Thread 33559577

I fucking hate video games.
I've spent my whole life playing them. They've been there for me during my darkest times, and given me some of the greatest joys I've experienced.
It wouldn't be inaccurate to say that every good thing in my life can be traced to video games. My interest in culture, art, history, mythology, poetry, music... It all stems from that moment when I was like 3 years old and I learned that the stupid italian plumber moved when I pressed a button.

So what's the fucking problem?
That I feel trapped by modern gaming. I have to keep fucking playing. I have to play this event, get my free currency for that, complete this three hour story chapter, finish that fucking battle pass, get shat on in that competitive game that I'm clearly not good enough to be playing but I love the theme so I keep playing despite this piece of shit driving me to violent fits of anger where I end up hurting myself.
I just want to drop all this garbage. Play modded Elden Ring, or just a pure single player experience like a classic JRPG. I want to limit my gaming time to those good moments I used to enjoy, so that I can actually dedicate the rest of my free hours to other fulfilling hobbies like painting and music.
But I fucking can't because I've already poured a lot of time and money into these stupid modern games. I feel bad for stopping, because it feels like a waste. It's not even like they don't have good moments where I'm still having fun.

And I know what people will say. "It's a sunken cost fallacy", "you're affected by FOMO". You're right, I'm completely trapped by those things. The problem is that I don't know how to rewire myself in order to escape.

>>33559577 (OP)
>I have to play this event, get my free currency for that, complete this three hour story chapter, finish that fucking battle pass, get shat on in that competitive game
Unironically stop playing shitty, worst of the worst "games". Seriously it sounds like you're describing gacha, mobile, moba and arena shooter type garbage. These games ONLY EXIST to make money from whales, the user experience is NOT CONSIDERED. Wanna know why you feel FOMO when the new event rolls around? BECAUSE THEY FUCKING WANT YOU TO RETARD. So that you will shell out those sweet sweet gachabux. Wanna know why playing League makes you want to murder a puppy? BECAUSE THEY WANT YOU TO FEEL THAT WAY RETARD. So you continue playing thinking "next game will be different" or "gotta get at least 1 good game in". More players = better performance report at shareholder meetings.

Try playing an actual fucking video game. No MTX, no """events""", no ranked mode, no skins and shit.

Take a week or weekend long trip away from your PC, uninstall whatever you hate from your phone so you don’t play it outside, come back and realise you don’t care that much, uninstall that shit

>>33559577 (OP)
>The problem is that I don't know how to rewire myself in order to escape
It's literally as simple as not playing the trashy games you described. Just stop. Uninstall, don't ever go back. If the actual problem proves to be that you can't manage your compulsion/addiction to play, then you need to seek out a professional who will teach you how to break free from addiction. Call any local mental health facility and just ask. I live in a small town and even we have weekly group sessions for every problem imaginable.

>>33559577 (OP)
Get an Odin 2 Portal and play some PS2.

>>33559577 (OP)
To be bluntly honest I never understood why people decided to play those shitty MOBAs and battle pass type games for any more than a week of their life. Nobody cares about your skins, your gameplay (unless you have a friend group you actively talk to through the game), or forced mechanics via constant patches, buffs and nerfs.
Then I played Apex Legends.
It wasn't as good as Titanfall, no... But it was the next best thing. I shit on people in my lobbies every day, and my friends always wanted me playing wraith because relocating as her was insanely fun and rewarding. Even with the other shit games at the time like fortnite or overwatch, neither of them scratched that itch that Apex did. I ended up spending anywhere from 500 to 1000 on that game over the course of a year because I was so in love with the system.
At the end of the day though, when cross platform was finally available and I got a PC, I couldn't transfer the skins to my steam account because I never made an EA Account for my profile. So everything was locked on the Piss4 which was on the verge of breaking down. That's when I stopped playing and even though I won't pick it up again I'll never consider it a waste of time.

>>33559673
>I never understood why people decided to play those shitty MOBAs and battle pass type games for any more than a week
What's difficult to understand? They are made to be addictive and prey on people vulnerable to the addiction. Same reason why people smoke or drink.

