Microsoft Offering Reward for Return of Gaming Addicted Teen

Nov. 4, 2008— -- In what one expert called an unusual move for a software company, Microsoft Canada has chipped in a reward for help in finding a gaming-addicted Ontario teenager who ran away from home three weeks ago, after his parents took his Xbox away.

Brandon Crisp had once been a competitive hockey player who got good grades and enjoyed video games with his friends in typical teenage fashion. But since the 15-year-old disappeared on Oct. 13, Canada's Thanksgiving holiday, the bright 10th-grader's family is sick with worry, his father said.

Now Microsoft Canada is offering a reward of $25,000 Canadian for information leading to Brandon's return, matching the $25,000 Canadian raised by local organizations. The reward totals $41,776 in U.S. dollars.

When the family signed up about a year ago for a subscription to Xbox Live, which allows players to interact with gamers all over the world, Brandon's hobby turned into an obsession that ultimately led to his fleeing his Barrie home after his father took away the system for good, his father said.

"We'd be asleep and he'd be up at two or three in the morning, playing this thing," his father, Steve Crisp, told ABCNews.com, adding that they also had a hard time getting him to leave the game to eat dinner with the family.

On Friday, Oct. 10, the Crisps learned the boy, whose grades were slipping, had skipped school the day before, and they decided to take away his Xbox temporarily, as they had about 20 times before, Steve Crisp said. But when Crisp saw that Brandon had found the system and resumed playing it while his father was out fishing that weekend, he said he decided to take it away permanently.

"He was very angry," Crisp said. When the father and son sat down to talk about Brandon's obsession with the system, the game "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare" in particular, Brandon's response was "OK, I'm going to leave home then."

Calling his son's bluff, Crisp said he advised him to take warm clothes when he saw Brandon loading things into a backpack. He then watched as his only son rode away on his bicycle. The family, which includes Brandon's twin sister and older sister, figured he'd blow off some steam with friends and be back that evening.

"I didn't think anyone would run off for a game," Crisp said.