Online Games/mmorpgs

[Evilwave Heddy]

So recently I've found myself addicted to one of these Facebook games(I had the app on my phone so it was just there to play).  But I'd usually pop on for 15 minutes then leave it till later and pop on again..and again..and again.  I did this everyday for the past week but stopped yesterday (deleted app) because of my previous experience with online games, mainly MMORPGS (Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games).

I had the struggle of giving up playing MMORPG's 2 years ago.  Prior to this I had been playing them for 10 years or so.  I played a majority of these games throughout the first five years but eventually stuck with one.  I played this game for at least 3-6 hours daily. This for me was one of my worst habits.

What was keeping me coming back to it?

The sense of achievement.  Being wanted/needed.  I was in a clan which needed me. (as i was a pretty good healer ;))  I found myself setting new goals for myself after completing existing ones for example "Max my lvl" or "Complete every single quest".  What I eventually realized was that after completing these goals I would get a minute or two of self achievement then I'd be working towards my next goal.  Working my ass off for over 30 hours for 2 minutes of achievement!? Was I crazy!? Yes, but I didn't realize it.

 

After I left my clan which I was in for approximately 3 years I found that I wasn't "needed" anymore.  There was nothing I needed to come back to which made me feel...great.  I still played the game by myself which I soon gave up on the more I realized the "goals" situation.  3-6 hours daily eventually turned into 1-2 hours daily which eventually turned into nothing.  I basically flushed countless hours down the drain.  Hours in which I could have done something more productive. D:

Anyways, this app I've been playing for the past week is the same deal.   I had for some reason set myself the goal of getting everything and getting max lvl. 

I'm sure many of you have been in similar situations? If so, how did yas overcome this habit?

To add: I ask myself questions like  "Why are you playing this?", "What do you hope to achieve?", "Why do you want to achieve this?".

Edited February 25, 2016 by Evilwave Heddy

[Guest]

I was an wow addict for like 5 years, and still I want to go back. But if I go back I realize there is nothing there for me, it's boring and lonely and it get's old pretty soon. The only reason I want back because of the memories of past, good times when I got all the amazing rare mounts and achievements and so on. Also I'm addicted, this is why it draws me back. The only thing to do is not to give in. Stay away long enough and the addiction will fade. Also don't play anything else like this

[David1]

17 minutes ago, The Alchemist said:

I was an wow addict for like 5 years, and still I want to go back. But if I go back I realize there is nothing there for me, it's boring and lonely and it get's old pretty soon. The only reason I want back because of the memories of past, good times when I got all the amazing rare mounts and achievements and so on. Also I'm addicted, this is why it draws me back. The only thing to do is not to give in. Stay away long enough and the addiction will fade. Also don't play anything else like this

Those games really prey on ego and status. Just as real life companies and society does. If you see the 'trap' in a game like wow, you're more likely to see it in real life too. 

[Simon Zackrisson]

Used to be playing wow like a fucking stupid person. (Referring to me now and not others)

I'm currently battling putting of the games of DotA, which is a game of one hour matches, each starting on scratch for everyone, with the goal of destroying the enemy bases when you are strong enough.

I fucking hate that it's so fun. I've been questioning if I really just need to put it off completely, if I am one of those people that can't handle doing the drug just once in a while, to only fall back into heavy addiction.

I don't know. 

But I do know that, whatever you put energy to, gets more strength, gets more gravitation and becomes easier to do. Changes your homeostasis. I'm trying to put my energy into musical composition instead, as I think it will be a giver of so much more authentic happiness, to having constructed your lifework instead of played videogames. 

But it's not frikkin easy in everyday life man. 

 

Just one game ... just one game. ok.

ah fuck i got a bad start, i wanted one game of a good game, so one more

nice, a good game ... well, i just want to play one more, just one more

fuck , i have to try that new combination i thought of. last one now

fuck it i played the evening away... too late to do anything, now... lets play till i go to sleep

FUCK MAN.

[Phocus]

I played enormous amounts of video games throughout my childhood and into my mid 20s.  Basically every Blizzard title (Diablo 2, Starcraft/SC2, Warcraft 2/3, and many many years of WoW) as well as All of the Command and Conquer titles of the early 2000s and modern MOBAs such as LoL.  The most damaging aspect of video games is not the cost of actually playing the game, it is the opportunity lost by investing as much time and energy as we all do into a medium that is, ultimately, zero sum.  All of your achievements are just trivial numbers in a database somewhere.  The only meaning they have is what we project onto them. 

