Housebound: Shao Xiaomeng, a 24-year-old model, is obsessed with online games. Provided to Shanghai Star

New console, better game

Snapshots from ChinaJoy 2014

She locks herself in her room at times, dressed in nothing but her undies — playing online games. This is what they call the Otaku Syndrome, a term that originated from Japan that refers to young people so obsessed with manga and games that they do not leave the house.

Looking at the photos of Shao Xiaomeng posted on her site on WeChat, it is hard to imagine her as a victim of online obsession. The image the 24-year-old model presents online is an energetic, outgoing and undoubtedly gorgeous young lady.

But, Shao says her personal record for playing games online nonstop is 14 hours.

When she is caught up in a game, she says she only takes short breaks as rest seems totally unnecessary. If you think grabbing things with your feet sounds ridiculous, Shao says she has been doing this for a very long time and her toes are now quite flexible.

"Sometimes the camera on my laptop lights up for no reason, and it scares the heck out of me, for most of the time I am topless.

"I just feel comfortable this way. Also I rest until I have passed all the levels. There is a popular line in a TV commercial for chewing gum that says 'I can hardly stop'. I feel exactly like that when I'm playing a game."

She started to play online games 13 years ago. The game mesmerizing her at the moment is League of Legends, a popular multiplayer battle arena game. This is Shao’s favorite kind, games which require teamwork and strategies.

"The games with cute characters and backdrops in pink tones are not my cup of tea, only Otaku guys like to play these kinds of games," she says.

As an expert on online games, Shao was selected as the director of a game association over 10 years ago and still holds the position now.

Not only do these games provide Shao the pleasure of besting the big bosses using all kinds of weapons and tools she has won from level to level, they also manage to provide her a sense of achievement which she says is hard to find in real life.

"For games, as long as I stick to one and spend time on it, it is likely that I will get into the top players' list. In real life, I am still a model working hard to make money," says Shao.