Your generation is taught to be unreasonable in their expectations, this website is basically made up of prodigal children who all missed some substantial developmental milestones but who ended up being rewarded for years of interest in very specific topics. Bertrand Russell correctly stated that time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time. If you have now decided you want change, then great. However, you have played so much World of Warcraft, you are beginning to view life as some sort of RPG you need to min/max. You don't. While removing distractions can be useful, your interest led you where it led you. I'm much the same and am now happily employed as a dev and I still game in my 30s. I have fantastic and substantial memories of virtual worlds and summers with amazing people and alone. 23 is ridiculously young, by western european standards these days you are effectively still an adolescent.

In terms of comparisons, John Carmack made some decent contributions, but you have zero insight into the costs of it. Much of compulsive recreational thrill seeking is due to emotional instability from childhood, so I think a small amount of therapy, and cutting yourself some slack is in order.