In my experience, the single most powerful tool that I had to break free from endless hours of mindless gaming was to change my environment.  Physically move my desk around (or better yet, don't go home), do something to break that familiar routine you have of gliding on in and firing up your favorite stream of validation and purpose.  There is a great book about this called The Power Of Habit that talks about how habits are processed by the brain and why they are so hard to break.

@Simon Zackrisson you have to cut it off completely or you'll never make any meaningful change.  Don't do it until you're really ready.  If you aren't sure if you are ready or not, then I would actually suggest amping up the amount that you play and trying to pay attention to what you accomplish (or lack thereof) and thinking about what is important to you.  Leo has a great video that goes through a visualization exercise of analyzing the consequences of your actions today on on your life in the future here.  You need to break out of this cycle of non-acceptance.  You want to be somewhere other than where you are.  But you're not there.  Once you fully accept that you are where you are, you can change it (if that make's sense).

It wasn't until I had quit completely for about a year that I regained the ability to moderate it.

Edited February 26, 2016 by Phocus

[Ayla]

15 hours ago, Simon Zackrisson said:

Referring to me now and not others

THAT's refreshing !!!!  

[Simon Zackrisson]

@Phocus Am inclined to agree. At least, if you have a personality where you want to reck everyone, to lose yourself in one activity. To have high demands of the standard you want to achieve in anything you do. I WANT TO WIN OMG?! lol bro get on my level.

Or just the physical addiction. After a drug addiction, some people need to never do it again. And some could manage to establish a balance, just doing a certain thing sometimes while avoiding to make it something dysfunctional. 

[AHappyTeddyBear]

17 hours ago, Simon Zackrisson said:

Used to be playing wow like a fucking stupid person. (Referring to me now and not others)

I'm currently battling putting of the games of DotA, which is a game of one hour matches, each starting on scratch for everyone, with the goal of destroying the enemy bases when you are strong enough.

I fucking hate that it's so fun. I've been questioning if I really just need to put it off completely, if I am one of those people that can't handle doing the drug just once in a while, to only fall back into heavy addiction.

I don't know. 

But I do know that, whatever you put energy to, gets more strength, gets more gravitation and becomes easier to do. Changes your homeostasis. I'm trying to put my energy into musical composition instead, as I think it will be a giver of so much more authentic happiness, to having constructed your lifework instead of played videogames. 

But it's not frikkin easy in everyday life man. 

 

Just one game ... just one game. ok.

ah fuck i got a bad start, i wanted one game of a good game, so one more

nice, a good game ... well, i just want to play one more, just one more

fuck , i have to try that new combination i thought of. last one now

fuck it i played the evening away... too late to do anything, now... lets play till i go to sleep

FUCK MAN.

Also Dota player here Whats your steam and your mmr m8 ?^^

[Simon Zackrisson]

@AHappyTeddyBear i dont wanna shoot up with u ty 

3k single

[AHappyTeddyBear]

@Simon Zackrisson Why ? lol

[Simon Zackrisson]

@AHappyTeddyBear meant it like a heroin addict that shoots up with someone  : P

[AHappyTeddyBear]

7 minutes ago, Simon Zackrisson said:

@AHappyTeddyBear meant it like a heroin addict that shoots up with someone  : P

As a devout dotA player, and avid fan of Team Cloud 9 (my favorite team in the LCS), I must say that this behaviour is an absolute disgrace, and must be discouraged and punished. You should abide by the Summoner's Code, whether they play LoL or dota . As Riot Games has said, the LCS players are very close to becoming fully recognised as athletes, and this @Simon Zackrisson  player is not helping the cause with this extremely immature behavior.

[Simon Zackrisson]

@AHappyTeddyBear Dude chillout i agree with you that it's a sport, im just saying that i might be too weak to handle it as it can easily become addiction for me

[Phocus]

4 hours ago, Simon Zackrisson said:

@Phocus Am inclined to agree. At least, if you have a personality where you want to reck everyone, to lose yourself in one activity. To have high demands of the standard you want to achieve in anything you do. I WANT TO WIN OMG?! lol bro get on my level.

Or just the physical addiction. After a drug addiction, some people need to never do it again. And some could manage to establish a balance, just doing a certain thing sometimes while avoiding to make it something dysfunctional. 

Yeah, I remember the first times that my arena teams broke 2200 in 2v2 and 3v3 in WoW...  hahahaha.  I also ground out rank 11(Lieutenant General) back in vanilla on a high pop server while I was in the Navy but then my ship got deployed for 2 months and I lost most of it so I gave up going for rank 14

When I quit playing games I actually traded that hobby for making games.  I taught myself to program from free tutorials on a website and started working on an iPhone game that was modeled after one of my favorite space games growing up (really amazing game, you can DL a free trial here).  Game design has a TON of psychology involved in it and I definitely didn't appreciate the level of monitoring and manipulation that is involved in designing games.  Your experience as a player is very carefully designed to keep you hooked and coming back for more .

