How can I deal with excluding my son from an activity all his friends partake in?

This is about forbidding my son from participating in an activity all his friends partake in, not about the activity itself. How does one go about this when these are his only friends? (Please see edit based on comments before answering. Thanks.)

How can I deal with excluding my son from an activity all his friends partake in?

My son is ten years old and will be eleven in summer. For the past half year he has been playing Clash of Clans and Clash Royale on his mobile phone.

I have observed how my son and his friends, who all play the game, too, have changed over the past months. My son can no longer think of anything else. Everything he says or does, outside of school and homework, is related to the game. When he visits his friends, or they come visiting, they all sit bent over their mobile phones and play. When they are not allowed to play, they do not know what to do. Literally. They sit and wait for the time to pass until they may play again.

When my son has to stop playing (for example to eat or go to bed or go to school – yes, the game is the first thing he needs in the morning –) he becomes irritable and angry. When I forbid him to play, he lies and tells me he goes outside (for example to play basketball), but I then find him standing in front of our house, where he has WiFi access, playing Clash of Clans.

1. "But the game needs a credit card for purchases."

2. "Your child has unlimited access to the internet."

3. "block his ability to install apps on the phone, uninstall all games, lock it down."

4. "This particular game is not the issue."

Maybe not. There have been several studies that found Clash of Clans and similar games to be addictive). But maybe that research is wrong.

5. "He'll need ... other kids to be around"

How can I deal with excluding my son from an activity all his friends partake in?

My son is ten years old and will be eleven this summer. For the past half year he has been playing Clash of Clans and Clash Royale on his mobile phone.

I have observed how my son and his friends, who all play the game too, have changed over the past months. My son can no longer think of anything else. Everything he says or does, outside of school and homework, is related to the game. When he visits his friends, or they come visiting, they all sit bent over their mobile phones and play. When they are not allowed to play, they do not know what to do. Literally. They sit and wait for the time to pass until they may play again.

When my son has to stop playing, for example to eat or go to bed or go to school — yes, the game is the first thing he needs in the morning — he becomes irritable and angry. When I forbid him to play, he lies and tells me he goes outside (for example to play basketball), but I then find him standing in front of our house, where he has WiFi access, playing Clash of Clans.

1. "But the game needs a credit card for purchases."

2. "Your child has unlimited access to the internet."

3. "Block his ability to install apps on the phone, uninstall all games, lock it down."

4. "This particular game is not the issue."

Maybe not. There have been several studies that found Clash of Clans and similar games to be addictive). But maybe that research is wrong.

5. "He'll need ... other kids to be around"