Time to quit gaming?

[Superlative]

I've been thinking?maybe its time to give the games a rest for a while. I love gaming, its kept me sane during a trying time in my life.

Spoiler: The trying time

I graduated in 2013 after a six year marathon of college that ended with an MA and a decent amount of post-education PTSD. I was more burnt out than I ever have or care to be. I gave myself a month off, which I spent gaming and doing an admirable job of not caring about the future. It was a victory lap. Once that month was up I started a job hunt, and quickly dodged two scam jobs (Amway can go die in a fire) and ended up working (a soul crushing) retail job for nearly two years.

Recently we moved, allowing me to an honorable out from my retail job, but leaving me in a new place with plenty of time but less than $100 to my name. I hope that interview at the community college works out.

From childhood on I was able to hop in a game and make hours fly, all while feeling better. They were a reward for a hard days work, something to look forward to on the weekend, and something to talk with similarly minded individuals. But recently I've been noticing distinctly diminishing returns. I game more than I ever have but get less out of it. The games I play most are WoW (moonguard ftw) and Tekkit but I find I get more out of the people than I get from the game play itself. I'll spare those who don?t care the WoW rant but... I'm pretty sure I should be able to get something from the mechanics and not just tradechat alone.

Spoiler: WoW Rant

I decided to go for Draenor flying. I was going to start on the rep grind portion of that damnable achievement first. I've never done a rep grind before, as I am not the type who raids enough to care about the special potions nor fashionable enough to care about 99.9% of mounts. I managed to get the three guys I need up to reverend and?got burnt out.

I did the Firelands dailies in Cata happily but Taanan is a whole new beast. A whole, new, Trump level ThunderDouche of a beast. I've done all the dailies at least once but I've yet to figure out the flow we are supposed to take. Having everything spread out over an entire zone which never changes no mater how much you do doesn't exactly help either.

One of the things I've learned to do over my years as a gamer is to cut myself off from a game for a solid month if I'm obsessing over it, or an MMO if its getting dull. Sometimes after that month I have no desire to play that game at all or other times I?m able to go back but with a clear head. Its worked well for individual games but I now start to wonder if I should just do it for gaming as a whole.

One month, no video games of any kind whatsoever. No WoW, no Tekkit, no Persona, no Skyrim, not even Solitare. This task is rather daunting, as I?ve gamed in some fashion almost every of my life since elementary school. I can?t help but wonder if it will end up a permanent change. I'm not the kind of person who counts gaming as a core part of their identity, but it has been a huge part of my life. Shoot, video games got me into college, but they are starting to feel less and less like a diversion and like a bad habit.

 

[Diablo1099_v1legacy]

Unless you feel like it is becoming some kind of problem for you, and I mean a serious addiction problem or something, I don't believe you should cut ALL gaming out.
Maybe try some different games? I can understand that MMO style games are a bit different to more singlar ones but it might be because of the way that MMOs play these days that you feel you aren't getting your fix from it.
There is WAY more to gaming then just WoW and Tekkit, just explore a little and see what suits you, hell, maybe even try mobile XD

 

[Foolery]

If you don't feel like you can justify the time, then don't. Pick a new hobby. Maybe do something that creates a skill, perhaps a marketable one. Or maybe just play less, or shorter games.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

I've been thinking?maybe its time to give the games a rest for a while. I love gaming, its kept me sane during a trying time in my life.

Oh for pity's sake.

You are burned out on WoW. Based on your level and your current activities, I'm guessing you've put many hundreds, if not thousands of hours into it. It is perfectly normal...and healthy...for you to feel burned out. There is no game in the history of creation that will not begin to feel like a second job after that much time.

This doesn't mean you're destined to return to gaming after your hiatus, but it does mean that your current feelings of disenchantment and ennui have absolutely nothing to do with the medium and everything to do with you grinding yourself into an apathetic haze.

Shelf the MMO for now. Take a break. Get some fresh air. Pursue other hobbies. Next time you pick up a game, pick up something new. Preferably something small and non-social that you can play in spurts, save, and walk away from when you feel like a break. Or don't. It's recreation, you can do whatever you want. Just try and keep in mind that going ham on a loot level MMO is not representative of an entire creative medium. And I say this as someone who adored WoW and will praise it to the sky.

 

[Bob_McMillan]

Amway can go die in a fire

Heh, my parents spent years with that bullshit.

Anyway, as someone who never really got too obsessed with gaming, I cant offer you much advice.

But taking a break from gaming isn't gonna do any harm, so why not? I havent seriously gamed for two weeks now because I am pretty busy, but I am rearing to get back to my PS4. When I do, I know I'll have a blast.

 

[Nyarlantothep]

I know what you are saying. But I think it has mostly to do with your inclination for an MMO which is natural to offer diminishing returns, as you put it. Been there - but I jumped off the wagon after WOTLK when I felt the game lost soul and gained mass.

But aside from that, you point out a very interesting thing: how 'viable', healthy is to consider gaming as a core part of one's being? I can say that since childhood, various games shaped my perception of the world and gave me various experiences - ranging from lore-seeking to horror jumps and adrenaline pumps from shooters.