Anyways, I never actually made it to an app store release but I still have a working prototype on my phone and I have considered picking it back up recently and finishing it but... then Leo has all of this life purpose stuff and I have had stuff come up with my day job so, I am still working out where I want to commit myself to so that I can make my millions and then finally realize that it won't make me happy!

[Rosie]

On 25 February 2016 at 8:44 AM, Evilwave Heddy said:

So recently I've found myself addicted to one of these Facebook games(I had the app on my phone so it was just there to play).  But I'd usually pop on for 15 minutes then leave it till later and pop on again..and again..and again.  I did this everyday for the past week but stopped yesterday (deleted app) because of my previous experience with online games, mainly MMORPGS (Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games).

I had the struggle of giving up playing MMORPG's 2 years ago.  Prior to this I had been playing them for 10 years or so.  I played a majority of these games throughout the first five years but eventually stuck with one.  I played this game for at least 3-6 hours daily. This for me was one of my worst habits.

What was keeping me coming back to it?

The sense of achievement.  Being wanted/needed.  I was in a clan which needed me. (as i was a pretty good healer ;))  I found myself setting new goals for myself after completing existing ones for example "Max my lvl" or "Complete every single quest".  What I eventually realized was that after completing these goals I would get a minute or two of self achievement then I'd be working towards my next goal.  Working my ass off for over 30 hours for 2 minutes of achievement!? Was I crazy!? Yes, but I didn't realize it.

 

After I left my clan which I was in for approximately 3 years I found that I wasn't "needed" anymore.  There was nothing I needed to come back to which made me feel...great.  I still played the game by myself which I soon gave up on the more I realized the "goals" situation.  3-6 hours daily eventually turned into 1-2 hours daily which eventually turned into nothing.  I basically flushed countless hours down the drain.  Hours in which I could have done something more productive. D:

Anyways, this app I've been playing for the past week is the same deal.   I had for some reason set myself the goal of getting everything and getting max lvl. 

I'm sure many of you have been in similar situations? If so, how did yas overcome this habit?

To add: I ask myself questions like  "Why are you playing this?", "What do you hope to achieve?", "Why do you want to achieve this?".

Hey,

Here is a girl who was addicted to WOW and other games as i am a perfectionist. I was best student but I wanted to be best in everything what i started and this games made me feel as i was a winner. I was part of something. Then I had a programmer boyfriend for 4 years, and he obviously did not stop me, I felt even better, My partner thought it was an awesome quality....
Then I went to a different country I had less time, and then with my new job had no chance to play these game because of lack of time. If today someone calls me to play xbox or Computer games I would still go, but on purpose I got rid of these games, xbox, and apps from my phone and replaced it with productive apps instead. As per me, even programming is a game for me now days, as i feel that a computer or website does what I want.

I think you should slowly get rid of these distractions and use your time for more productive things as learning a language. Reprogram your mind. Whenever you want to play, do something else instead. Do 20 sit-ups, or start to learn a programming language or even French. At least that is what I do.

[DizIzMikey]

Anyone recommend a good new mmo that is actually fun, because I have not found one that does not get boring fast in like, a year or two.

Edited February 28, 2016 by DizIzMikey

[Guest]

7 minutes ago, DizIzMikey said:

Anyone recommend a good new mmo that is actually fun, because I have not found one that does not get boring fast in like, a year or two.

There are in fact no good mmos out there. World of Warcraft is still the best, and even this will get boring after some time. Maybe you can try Blade & Soul, I think this is a new one. But if I had to choose any mmo again it would definitely be WoW again. I mean I have a huge collection of mounts, achievements, pets and toys. I have the rarest of them all and a lot of lvl 100 chars...in fact my (main) Deathknight is called "Death" in german, how badass name is that?

[DizIzMikey]

@The Alchemist It is a bad ass name I agree, I will check out blade and soul, thank you beautiful soul.

[A way to Actualize]

The life purpose game would be an interesting mmo that doesn't get boring, even after 25 years. I will put here a link:

http://www.actualized.org/life-purpose-course

 

[DizIzMikey]

@A way to Actualize

16 minutes ago, A way to Actualize said:

The life purpose game would be an interesting mmo that doesn't get boring, even after 25 years. I will put here a link:

http://www.actualized.org/life-purpose-course