Have you felt bored when loading up a beloved video game in the past? Maybe you didn’t find the fun in it like you used to, and you’re wondering where your enjoyment went? You wouldn’t be the first. 

Millions of people fall out of love with gaming from time to time, and feel nothing but boredom when it comes to checking out the Steam library or loading a disk into a console. But why does this happen? Gaming is supposed to be one of the most fun hobbies in the world!

Well, it could be due to a variety of reasons. Most of all, and unlike any other hobby out there, gamers can get ‘burned out’ on the amount of games they can play, as well as the time they dedicate to playing them. 

Over a thousand hours in a game doing the same thing every single session? You’re going to get bored, motion sick, and simply tired of playing games every day. But at heart, you still love dipping into fantasy worlds and playing your own characters. 

And when that bored feeling strikes, it’s essential to dig deeper into the problem to help yourself get back on track. Here’s what to do when you get bored of gaming. 

Understand What’s Wrong

So, what is it about gaming right now that’s bumming you out? Where is this sense of boredom coming from? If you figure that out, you’re going to get back into the habit sooner than anyone else. When you know you love something, feeling disconnected from it can upset you all the more. 

However, this feeling could be down to a variety of factors. Maybe it’s this one game you’re bored of? Maybe you’re tired from having to work all week, or being an active parent? Maybe you’re feeling down for personal reasons and nothing is quite powerful enough to bring you out of the slump? Whatever it is that’s ruining your experience, work it out first and then go from there. 

Throw a Gaming Party

A gaming party can get you back in the groove, as you’re surrounded by people you love doing something you love. So throw a gaming party and invite as many people as you can who also love booting up a game. If you’ve got some multiplayer classics in the library be sure to break them out, but try a few new games together as well. 

Why? Because it could be the social aspect that’s getting you down. If you feel lonely whilst playing single player games, inviting those close to you round and having a smash together can remind you of just how social gaming can be. Failing that, you could also try a new MMO in your own time – plug in a mic, be selective over who you talk to, and make some new friends! 

Try Some Casual Games

Casual games require little to no commitment, and don’t require much thought to get through either. Games like sudoku or solitaire, for example, count as casual games, but there’s a wide market for the casual genre out there. 

If you want to do something a little more interactive, and spend time in a game that’s visually appealing, check out the casual genre on marketplaces like Steam and Epic Games. 

You can invest in lower priced games that are still a lot of fun, thanks to their customisation elements and long term gaming structure. This way you can dip in and out as you like when you feel the gaming bug bite you. Do this long enough and your love for gaming is likely to drip back into place. 

Spend Some Time in a Related Hobby

A related hobby could be anything, as long as the project you work on has a primarily video game theme. Cosplay, for example, or making clay models of your favourite characters, or even painting up Warhammer figures. This could respark the passion you feel for a beloved game – you’re interacting without needing to play, and spending some time being creative. 

That’s very good for the brain! It also gives you a chance to refresh on the mechanics of the game, which could be getting quite ‘grindy’ after all this time. Essentially, with a related hobby, you can play without needing to play. Flex your muscles, spend some time away from the screen, and destress after a long week. 

Revisit Old Classics

You’ve probably got a few games in the bank that you haven’t touched in years, despite the fact that you played the hell out of them back in the day. They’ve sat for years just waiting for you to come back and play them again, and fall in love with the setting and the characters all over again. 

That’s a good thing for a bored gamer. You can revisit the old classics and have a lot of fun with the games you used to love, without needing to spend big amounts of money on new experiences that you’re just not in the mood and/or mindset for. 

Load up something you have a good few hours in, that feels familiar yet needs relearning, and you could find that your sense of boredom over gaming disappears in the space of an hour. 

Dip into a Different Genre

Are you on the grind 24/7? And by that we mean you play games where you grind until you get the good stuff, and then grind some more to upgrade it, and then grind all over again because new items have been released? Well, stop playing them! 

It’s time to dip into a different genre. The more you play outside of your usual realms, the more fun you’re likely to have right now. Because let’s face it, the grind gets boring. Playing in different genre games can reignite your gaming passion, as it forces you to try something new and adapt, as well as embrace different feelings as you play. 

Horror games are a good example of this. If you’re looking for some catharsis right now, break one of those out and have a good scream about something chasing you! 

Take a Break

Gaming isn’t serious and it never has to be. It’s a hobby like any other. As such, you can take a break whenever you need one. You don’t need to beat yourself up over a hobby! It’s supposed to be fun, and when it isn’t anymore, you step away and do something else. Your interest will come back at some point, and you’ll be able to play the day away once again. 

Trust us, everyone gets bored of gaming from time to time. It feels like developers are bringing out the same games on the same models every time they announce something, and that can lead to burnout. You’re not obliged to keep gaming just because it’s the one thing you’ve been doing for years now! So don’t push yourself to keep going, and have a go at something else for a while. 

Are you bored of playing video games? You probably hate the feeling by now. What used to be the best thing to do with a free evening is now the most flatlined activity you could try. But if you want to find your way back, take a break, try out some different hobbies, choose a different kind of game to play, or invite some friends over and have a session. You might just find the enjoyment comes flooding back!