Man says he thought he was a video game character after dangerous driving charge

A North Vancouver man pleaded guilty to reckless driving after imagining he was a character in a video game.

27-year-old Mitchell Kurtis Anderson had been reported for erratic driving in November of 2021. Three separate phone calls were made to the authorities to alert them to Anderson’s behavior on the road.

Those who reported his driving in 2021 said that he drove up on curbs, nearly hit pedestrians, and stopped in the middle of an intersection for no apparent reason. Another caller reported that Anderson was ‘out of it’ and ignored other drivers’ attempts to pull him over.

Eventually, police made it to the scene, where they found Anderson alone in his blue Honda Civic, driven into a ditch on the side of Lynn Valley Road. At his trial, Anderson claimed he believed he was in a video game.

Vancouver driver played GTA IRL, risking lives with ‘respawn’ delusion

Rockstar Games

Anderson allegedly had a past with drug and alcohol abuse. His defense lawyer argued that Anderson had taken drugs to combat his depression, which sent him down a ‘rabbit hole of delusions.’

“He believed essentially that he was living in a computer simulation and that if he died, he would just re-spawn to a different point, and his life would be better,” stated Anderson’s lawyer.

During his trial on January 9, the judge preceding the incident opted to give the man leniency. Anderson escaped prison time, instead being banned from driving for a year and forced to do 12 months of probation.

“Some people might say driving the way you drove, putting people’s lives and property in danger isn’t deserving of avoiding a criminal record,” the judge said. “Luckily for you, I’m not in that group of people.”

Two additional charges of impaired driving and refusing a breathalyzer test were also dropped during the trial.