Poll: Do Phobias Affect Your Gaming?

[00slash00]

So I am afraid of spiders. Like really really really afraid of spiders. To the point where I have a lot of trouble even playing video games that have spiders in them (I know I know, it's silly to be afraid of digital spiders, but phobias aren't rational). The only reason I could play Skyrim and the Dragon Age games is because there are mods to replace spiders with other enemies. When I used to play WoW, there were entire zones that I would just completely ignore (Duskwood didn't exist for me). Problem is that fantasy rpg is my favorite genre and someone apparently made a rule that all fantasy games must contain a considerable amount of spiders (though The Witcher seems to be more or less exempt from this rule, only needing to have spider-like enemies).

I recently asked on the Path of Exile forums about whether or not spiders were common in the game (spoiler: they are), and I saw a lot of people posting about how much spiders in games bother them. I also remember seeing people complain about Far Cry 3, due to having phobias of deep water and/or sharks and having difficulty completing the game as a result. This all got me thinking that maybe I'm not so weird. I mean, I'm definitely weird but maybe I'm not quite as weird as I thought.

So what say you, do any of you have phobias that affect you so much that it hurts your enjoyment of games or even prevents you from being able to play certain ones?

 

[Sassafrass]

Can't say I do, although the spiderbug enemies from Metro: last Light make me feel a wee bit uneasy. Seriously, they're horrible fuckers.

 

[Evonisia]

Duskwood is much easier to deal with because as of Cataclysm there's no such thing as darkness (Duskwood is now what Vanilla darkness was in most zones rather than Duskwood darkness).

But yeah I couldn't buy Limbo because of the spider bit in the demo. Oh god.

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

I don't have any phobias, much less any phobias that would affect my enjoyment of a video game.

I mean I do have fears, pretty rational ones, but video games are there so that you can have experience with things that cause fear in a completely safe environment. Seems pretty silly to me to be afraid of something digital that has no capacity to hurt you.

 

[00slash00]

Duskwood is much easier to deal with because as of Cataclysm there's no such thing as darkness (Duskwood is now what Vanilla darkness was in most zones rather than Duskwood darkness).

But yeah I couldn't buy Limbo because of the spider bit in the demo. Oh god.

Hahaha oh man, playing the Limbo demo was pathetic. I knew there was a giant spider so I was paranoid about everything. Every time I saw a branch or something I'd be like, "Shit, is that it's leg...? No it's just a stick. Shit, what's that thing?! Oh, it's another branch." I never actually reached the spider, I got too nervous and just quit the demo. It was pretty sad

 

[Bobic]

The only thing I fear is fear itself. . . Which, is my way of saying that I don't really play horror games because I don't want to be frightened. As for non-horror games, I don't really have any phobias, so I tend to be ok. I had trouble with the level 'Apprehension' in the original half-life because those Icthyosaurs scared the crap out of me. I think I drowned to death when fighting the first one in the cage due to freaking out so much that I couldn't control poor Gordon. Of course I was only 9 or 10 at the time. . .

 

[ShinyCharizard]

Nope. Not even slightly. I have a mild phobia of spiders but I have no problem mowing them down by the thousands in games.

 

[MysticSlayer]

Well, my phobias tend to translate into games, but generally it makes the game more thrilling. For instance, I don't think jumping from high places in games would have anywhere near the same thrill if I wasn't afraid of heights, and Ravenholm wouldn't have been nearly as enjoyable if I didn't have some fear of large spiders or anything that looks like a large spider.

 

[Xan Krieger]

The spiders in Skyrim scare the absolute crap out of me. Normally I play first person with some big axe but against spiders I go into 3rd person, zoom out as far as possible, and try to use voice powers or magic. I wish they'd have never added the damn things to the game, I'll happily split a dragon or a giant in half with my axe but when I see spiders I look for any way around them and if there's not one I have to spend some time gathering my courage, go into third person, and try to kill it in a horribly imprecise way.

 

[skywolfblue]

About the only true Phobia I have is needles. I haaaate needles.

Cue Dead Space 2, where you have to insert a huge needle RIGHT INTO ISAAC'S EYE! I got super squeamish, and it took a lot of mental preparation, and my heartbeat was racing. That scene alone was the scariest thing in the whole game.

And I liked it.

 

[Clowndoe]

I'm what I would consider a moderate arachnophobe, I probably wouldn't lose my shit if I saw a tarantula across the room, but I'll be fucked if you ever convince me to touch one of those. And that movie with the giant tarantulas invading that town makes me squint the whole way through. In games however, spiders don't affect me at all. I think it's the textures; I just don't relate Skyrim's bugs to real ones.

What else is there? No, needles don't affect me either. So that's that question answered.

 

[TheRiddler]

I'm an apiphobe, so the bits in Bioshock with the bees freaked me out a bit. I was OK most of the game, since I didn't get myself Insect Swarm, but that bit in the apiary was downright spine-chilling. Other than that part, the game was still obviously enjoyable, though.

So, I don't know. If a game advertised itself as a walk through a bee-infested forest, I'd avoid it. But if it just showed gameplay footage that included bees, then I probably wouldn't hold it against the game.

 

[piinyouri]

Strangely enough, no. I fucking HATE spiders, or any arachnid/insect in general, regardless of size. I don;t think it's quite the severity of an actual phobia, as I don;t freeze up or have panic attacks.

But I will scream, and then find the nearest -anything- I can and kill it.

