Topic: Have you ever taken a break from gaming? (or drastically curtailed)

Pretty self explanatory topic,....for me, I have never fully taken a break from gaming, although their have been somewhat lengthy peiords were I didn't have access to a console due to work.

But, from about early 2008 to mid 2010, I only really played Civilization 4 and it's expansions on PC (and that's it), I must have dumped an unknown amount of hours into it.......I wasn't addicted or anything like that, just that whenever I felt like playing a game, I went to Civ 4, and the consoles during that period never did anything outside of occasionally peak my interest. Before that I was really into the original Xbox and PC (outside of just Civ), and afterwards the Xbox 360 and Wii.

I did at least from console gaming. Right after the beginning of the Gamecube era till this gen I was more into PC gaming and most MMOs especially World of Warcraft. I wasnt addicted to it, it just was with my crazy work schedule and a young kid that's all I really had time for. I did have a Gamecube and PS2, but I hardly played them on my own usually when friends came over and then it was stuff like Tekken or Soul Caliber. I even owned a Wii and 360 during last gen, but most only played it with my son and that was stuff like Wii Sports and Lego games.

This gen now I have gotten back into console gaming like I was in the PS era. Part of that was due to the fact that my PC died and I just can't afford a good one for gaming.

I gamed a lot as a kid in NES and SNES... after that I just gamed very casually only Championship Manager/Football Manager and Heroes of Might and Magic on PC then I borrowed a PSOne from a friend to play a few games I was interested on (Suikoden 2, Parasite Eve and Silent Hill) then at some later point a borrowed a PS2 to play Kingdom Hearts... It was not until 3 years ago when I was doing my Ph.D in Australia, had no friends there, and a girl I was really into rejected me that I got seriously depressed and turn to gaming as a way to cope... I first got a 3DS for Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance, then a Vita, then a PS3... with the PS3 I've just been playing lots of games I had missed from that generation... Now I'm ready to get a PS4 but waiting for the Neo reveal to make my decision whether I go for a Neo or an original at a reduced price....

Unfortunately I'm still depressed but gaming and following the news ect online really helps me cope

Gamed a lot between 7-22 then not so much for the next 6 or 7 years then got back into gaming in my early 30's. Work influences how much time In have to game. I enjoy gaming more now than I did 15 years ago. I complete a lot more games and know the games I will enjoy rather than buying games and hoping. I think the internet hs helped with that, more access to reviews, guides and videos. Also the social aspect of gaming has got better for me. Before it was more about sitting in mine or a friends house watching someone play a game or playing co-op. Now there are a lot more games to play online with gamers you know or are about to meet and become friends with. Also I am a big fan of Twitch which is like having 100,000's of gamers available to chat with about games, watch gameplay and build communites. I am also more proud to be a gamer before I would never really have mentioned it as something I enjoy doing now its more main stream and acceptable.

yeah i did, at the start of the PS3/360/Wii generation, a huge break for a few years when i didn't play any games at all

not sure why though, maybe i was just burnt out but i think if my brother didn't buy me a Wii for my birthday one year then i probably STILL wouldn't be playing games

strangely enough i did the same thing with my Art, i just stopped one day when i was 16 and then didn't pick it up again for 15 years and it could have gone the same way with my games

@FullbringIchigo: same here, was bored of gaming until I stumbled into Fallout 3.

@Utena-Mobile not sure about that... I'm pretty hopeless with women... I understand having low self-esteem but I need to ask... who did you feel you had to proof yourself as a gamer to? I have the opposite feeling where I feel I need to hide my nerdiness from the people around me who would probably find it embarassing... I can't imagine having to proof someone else that you are nerdy enough....

Also sorry to hear about your stalker... it's a really sad thing that you had to give up your account just because of that

@DualWielding: Sorry the hear you're depressed! It sounds like you're pretty competent if you were working on a PhD. I used to have horrible self-esteem, despite also having a degree (engineering) and I still kinda do, but I started working out and trying new activities and it changed my life. I never used to go out, just stayed at home playing games, and never really had any luck with women, never had more than a few friends. But those things have started to come naturally when I started to improve my own self and my own skills. And now, over the course of two years, I'm happily married to LITERALLY the girl of my dreams (I temporarily changed my avatar to a picture of her) and still get to play video games and be myself, albiet the BEST version of myself. I NEVER thought this would EVER happen, and I would've bet everything against it. But you have to believe in your own strengths and never give up! You have to fight against the odds and against fate! (Now that I think about it...that was the theme of FFXIII, and why that game is my default favorite game of all time). Anyway, just wanted to share that...I thought it was relevant!

@DualWielding: whoa, you were able to read that? I thought I deleted it fast enough because it got too personal. lol.

well, I noticed that some guys (not all though) sort of have their ego tied to their hobby. So if you go up to them and say "hey! I like Marvel too!" They'll quiz you on Captain America and Spiderman and all sorts of other comics to see if you're really a fan or a poser. And this happens with everything. Star Wars, video games etc. Like for me, I don't think the prequels are bad, boom not a true star wars fan. I used to have a magic the gathering deck, but I didn't care about what the cards did, I built my deck based on the art (I love elves), boom not a true Magic player (ok, so they were right about that one). It was the same with video games.

