I've got video game FOMO bad.

BossLackey

BossLackey

Gold Member
If I'm being entirely honest, I have not been especially fiscally responsible when it comes to video games as of late.

I don't buy much for myself outside of games and I can certainly afford them, but I've pretty much been buying a game a week (and sometimes...more than that).

And I don't mean on sale. I'm talking as they release across a ton of genres at full price. (though there are plenty I get on sale on top of that)

If I eventually finished them all (or made an appreciable dent in them), I wouldn't feel guilty at all. However, the issue is that I get excited about a game and then realize 5 hours in that it's just not my type of game and I'm permanently shelving it.

Something about getting a game and playing it on release is an addictive feeling that I can't shake lately.

I gotta stop!
 
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Fomo is definitely hard to shake when it comes to new videogame releases.
I bought Unicorn overlord and I'll probably won't get round to playing it till months later.
 
This is an area where buying physical discs shines. You can buy a game, play it for a week, finish it or not, and sell it for $10 less than your purchase price. Hell, I recently traded in some games to GameStop for more than I paid.
 
I'm still paying off a Best Buy no interest for 2 years loan for my new gaming PC.
I saw that thing on sale with no interest and FOMO just poured over me like a bucket of gatorade at a football game.
 
BossLackey said:
If I'm being entirely honest, I have not been especially fiscally responsible when it comes to video games as of late.

I don't buy much for myself outside of games and I can certainly afford them, but I've pretty much been buying a game a week (and sometimes...more than that).

And I don't mean on sale. I'm talking as they release across a ton of genres at full price. (though there are plenty I get on sale on top of that)

If I eventually finished them all (or made an appreciable dent in them), I wouldn't feel guilty at all. However, the issue is that I get excited about a game and then realize 5 hours in that it's just not my type of game and I'm permanently shelving it.

Something about getting a game and playing it on release is an addictive feeling that I can't shake lately.

I gotta stop!
Click to expand...
You have a psychological addiction, so the best you can do is trade one addiction for another. Maybe try chasing gains at the gym instead of media ownership. Also, could be used for improving art and music ability.
 
BossLackey said:
If I'm being entirely honest, I have not been especially fiscally responsible when it comes to video games as of late.

I don't buy much for myself outside of games and I can certainly afford them, but I've pretty much been buying a game a week (and sometimes...more than that).

And I don't mean on sale. I'm talking as they release across a ton of genres at full price. (though there are plenty I get on sale on top of that)

If I eventually finished them all (or made an appreciable dent in them), I wouldn't feel guilty at all. However, the issue is that I get excited about a game and then realize 5 hours in that it's just not my type of game and I'm permanently shelving it.

Something about getting a game and playing it on release is an addictive feeling that I can't shake lately.

I gotta stop!
Click to expand...
Thank you for your service. I seldom buy games on release so it evens out and the sector of the public you belong to keeps publishers interested.


sad metal gear solid GIF
 
Compulsive buy can be a hard problem to deal with. I have a lot of self-control but as someone who legally has to manage the income of my prodigal brother I know it can be hell. Try not regretting what you buy OP, don't give in.
 
I'm too picky to effected by "FOMO"….i mean people going crazy over games like BG3 and Helldivers 2 but I had no desire to pick those games up because I know they are not my type of games.
 
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I managed to get over this years ago now it's so rare that I buy games at launch or even close, it's so much better, I get more games, I pay less, don't care too much if I hate something I bought because I'm buying it out of deep discount.
 
lol, I got a kind of FOMO because I live in Argentina and without a distributor physical media might come on launch date and then disappear for months or years. So I either gotta buy it fast or just hope it will be eventually available again. Unicorn Overlord was one that I didn't buy on launch date, though, because I'm guessing it's not as niche as a NIS release but still, my backlog is currently over 100 games...
 
I've spent more on retro gaming lol. Having a blast though.

Fear of missing Old game FOMOG ??
 
No FOMO here. The majority of game releases since the launch of XBOX Series and PS5 has been mediocre at best with a few shining stars. Nintendo has been an exception, but regardless haven't really liked what I am seeing coming from the industry as of late.
 
Sony and other publishers cured my FOMO when they announced they games was going to cost 80€. Last gen i pretty much bought all the games i was interested day 1, this gen in a year i buy something like 2 games day 1 and the others during promos. Having a subscription to PS+ Extra also helps ignore most of the day 1 releases. Too much stuff to play, makes it easier to wait for price drops.
 
