The mothers who hate what computer game addiction does to their sons – but say they're POWERLESS to ban them from playing Fortnite obsessively for up to ten hours a day

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Seven-year-old Dominique Brucher stares transfixed at the large television screen dominating the living room of his terraced home in Purley, South London.

His face is one of pure concentration and his body is rigid — apart from his thumbs, which move frantically across the game controller in his hands.

On the screen, a curvaceous, cartoon-like female character dressed in skintight jeans rampages across picturesque Alpine lakes and forests, collecting weapons and shooting dead whoever comes into sight — stopping occasionally to wiggle her bottom provocatively in a celebratory dance.

Dominique, who is still wearing his uniform after a day at school, is oblivious to his surroundings — the sounds of children playing outside on this warm summer's evening, or of his four-year-old sister, Scarlett, who is sat in awe by his side.

'I killed him,' says Dominique, emotionlessly. 'Wow, these are good guns: sniper rifles. I now need to get a smaller gun to shoot at close range.'

It has been five months since he started playing the game Fortnite: Battle Royale and five months since his mother, Ella, a 32-year-old administrator, feels she lost him to it.

'He's like a different child': Luke, 13, who is obsessed with Fortnite, and his mother Amanda Snow, 38, a housewife from Southampton

'He's obsessed,' she says. 'It's all he wants to do. He gets up early at the weekend so he can play all day — for six hours sometimes. If he's not playing it, he's watching videos about it.'

Ella is not alone in feeling as though her son has become addicted to Fortnite, which, since launching its free version six months ago, is played by 125 million people globally — making it one of the biggest computer games of all time and earning its maker, the U.S. software company Epic Games, around £230 million a month.

But, unlike other games, it seems to have hooked young children — predominately boys — in a way rarely seen before. Teachers, parents and health professionals are warning of its dangers.

In North London, a 15-year-old boy spent eight weeks in hospital because of his 'all-consuming' gaming addiction, including Fortnite, which left him unable to go to school for a year and needing vitamin D tablets because of a lack of sunlight.

His mother, businesswoman Kendal Parmar, told how her son, once a talented pupil and rugby player, turned into a recluse. She said: 'Every moment he's awake, he wants to be on a game. There is no outside world.'

In a similar case, a nine-year-old girl was sent to rehab after becoming so obsessed with Fortnite that she was on it for up to ten hours a day.

Her parents sought help after finding her playing the game in the middle of the night, sat on a urine-soaked cushion, as she had been too engrossed to go to the toilet.

Those playing Fortnite can't pause — as leaving in the middle of a game means you die. Last month, the World Health Organisation began to recognise compulsive gaming as a mental health condition, meaning treatment will be available on the NHS.

Meanwhile, there are countless reports of school teachers pleading with parents to limit their children's screen time, in the face of rising numbers too tired to concentrate in class after staying up late playing.

The game's premise is simple: 100 players land on a dystopian island and have to kill each other to be the last one standing.

Hidden around the island are weapons — including guns, grenade launchers and crossbows — with which players must arm themselves.

The game has an age limit recommendation of over 12, but many of those playing it are far younger.

You can play alone and join an online 'squad' or team up with friends, communicating via headsets and working together to kill everyone else and build a 'fort' — hence the name Fortnite — to defend yourself.

Worried: Roz Page with her daughter Sophie and her son Matthew playing Fortnite

Ella says that although she knows her son Dominique is far younger than the 12 rating, she is not worried, as there is no blood seen on screen. Characters simply disappear when they're killed.

So why doesn't Ella, who is married to company director Mick, 37, stop her son playing if she feels he's addicted?

'I let him play because it gives him a chance to chat with friends,' she says.

However, she admits that it has made parenting more challenging. 'If we tell him to finish, then he can get really angry because he doesn't want to. I also don't let him play on a school day unless as a rare treat.'

Unusually, the game, which is available on consoles including PlayStation and Xbox and mobile devices, is free, which, in part, explains its huge popularity.

However, players are encouraged to buy add-ons, such as outfits for their characters and special dances and gestures. These dances have become so entrenched in popular culture that they are performed in playgrounds across the country.

During England's recent 6-1 defeat of Panama, footballer Jesse Lingard celebrated his first World Cup goal by performing the Fortnite 'shoot dance'. England captain Harry Kane also admits playing.

Extras are purchased using the game's online currency 'V- Bucks'. The starting price for these is £3.99 for 600 V- Bucks. For 2,000 (about £14), you can buy one outfit. But, as many games consoles are linked to credit cards, it is shockingly easy for children to rack up debts, as Roz Page knows only too well.

Her son Matthew, ten, spent £140, which she only realised when she received her credit card bill.

The 49-year-old, who runs a dog-boarding business with husband Nick, 48, in Barking, Essex, says: 'All he had to do was press a button and he was able to buy weapons and outfits. I had no idea he could do this.

'I don't think he understood what he was doing. I showed him my purse and explained how it's the same as taking money out of it. It's stealing from me.'

Matthew started playing the game after his sister, Sophie, 13, downloaded it in January. She has not played it much, but he does not want to stop.

'We were hoping it was going to just be a phase, but there's something different about this game,' says Roz.

'I have tried to play it and don't get it. I don't like the idea you're killing somebody. You don't see the blood and gore you would with other games, such as Grand Theft Auto or Call Of Duty, but there's no ending to it.

'I remember games he's played before, like Super Mario, and they have an end. This just continues forever.'