All I can say is maybe you are going through a stage in life where your ambitions and plans are subject to change. Gaming can be put as such under inquisition, for consuming time and offering no material return per say. And this can be understandable - but remember that excess is never good - no matter the subject.

Don't commit an excess of zeal by trying to cut away a part of you only in the hopes of gaining something refreshing, like a wild card. Don't deny what you are. Embrace it and try to learn what are you seeking.

What I'm trying to say is that gaming can be a good companion for good times, or a sad refuge for sad ones. As long as you don't have an actual addiction which negates parts of your "normal" life (such as income, health, family, friends, needs), gaming can be more rich of a hobby than any other - if you are an introspective type.

Maybe you are shifting polarities - you need more interaction outside of yourself. And that is fine - go do it. But don't stick to the same two games - there are wonders to be had in the gaming world. Also - bring friends.

 

[DrownedAmmet]

I definitely recommend taking a break. I took a few years off a couple years back, and when I came back I was able to pick up a PS3 on the cheap and now there are thousands of cheap-ass games that I haven't played yet

One thing I noticed after my break was I have a lot less patience for long, drawn out games. I love Dragon Age but Inquisition bored me about halfway through, and Skyrim soured on me pretty quick, too. Whereas games like The Last of Us and Deus Ex: Human Revolution restored my faith in gaming

 

[Rebel_Raven]

Do it because you want to, not because of some BS "adult" rules demanding you stop gaming coz the people that made up the rule don't care how miserable you are, they just want you to conform.
Unless it's family, a significant other, or someone signing your paycheck, you don't need that kind of negativity.
You gotta enjoy life, and do for you or you'll go crazy under the weight of negative mood setters.
Diversify your gaming portfolio. Try new stuff. Try games that can be played in bursts instead of "one more turn" traps, and the like.
/rant

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

I find this as weird as saying that you're considering quitting reading or hiking or whatever. It's just a hobby. You don't have to engage in it if you don't enjoy it. I find myself less enthusiastic about certain things as I grow older and as my responsibilities pile up. Sure, one of those things is gaming. But I don't consider quitting. I just game less than I used to during a certain period of the year when I'm the busiest and I game more when I'm not busy. Quitting a hobby that you enjoy is a meaningless thing to say. When you truly feel like quitting something because it's no longer enjoyable you won't need to consider it. It will come naturally. One day you'll simply stop playing games and you won't think nothing of it.

 

[remnant_phoenix]

snip

I once did the exact same thing: no gaming, including gaming news/forums/websites/etc, including this very one, and I was better for it. I invested some more time into other hobbies, I gained some perspective about what, specifically, I don't like about gaming; what was actually fun and/or enriching and what was just a waste of time.

Good luck.

 

[Ihateregistering1]

Sounds like you're just burned out on MMOs in particular, which I can't blame you for.

Shelve that game and try something different. I realized the same issue with DOTA 2: I was putting 100's of hours into the game, but I realized that you're never really making "progress", so after a while you're like "What the hell am I doing this for?" (hell, at least in League of Legends more play=more champions).

Anyway, just step away from open-ended type games where there isn't really an end, and just devote less time to it.

 

[happyninja42]

I've been thinking?maybe its time to give the games a rest for a while. I love gaming, its kept me sane during a trying time in my life.

Oh for pity's sake.

You are burned out on WoW. Based on your level and your current activities, I'm guessing you've put many hundreds, if not thousands of hours into it. It is perfectly normal...and healthy...for you to feel burned out. There is no game in the history of creation that will not begin to feel like a second job after that much time.

This doesn't mean you're destined to return to gaming after your hiatus, but it does mean that your current feelings of disenchantment and ennui have absolutely nothing to do with the medium and everything to do with you grinding yourself into an apathetic haze.

Shelf the MMO for now. Take a break. Get some fresh air. Pursue other hobbies. Next time you pick up a game, pick up something new. Preferably something small and non-social that you can play in spurts, save, and walk away from when you feel like a break. Or don't. It's recreation, you can do whatever you want. Just try and keep in mind that going ham on a loot level MMO is not representative of an entire creative medium. And I say this as someone who adored WoW and will praise it to the sky.

Pretty much this, though I would also say, as others, that simply trying other games would likely fix the problem. I stopped playing WoW years ago, and dusted off my library of single player games. And found quite a lot of enjoyment in them. In fact, my focus has swung back to single player being the dominant form of game I play these days. It used to be online games, usually MMO's, but now, I barely even touch them. Though Crowfall is likely going to catch my interest and hold it for a while when it comes out.

But yeah, just...play something else. Or go do something else entirely. Pick up some books and read them. Go to a gaming store and socialize with the other people about other geek related stuff. Whatever works for you.

 

[Barbas]

Put some lavender in your bath. Leave town on an orange and pretend you're laughing at it. Alternatively, broaden your interests. Don't delve into marathon gaming sessions that drain all your energy and leave you feeling empty. Socialize with different people, read, write and draw, try as many different games as you can. Lots of people think they only enjoy eating only a handful of different dishes until they travel further afield.

 

[Robert B. Marks]

My rule for pastimes is this: once they stop being fun, and start feeling like habits, it's time to move on to something else.

So, if you're at the point where playing video games no longer appeals to you, there is nothing wrong with dropping them. After all, you never know what will become a passion until you try it...