We recently wrote an article looking at how gamers who take drugs could potentially gain an advantage from them during competitions. What is your reaction to this piece?

A:It's funny because it's true. I know a lot of people through games that take drugs, although that's not related to gaming. It's more a social thing. But get any large group of people together, add drugs, and someone's bound to push the limit.

I noticed that you made a mention about people claiming they were better after having a bong or two. That's true. I've seen a number of players at national tournaments who came in "baked" (that's stoned for the uninformed) purely so they could play better. In most cases they did, although obviously they couldn't just pull out another joint midway through.

In one WCG, a player I knew took amphetamines an hour before his match to boost his reflexes. His team ended up losing the match, although it certainly had an impact - his performance helped his team to win one map out of three - it kind of hits home that only the really talented will come out on top in the end.

Most of these tournaments go on for ages. There are plenty that run overtime or get ground to a halt because of computer problems or Internet issues. The amount of stamina required to make it through a major tournament would surprise most people. You wouldn't be able to consistently keep yourself high for the whole duration of a tournament, and I don't think most gamers want to anyway.

These events are like a holiday for most of the people competing, and if they do bring some drugs along (which happens, frequently) then they want to save it for the big night out with their mates, rather than waste it for the chance to win a single game. They all know that you can't rely on anything other than a lot of skill and solid teamwork to win a major event. Drugs won't help you there.

That said, gamers can take all the drugs they like, as long as it's not happening in the actual tournament area. Nobody has the budget to bring in any form of anti-doping agency, let alone keep it afloat or professional enough to adhere to standards that would make it reliable. The scene isn't big enough or stable enough for any world agency to enforce it right now, let alone stop gamers from taking drugs.