Matthew becomes angry if he's asked to stop in the middle of a game, which lasts around 20 minutes.

'I'd say 95 per cent of his school friends are on it. I don't want him to feel left out,' says Roz. 'However, I am becoming increasingly concerned about his behaviour. I've spoken to his teachers. They say other parents are worried and, although Matthew is doing well at school, I need to consider the long-term implications. What impact is this having on his mind? The last thing he sees before he goes to sleep is that game.'

Zoe Godber, a bartender who lives with husband in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, is pictured with her son Jacob and daughter Layla

Roz says that she's noticed a change in Matthew's behaviour since he started playing Fortnite. 'He has started to get really angry — it's not like him. He answers back and has mood swings.

'We try to make sure he does other things but, if I shout out saying that dinner's ready, no one answers.

'He's got his headphones on and curtains shut on a sunny day. It's horrendous.

'I discovered he was getting up early at the weekend and spending hours on it in his room. Now, I don't let him play before 10am but, if I try to stop him completely, I end up with a very upset little boy.'

Matthew says: 'I like playing Fortnite the most out of everything. It's fun because it never ends and I like playing it with friends. When Mum tells me to come off, I get angry and scream because I don't want to stop.'

Despite this, Roz does see some benefits. 'I would rather know he's safe inside, and the game is good for helping with teamwork and spatial awareness skills.'

But, while Matthew may be indoors, there are concerns over a message feature of Fortnite that means children can be contacted by other players — leaving them at risk of sexual predators.

The National Crime Agency recently warned paedophiles could be hijacking the game, after one Liverpool mother claimed her 12- year-old son was offered £50 to perform a sex act. The NSPCC has also warned parents over safety.

Zoe Godber is another mother horrified by the change in her son, Jacob, aged nine. She says: 'He's addicted to Fortnite. Before, he would go out and play — now, he just wants to sit in his room.'

When he's not playing, like the others, Jacob spends hours watching YouTube videos of professional Fortnite gamers, some of whom earn an astonishing £500,000 a month from adverts.

Zoe, 47, a bartender who lives with husband Jamie, 40, a postman in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, reveals Jacob became so angry, he smashed his television.

'He's been shouting, screaming, punching things. He hit the TV with the controller and smashed the screen because he was so frustrated when he lost.'

After this, Zoe, who also has a daughter Layla, ten, says she made him have a week off, but found his behaviour so difficult, she relented — and he now has another TV in his room so he can play again.

'People may ask why don't I just take it away, but the truth is I can't calm him down or control him without it. I can get him to do things if I say he can play Fortnite as a reward.'

When asked why he smashed the television, Jacob says: 'People were killing me and it made me mad. I play every day and it sometimes makes me late for school.'

The long-term consequences of children playing games to this extent and spending so much of their lives on social media and online are not yet known.

But with some now spending around six-and-a-half hours a day glued to a screen, the repercussions could be felt for generations.

Fortnite, since launching its free version six months ago, is played by 125 million people globally

Psychiatrist Dr Richard Graham, from the Nightingale Hospital in London, which opened one of the first online addiction centres in the country, says the number of young people he treats is on the rise — and many are Fortnite players.

He says the game's 'near-miss' style of play encourages defeated players to try again.

Parenting coach Elizabeth O'Shea says one of the biggest problems she encounters is children having too much screen time and, recently, this means Fortnite.

'This is the first generation this has happened to,' she says. 'If a child doesn't learn how to manage their online use, they're going to go into adulthood not knowing how to have relationships and without social skills.

'We know computer games are addictive. In the child's brain, there's a dopamine hit every time they achieve something and that's more exciting than boring old life. It's the same as a drug or alcohol addiction.'

So, what should parents do when children are behaving in this way?

Elizabeth says: 'They shouldn't have computers in their rooms at all. It's like leaving a bottle of alcohol beside an alcoholic's bed and saying: 'I trust you to not drink it.' '

However, computer game expert Andrew James believes Fortnite is not at fault. 'Parents need to stop blaming computer games for the sins of their failings,' he says.

'If they think their child has a problem and is playing too much, then stop them. Take away the console. Yes, it will be tough and there will be tears, but isn't that what parenting is about — setting boundaries and following them through?

'It's about balance. There's nothing wrong with playing a game in moderation, but obviously, if it's affecting sleep or leading to an inactive lifestyle, then parents need to step in.'

Amanda Snow, 38, a housewife from Southampton has four sons, aged three to 17, with her husband Steven, 41, a garage manager. Like the others, her 13-year-old son Luke is obsessed with Fortnite.

He explains: 'It's my favourite game so far. It's really good and I think about it when I'm not playing it, of ways to buy things to help me win, with my paper round money.' Amanda says he's like a 'different child' since he started playing it three months ago.

'He was such a lovely boy, but this game has turned him into a nightmare.

'He would sit on it all weekend, but we drag him out to a park or somewhere, though he doesn't want to come with us.

'I hate what this game has done to him, but how can I stop him when he would be the only one at school not playing it?'

Back in Purley and young Dominique has just been 'killed' by a sniper — but not before he made it through to the last three of 100.

His shoulders drop and he lets out a long sigh.

'When you get killed, it makes you feel grumpy because you really want to win the game.'

But, as upset as he feels in this moment, it is temporary. He can play again and again, hooked as he is into this endless cycle of a never-ending virtual world, seeking the hollow reward of coming first.

'Maybe I'm addicted, but I won once and I'm sure if I keep playing, I will again.' 

Additional reporting: Stephanie Condron