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I almost never buy in release anymore , unless I think physical print will go out of stock. However I have been picking up games on physical sale for later play through which may never come on consoles, lol.

I just like having physical copies of games.
 
Im sort of the same way.
Sometimes the game that sticks is the one i least expect.


What people like on here or reviewers jizz about isnt always what i wanna play :p
 
I probably wouldnt have FOMO at all if I wasnt part of a community of dedicated enthusiasts

So I blame this place for my near constant purchases
 
8o0oyw.jpg


I know a thing or two about spending ludicrous amounts of money on video games. Well, I decided to stop collecting after the 8th gen. Once I've nabbed all the PS4 and Switch games I want, that's it for me. There are more than enough new-to-me games from the 2nd-8th gen to keep me busy until I croak. Even if there weren't, I'm not especially excited by what the 9th gen has done so far, and 10th gen looks to be an all-digital dystopia shit show. My way of detoxing from FOMO is apathy towards this medium's future.
 
I'm glad the industry has trained that out of me, it's a lot better being patient and waiting to see if the games are worth my money, and i've saved quite a bit!.
 
I find that if I can make it past the first week of launch all FOMO goes out the window and I'm able to get on with my life as if it never even happened. It is difficult though.
 
I have the opposite of that. I wait it out until I'm totally late to the party, with some rare exceptions. I use that as a filter. In the meantime I play legacy games. Old JRPGs especially. The good stuff..
 
I guess I'm in the same boat. Buying stuff consistently and not always finishing it or even starting it before moving on.

I just don't worry about it. I'm not missing the money and eventually there will be lulls in new stuff where I'll circle back around. The Deck has actually helped a bit in that regard as I'll play stuff during downtime at work.
 
FOMO, but what exactly are you afraid of "missing out" on? You can still buy and play the game much later for much less. Is it because you know lots of other people are playing it at the same time? How is that missing out on anything? What am I missing here?
 
Getting on a gaming sub is the first thing to truly start helping me manage my FOMO. I had long surpassed the point of buying games I didn't have time to play, but I kept buying anyway. I was actually getting the dopamine hit from the checkout and the spending itself, or the collecting. It's not that unusual. Lots of people have said they shop to feel better for years. With a gaming sub I get a similar dopamine hit twice a week as games drop in my library. They don't all have to be amazing, but I still get that sensation of getting to try something new.

With that cleared up, I've been able to think about my purchases a lot more clearly and buy the stuff I actually want, when I actually have time to play it. I know I'm in full control now because I'm actually waiting on Dragon's Dogma 2 until the expansion is out. That would have been unheard of for me 10 years ago.

You need something to replace your dopamine cravings for purchasing, like a smoker needs gum at first.
 
NeverYouMind said:
You have a psychological addiction, so the best you can do is trade one addiction for another. Maybe try chasing gains at the gym instead of media ownership. Also, could be used for improving art and music ability.
Click to expand...

It's funny you mention that. I've thought a lot about this topic and I'm almost definitely trying to fill a hole that video games simply won't fill.

I'm out of shape and need to start working out again and whereas I used to draw non-stop and was known for being an artist, I haven't created art much in the last few years (but that's changing).

Basically my habits suck and require reform, which I'm actively in the process of doing.

I suppose this thread is part of the process :messenger_tears_of_joy:
 
Danknugz said:
FOMO, but what exactly are you afraid of "missing out" on? You can still buy and play the game much later for much less. Is it because you know lots of other people are playing it at the same time? How is that missing out on anything? What am I missing here?
Click to expand...

Missing out on the new game feeling where people are boards are talking about it, my friends are talking about it, etc.
 
I don't understand what you're worried about missing out on?

Single player games remain the same, better in most cases, if you play them one, three or five years down the line.

I'm about to play through Pokémon Black for the first time in my life, a 2010 video game, and that will be a funner experience for me than 99% of the $70 releases this year.

Even with multiplayer games, the ones that are actual quality have a healthy player base long after release. So again, you aren't missing out on anything.
 
I can't play more than one SP game at a time. I can play an SP game and then like an MP game with my friends in between but that's about it.
 
If you're admittedly not getting the satisfaction you'd hoped from these full price new releases, maybe that will stop you from buying more new release games.

Sounds like some new hobbies to add to the mix would help. Something to draw some attention away from videogames, like the drawing that you stated. I used to draw like crazy, so a digital art tablet was a very fun purchase.
 