>>33559679
This nigga didn't read the whole post before he replied...
I understood at the moment I was having fun with the game and got attached to it. Anyways go play retro games or elden ring which is just as well because it was made with love and not greed

>>33559619
You're right about all those things. My problem is that they already got me in the hook.
If I move on to a classic single player experience, I have fun for a while until that nagging voice in the back of my head says "don't forget you have to do this in order to get your super special reward."
>>33559621
Part of the problem is that I can't stay away from my PC. If I'm not working, I'm playing. If I'm not doing any of those two, I'm doing something more fulfilling like painting or playing guitar, but at the end of the day it's always in my little space.
I also live in a complete shithole so even touching grass is out of the question. Should probably take a pic to show you how bad my street looks.
>>33559643
I'm not sure if addiction is the word I'd use. More like a strange form of guilt that I feel for stopping or for not doing enough.
>>33559671
I have the OG hardware, funnily enough. Multiple actually, since I used to repair consoles as a hobby. That's why I want to break out of this mentality, because if I'm going to play something I want it to be fun again.

At this point I think my frustration can be divided in two parts: Gacha events I'm missing, so now I need to dedicate more time to those games; and multiplayer games being a pain in the ass. Not just because I'm bad at them, but also because I'm compelled to complete all those stupid little mechanics designed to keep me engaged and angry.

>>33559800
>Should probably take a pic to show you how bad my street looks.
Now you have to

You work but cant afford to take a weekend break away from your PC somewhere that isn’t a shithole?
I don’t think I have the magic words you’re wanting to hear to fix your situation . You sound like someone that doesn’t believe they have any power to change.

The guilt is manufactured and you’re not special for feeling it. The battle pass etc was created to make people feel bad for missing it. Does that make you powerless? If you want to use it as an excuse to not get yourself out of your hole, yeah you’re powerless.

Whether you recognise it or not you ARE addicted to the dopamine you get from shitty gacha. The easiest solution is to remove yourself from the situation for a while and come back to a PC where you’ve uninstalled it, and to address the feelings of guilt etc surrounding your addiction as something separate from who you are and who you want to be.

>>33559577 (OP)
Set a time to practice music/painting, practice new techniques or just do the basics. Build a routine, set some short term goals, set some long term ones, and try to stick to it most of the time, it's ok to fail occasionally you can always try to follow it again.

Also the girl in the pic looks cute, where is she from?

>>33559577 (OP)
OP, I have the solution for you.
1. Format your PC, erase all games and data
2. Sell PC for a handheld PC (you can still hook it up to a monitor via a dock if you need a computer for work)
3. Use handheld PC in bed relaxing each night AFTER you've done all your work/chores/hobbies AND lifted weights (lift weights immediately before gaming, this boosts mood)
4. Set a specific time for this, like 8pm to 10pm
5. Enjoy life
6. Do NOT install any crappy multiplayer games ever again
7. Do NOT install any smartphone games aka Gacha
8. Do NOT turn out like pic related

>>33559577 (OP)
I was like you. Rust. Shooters. Then I moved on to sp, was happy for a while. Maybe 3 years. Now I'm on the next level after what you want to do - which is lowering the amount of games I play entirely. Same with me games have influenced every part of my life, my job is even game design, but at the end of the day, just like drinking or using drugs - this becomes a problem if you do it too much. And every vice is different, with drinking the upside is you could get laid and have fun with friends, downside is you could kill someone or yourself. With video games the positive is I learn a lot and feel great temporarily, downside is I don't do meaningful activities with humans, which can lead to a lot of frustration long term.

I can't say I'm out of this yet. But what I can offer as advice is something I've personally tested that works - instead of introducing the absence of something, by abstaining from video games for example or stopping with multiplayer games, you should instead introduce the thing that you actually want to do.
So for me what worked is I signed up to a hobby class or group, and that eventually took away time from gaming and I felt like I could do other things. With you it could be that you just download a single player experience game and just force yourself to play it without stopping with the online games, then over time you should play the single-player experience more and more, until you become a semi boomer like me (I'm 29)

>>33559916
It's not so much that I can't afford it, it's more like I'm on call pretty much seven days a week.
But you are right. Maybe I don't believe I have the willpower, or maybe I truly don't have it.
For now, I decided to take a long nap instead of gaming. It's a way to purposefully let the timer for weekly shit go on without me. I feel like if I can miss it once, if I can convince myself I don't care for once, then I will be able to move on.
>>33560657
That used to be my routine. But after filling it with more and more games that I convinced myself "I could handle just a few minutes per day" I lost my way.
Also I'm pretty sure it's not from a game or series and just a drawing I found.
>>33560973
If I can only do one thing from your post, it's lifting. I also miss working out so much.
>>33561157
You know? I was thinking of doing something like that. There's a guitar course I want to start in September, and I also want to start journaling.