So it's a bit odd that the giant spiders in Skyrim never ever bothered me. Nor the ones in Torchlight II.

I dunno, it's like once you make them monster sized, my brain stops treating it as reality of any sort.

I will say though, the first night of playing the new Terraria update I stumbled upon my first spider nest and it being dark in my room, I caught just a the edge of some legs scurrying around and I freaked the hell out because I thought it was actually on my monitor. : p

 

[Barbas]

Sorry, I meant to click 'Yes' but had a spasm and clicked 'No' instead. Extreme heights can negatively affect my co-ordination, navigation and awareness in FPS games, even though I know it's snot real. People sometimes spray things on walls that make me want to leave because I don't want to look at the picture and can't cover it up (damn you, Final Fantasy). So far, no game I've played has had camel spiders in it, which is just fiiiiiiine byyyy meeeeeeeeee.

 

[FabTails]

I've got arachnophobia. Like, I mean I've actually got it. Diagnosed. I have panic attacks when I see spiders, even small house spiders at home. By panic attacks I mean I struggle to breathe, I get nauseous, dizzy and I cannot control my body or my thoughts. I've been prescribed medication to take when this occurs. I don't get panic attacks in any other area of life.

My arachnophobia presents itself in video games as well - but it isn't as bad as far as panic attacks or anything. I am a PC gamer and when I did that first mission in Skyrim with the spiders in it, I just turned it off immediately and installed a mod to replace them with mudcrabs.

 

[VanQ]

I don't have any phobias in particular, so they don't really affect my gaming. I do get a bit queezy whenever I see something happen to an eye. That one scene in Dead Space 2 made me squirm a little but it's not enough to make me unable to play.

Hell, I'm a huge fan of horror games. I actively look for games that make me not wanna push forward. Not even skelingtons can spook me!

Lots of arachnophobes in this thread. I never understood it personally, I always liked spiders. I usually leave them be, even the ones in my house unless I know they're highly toxic. Leaving a huntsman or two in the home keeps away cockroaches and jumping house spiders keep the airways clear of flies.

They don't even make a mess, they're very well house trained.

 

[AnthrSolidSnake]

Well, it hasn't necessarily stopped me from playing a game, but it turned it into an absolute horror game. I have a fear of mechs, and robots that have the ability to act and think for themselves (yet Terminator is one of my favorite movies...eh), so when I played F.E.A.R., or more to be specific, the first expansion, there is a part where a rather large mech chases you through rather small hallways and labs and I was scared shitless. I swear I just ran around for ten minutes freaking out rather than actually shooting it. Giant robots+small environments= Me absolutely terrified

 

[Muspelheim]

I do have a similar spider problem. But it's really rather therapeutic to overcome my fear and defeating them. The first giant spider encounter in Skyrim (the big, fat one in Bleak Falls Barrow waiting for her dinner to stop moaning) really felt like a victory once I'd finally gotten out and killed her. It was a really rather wonderful moment.

Although I also did feel a bit guilty, she was just hanging out there, guarding her little babbies, until some Khajiit dick dropped in and made poisons out of all the eggs.

(Also, it's very fun using the Unrelenting Force shout on them, seeing them gangle off into the distance)

Thing is, I rather like spiders, even if I am afraid of them. They're cool, and can be rather cute and derpy when they're small. I understand why they're such a popular mob choice. Hell, I'd add a few spiders to a game in a heartbeat, if they would fit in. They do scare me, but... I think that is what I like about it. Some part of my mind treat it as an especially unpleasant threat, and defeating both it and my reflex to run feels more satisfying in the long run than if it had been zombies or something.

Can't say I do, although the spiderbug enemies from Metro: last Light make me feel a wee bit uneasy. Seriously, they're horrible fuckers.

Very true, and the game is very good at introducing them. With the bad guys turning off the lights in the abandoned tunnel when they understand you're down there.

 

[gamernerdtg2]

I generally avoid horror games because I wasn't into horror growing up. Sure, I get the appeal, and I'm interested in the stories, but I avoid the classic horror movies and games. It has to be something special like an older Castlevania, or something like Dead Nation - those games are actually more fun, and somewhat therapeutic than scary to me.

I couldn't get into Contra:Shattered Soldier because of the art style and imagery. I'm not into babies heads on creatures and whatnot. I doubt that I'd be able to play through Dante's Inferno either.

I don't have any weird phobias though - like fear of clowns or claustrophobia or anything like that. So games don't scare me in general. I think that most people wouldn't be afraid to play because the mind knows that the images on screen aren't real. So if I have a fear of heights, I won't have a problem playing Spiderman, or Batman.

It helps to grow older, and confront these things as best as you can. I don't like huge bugs or rodents, but I enjoy killing them on games!

 

[kickyourass]

While I'm not sure if it's strong enough to be called a 'phobia' I could never bring myself to use the Bee Plasmid in Bioshock because of the way they came out of your arm. That is just disgusting, I have a hard time just looking at the idle animation.

Other then that I don't know, I really hate needles but if there are any games that involve a lot of needles in horror-type situations I haven't played them. I despise Clowns beyond the limits of reason but they feature almost exclusively in horror games so I don't really know how I'd be affected if a clown was just present in a game. I actively like most 'creepy' animals like Snakes, Spiders and Ravens, so they don't really bother me in games any more then any other enemy.

So, I guess the answer is, a little.