joysticks for hours while living a hermit-like existence with a computer as their only friend.

Two deaths in the past 15 months have hardly helped boost this image. Ng Man-fai, 28, and Lai Pui-sun, 17, were both found slumped over tables in separate cyber cafes after long stints playing Diablo II. Both were apparently healthy and had no drug habits, causing some medics to suggest that long-term exposure to flashing lights from the screen may have triggered their collapse.

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