@Utena-mobile: yeah fandoms can be a horrible place, especially Star Wars, some fans feel like they own the franchise and if you don't like EXACTLY what they do then your not a real fan, and it's bull (i actually like the prequels myself)

if you like something then your a fan, you don't have to like all of it or the same bits as others, it's up to YOU what bits you like and don't let others tell you your wrong because your not

if their ego is so fragile that they need to be validated through a entertainment medium they they ain't worth any of your time or worry

@FullbringIchigo: yeah. it took me awhile to learn that, but I finally did. Also, it helped that I got a new job and half of my co-workers are gamers, comics or anime fans (and 1 star trek fan). And funnily enough, it's the complete opposite of where I used to work, because there are only like 6 guys working here (out of over 40) and of those guys only 1 is nerdy.

@Utena-mobile: oh sorry didn't notice you had deleted your comment... I got it on my mail because you had mentioned me and I just clicked reply from the e-mail without noticing the comment had been deleted.....

@Utena-mobile and @FullbringIchigo oh o.k haven't ever really ran into people like that... Probably because I live in a third world country where there is not much of a geek culture we don't have cons or anything like that... I was in a sci-fi group while leaving in Australia but all people there were nice and just generally happy to be among other geeks... I have lots of memories of being looked down upon for being too nerdy but never have anyone try to tell me I'm not geek enough for them.... Among other geeks I did get victim of some frowning for liking wrestling and ponies which apparently were not as acceptable as other geeky interests... Granted I kinda make fun of someone for liking Twilight so I guess we are all guilty to some degree of making fun of people for liking things we find stupid

@nyarth glad things worked out for you... I feel pretty defeated I finished my Ph.D but couldn't land a job in Australia so had to return to my home country... here things are very lonely because all my friends are now married and busy with their own lives and there aren't any real opportunities for me to meet women... my main hope is to move back to a first world country where I feel there are more opportunities so I'm working towards that but not sure if it's going to happen and even if it does... I just feel old

@Utena-mobile: You like the prequels? Er me too. Phantom pain is great, love the pod racing. Boom we are In a group. Good to hear you tried to get in the magic circle. I can do one trick with a neat palm off but unlike real magicians I don't have any other tricks.

I was in the RN for 5 years, I hardly played any games around that time. Only Mass Effect on leave, Halo and I got addicted to Pacman CE as it was quick.

@DualWielding: At my worst, I felt trapped and defeated too, and no one would help me out. In fact, my best and only friend abandoned me. I realized that everyone has their own problems, no one wanted to deal with mine, and so it was up to me to change my own life. I watched some self-help videos online, and the main thing I took away was that you first need to feel confident in yourself, and do things that you're passionate about. Next is to look for opportunities to meet new people, and do new things, but never directly be on the look-out for friends or a relationship. Just let it happen naturally. When I first met the girl who's now my wife, I had no expectation that I would ever even date her. I was just practicing talking to people.

ANWAY...it's all up to you! Look for opportunities, big or small, to go slightly outside of your comfort zone...you never know what will happen, even in your current country. And don't wait...change today! Video games will always be there.

(Okay, I'll stop now, haha...)

I took a break from like 2003 to 2008...leaving off on FarCry for PC and coming back to Crysis on PC. I also went from Fallout 2 to Fallout 3. And from Final Fantasy 9 to Mass Effect. Honestly, that year coming back was THE best gaming year of my life since I was so amazed at how far games had come. Like...I literally ran around the house after blowing off Butch's face at the beginning of Fallout 3 (one of the sweetest, goriest memories I have of gaming), and was pumping my hands up in the air and literally cheering through every part of Mass Effect. Not to mention the endless hours I spent on what should be the first half hour of the game in Crysis just messing around and breaking stuff.

@themcnoisy: Nice!! but I have to ask... Do you think Artorias is hot? if not, then we can't be friends. (T-T )

Never taken a prolonged break of one year or anything like that but I do go through several three week or more stretches throughout the year where I don't play games. Then when I get back into it, I probably play more than not I should. It balances itself out.

I've taken breaks from gaming. From about 98-2007, I was always a generation behind or close to. I couldn't afford new consoles or games so picked up consoles second hand and played through old games. That's how I did PS2 gaming. That was all fits and starts as and when I had cash. Then, when I finally started earning, my wife (Gf at the time) got me a 360 and I started getting back into gaming in a bigger way. My gaming has ramped up in recent years as I've taken on responsibility and stresses. I have kids and can work long days and gaming has really become more and more of a release mechanism for me, particularly as I am an anxious type. So, the worse things are, the more I game.

Sorry to hear peoples experiences online and with fandom. I think the world of fandom is great but there is a real dark side to it, which I find odd, as we've had to experience years of it being seen as something not culturally valuable. Now gaming and comic and movie culture is becoming far more recognised and legitimate but at the same time there seems to be a large group of people that use differences of opinion to be cruel and nasty. Seems odd that on the cusp of mainstream acceptability, people try and tear that down.

A few little breaks - I pretty much didn't play games from 2004-2007, apart from Final Fantasy XI (and even then gave that up probably 2005). Eventually bought a PS2 with a cheap CRT TV and caught up on some of the stuff I'd missed. But I wasn't truly excited about games again until the Wii was revealed at E3. Mind blown, I pre-ordered a console for the first time since the Dreamcast. Ultimately it was a disappointment but it also got my to get an XBox 360, when Mass Effect pretty much singlehandedly revived my passion for gaming. Eventually swapped my 360 for a PS3 after the XBox One was announced, to try out some of the Sony exclusives, which then convinced me to get a PS4 instead of an Xbox One.

I've taken a few years off here and there to let the rest ya'll catch up