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I only get FOMO when it comes to multiplayer stuff which I rarely play anyway. Stuff like Monster Hunter or Earth Defense Force I like to play as soon as possible so I can experience their multiplayer component when it's the most alive.

Same thing with Helldivers II. I haven't bought it yet because I have lots of stuff going on right now, and I feel like I'm missing out, which sucks.

Anyway OP, more like FOMO you sound like a compulsive buyer or something. Try setting a limit on your monthly videogame-related expenses, that might help. Or maybe make an excell and take not of all the money you are expending in videogames, I bet seeing that number go up and up will help you put an end to it.
 
I experienced this feeling last in Alan Wake 2 and Dragon's Dogma 2, and because I found them expensive, I decided not to buy either, and within a few weeks, those feelings faded. As I started reading the reviews, I decided to wait for discounts as well.

The biggest sales happen when the game is released, due to the combined effect of the hype train and FOMO. In such cases, if you have a similar game to the one in question (or haven't played its previous version), you can give it a chance. You can also prefer sites like Steam that have a refund feature.
 
I don't think I've ever felt FOMO about anything in my entire life

Even with video games I really like I could wait years and years to pay them with ease
 
Buying games on release is idiotic OP.

I only recently finished Baldur's Gate 3, so I got to have all the fixes, upgrades, and the proper ending. By far and away the better experience than the one people got at launch.

I'll be playing Dragon's Dogma 2 in about three or four months when that's fixed too.
 
RoboFu said:
I've spent more on retro gaming lol. Having a blast though.

Fear of missing Old game FOMOG ??
Click to expand...
The cool thing is that, even with our currently inflated retro prices, most consoles and games are still cheaper than they were originally. It consistently blows my mind that I can, with a few mouse clicks, buy a near mint condition CD based PS1 game that is approaching 30 years of age, and pay what is essentially original MSRP.
 
I got FOMO from those hyper-realistic graphics some were enjoying, then when I could afford them I realized they were not a big deal to me, then realized that most of those games are boring AF... And lastly I realized I prefer game-y stuff with amazing art style. In summary: FOMO is expensive :(
 
BossLackey said:
If I'm being entirely honest, I have not been especially fiscally responsible when it comes to video games as of late.

I don't buy much for myself outside of games and I can certainly afford them, but I've pretty much been buying a game a week (and sometimes...more than that).

And I don't mean on sale. I'm talking as they release across a ton of genres at full price. (though there are plenty I get on sale on top of that)

If I eventually finished them all (or made an appreciable dent in them), I wouldn't feel guilty at all. However, the issue is that I get excited about a game and then realize 5 hours in that it's just not my type of game and I'm permanently shelving it.

Something about getting a game and playing it on release is an addictive feeling that I can't shake lately.

I gotta stop!
Click to expand...
I just preorderd the $200 WOW collectors edition for whatever the crap version is coming out this year....I haven't played in more than 10 years...but I "have to have it cause I have the others".

So if you figure out how to kick that habit please share.
 
Try and get some help/guidance with your financials and spending behavior. This seems like a slippery slope to me.

Plenty of programs around and I'm pretty sure most are free.

There is 0 reason to buy a game on release unless for some reason, you're afraid of missing out on it's social relevancy. Which is quite a meaningless thing too and worth referring you back to my advice for.
 
SmokedMeat said:
If you're admittedly not getting the satisfaction you'd hoped from these full price new releases, maybe that will stop you from buying more new release games.

Sounds like some new hobbies to add to the mix would help. Something to draw some attention away from videogames, like the drawing that you stated. I used to draw like crazy, so a digital art tablet was a very fun purchase.
Click to expand...

I'm a serial hobbyist. Believe me. The very last thing on Earth I need is another hobby.
 
Dutchy said:
Try and get some help/guidance with your financials and spending behavior. This seems like a slippery slope to me.

Plenty of programs around and I'm pretty sure most are free.

There is 0 reason to buy a game on release unless for some reason, you're afraid of missing out on it's social relevancy. Which is quite a meaningless thing too and worth referring you back to my advice for.
Click to expand...

It's not really that serious, to be honest. It's not actually impacting anything as my wife and I have set amounts of "fun money" we've allotted and I'm within that.

It's more my time that is being wasted than money. And again, it's not every game. Most games I'm glad I bought. It's that like every 3rd game is something I really didn't really need.
 
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