But the general, it seems the consensus is to just quit cold turkey and develop the mentality to counter my current thoughts AFTER, right?

>>33561687
>I feel like if I can miss it once, if I can convince myself I don't care for once, then I will be able to move on.

Yay i believe in u

>>33559577 (OP)
I used to feel exactly like that in the past, I played thousands of hours and spent thousands of dollars. League? CS? Waaaay to many hours in competitive games. I've played every single fucking game you can think of.

>so that I can actually dedicate the rest of my free hours to other fulfilling hobbies like painting and music.
Believe me, there's nothing going to waste, you are NOT missing out on anything except for being able to talk about the last battle pass. What are you playing rn? You can literally pick it up later.

The games aren't going anywhere. Start doing other things that you like, doesn't have to be overnight, but every you think "I'm bored, guess I'll play some R6" say fuck it and go watch a movie, or boot up a actual enjoyable game like, idk, mario odyssey.

It will fade over time... Nowadays I just ain't got the same passion for games anymore, but life's moving on, no more sleepless hours farming on Warframe, or grinding for CS:GO ranks, or unlocking every dark souls achievement... Although I could boot it up and still enjoy it, simply playing/grinding isn't as fulfilling anymore.

It's not sad, it's just something you just don't want to do anymore... Just like you don't want to play with toys anymore.

>>33561687
>You know? I was thinking of doing something like that. There's a guitar course I want to start in Sept, and I also want to start journaling
That's great man. Personally what I signed up to is bachata dancing classes and a choir. They are expressive and social activities and I feel great after doing them, guitar sounds good too, though I'd go for at least 1 super social hobby. Accountability helps in continuing with the hobby and accountability is easiest to attain when other people are there counting on you to come

>>33561687
>But the general, it seems the consensus is to just quit cold turkey and develop the mentality to counter my current thoughts AFTER, right?

Idk what other anons told you but personally, from EXTENSIVE personal experimentation with ALL methods - you don't just quit THEN suddenly do the stuff you wanna do. You just start doing the stuff you wanna do WHILE you're still playing games. Then naturally the stuff you actually want to do take more and more of your time, and because they are fun - you have some motivation to do other things.

LITERALLY I just came up with the BEST comparison I could have:
When druggies get off drugs, they get given micro doses to stave off the intense cravings at the drug rehab centers.
At our level of addiction, it's much of the same. So if you quit cold turkey you're just going to sit there, lethargic, motivationless, tired. Sad. You're not going to do anything because you're empty.
By continuing to play but introducing new activities WHILE STILL PLAYING - you're actually BENEFITING from continued play. It keeps you placated and calm, knowing everything is okay and you still get the dose, both the physical dopamine dose and the safety and comfort knowing that you don't have to "let go of games" which can be very daunting.

Again, I'm speaking from real, personal experience as someone who has been addicted to video games my entire life (29). I'm not thinking up concepts - I actually went through everything

>>33559577 (OP)
Turn off your PC and Internet. Lock them inside a safe or throw them away if you have to. Then start doing things outside. I used to play video games daily until I did this. Now I do everything besides video games. I might still enjoy a nice indie game or two occasionally

>>33559577 (OP)
It's more a mindset with those shit gacha games or repetitive multiplayer gimmicks. I can enjoy a few dead by daylight matches and then stop and not care about it. You can play endlessly and just rank up indefinitely. What is the point of it all? Remember the OG games when there was no ranks and everything was unlocked? It's supposed to be fun. These games don't respect your time if you play the way they want you to play.

>The problem is that I don't know how to rewire myself in order to escape.
Take the first step and leave. It gets way easier afterwards.