I hate how much my brain starts remembering interesting stuff when I finally sit down to play a video game

bermuda@beehaw.org to Gaming@beehaw.org – 95 points –

This might sound super weird, but whenever I actually find time to go "I have like 4 hours to spare, might as well play a game," my brain just goes "hey, remember that movie you wanted to watch?" or "hey, remember that thing you wanted to wikipedia?" or "Might as well pay rent now, it's due in 3 days."

I just wish my brain would do this when I'm actually bored.

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A lot of things can cause "the mind to wander" and, frankly, I'm not a health professional but as a person who sometimes has trouble focusing I somewhat sympathize. There are times when I simply can't sit down and enjoy myself, and there's nothing that can be done about that. Usually times of high stress and anxiety.

But outside of those extreme cases, there's generally a few things here and there that can help alleviate. The first, and maybe almost stupidly obvious one, is to do some of those tasks beforehand. I don't have to stress about doing the dishes or paying the bills or returning a call if I just do it beforehand. Logging into the bank app is just 5 minutes, why worry about it otherwise.

Another is to get comfortable and shut yourself off. Leave your phone in a place you can't reach from wherever you're gaming (or watching a movie, or reading or studying. Your phone should actually be in a different room every time you don't immediately need it) as well as any other electronic devices. Close the windows and doors, turn off your PC. Make it a bother to stop enjoying yourself.

Take a bathroom break (or if its in the evening, a shower+grooming) and maybe have a snack or a full meal. Have a bottle of water nearby. That crosses out basic biologic annoyances (until you need a pee break but that's at least a healthy obstacle).

Exercise a bit. Sounds out there, but exhausting yourself physically isn't only healthy, it also takes your mind off a lot of things. Since that's a relatively boring activity that can also have your mind wander, have some podcasts handy, but something light and preferably with 2+ hosts so you can have several voices in your head that aren't yours but also don't need to follow a story or anything heavy. Going on a walk while listening to a 1 hour episode should be good enough (and something we all should do regardless of attention issues)

On the subject of podcasts, I've found that some games aren't gripping enough to draw my attention or are repetitive enough that I don't need to dedicate all of my attention to them, so I've dubbed them Podcast Games and do both at the same time. Roguelikes do very well in this regard, as well as management games, or anything that isn't story heavy (or if the story blows) and where the sound isn't exactly necessary.

And sometimes, ultimately, maybe you just aren't really in the mood for a game. There are hobbies of mine that I enjoy, but don't do much because I'm not "in the zone" as often, like reading or watching a TV series. So if gaming is like that for you, swap around and enjoy yourself, time spent doing something you like isn't time wasted.

Optional: I've found that I'm much better at sitting down and watching a movie or a show when I have someone alongside me to chat up. Maybe having someone along to play/watch together, or simply streaming through Discord for a friend might be a solution. You'd be surprised at how many other people are also bored and would accept an invite to watch you play while chatting about their day.

I appreciate the time you put into writing your reply!

Close the windows and doors, turn off your PC.

What if I game on my PC ;-;

This might sound weird, but are you actually engaged with what you're playing? Maybe you need to find some higher intensity games to keep your attention.

"higher intensity" is extremely vague and I'm having trouble grasping what you're getting at. Horror? FPS? Competitive?

Not the same person you reply to, but I think they meant some more gripping. More exciting. For you. Whatever you consider more exciting and gripping

Well that's the thing, it happens when I play games I find exciting, no matter the genre. Even when I pumped hundreds of hours into it. I put like 88 hours in cyberpunk 2077 but I found myself drifting away every time I'd start up the game.

Was it like that when the game was fresh and you were getting into it in the beginning, or just after youd put the hours into it, and the novelty wore off?

This might be the first time I've heard someone else describe this phenomenon. It's gotten much worse in the last 5 years, to the point where I barely game. I still want to though. Very odd.

Happening to me too, I've had to find a new hobby. I'm hoping after some time off I can pick gaming back up again in the future.

I don't think I have ever seen Wikipedia used as a verb before, funky