Weird gaming habits: part one
What are your weird gaming habits? Do you always reload, even after shooting only a single bullet; never use fast-travel; or only play RPGs if it’s a Wednesday and the developer’s name begins with the letter ‘D’? I posed this question to my lovely blogging buddies a couple of weeks ago, and received a wide range of strange answers…
Obsessively tapping ‘R’
“If you were to creepily stand behind me whilst I was playing a FPS, you’d probably see me stop and ask just exactly what you were doing… but if you managed to do it without me noticing then you might pick-up on me obsessively tapping ‘R’ every few seconds whilst running, or in cover, or walking… or even when I want to reload. A habit I picked up in the many hours I spent with Team Fortress 2 as a nimble scout where having a full magazine is a matter of life and death. Normally this obsession doesn’t interfere with my pretty darn top-notch FPS playing, but there are some points where the reload animation frustratingly stops the player shooting. In my recent adventures in Strafe I discovered that reloading abandons the remaining shots in a clip meaning I was initially throwing away more bullets than I was shooting, and 2013’s Rise of the Triad seemed to be mocking me with its machine gun reload animation which dutifully plays whenever the player reloads, but does nothing as clips contain infinite ammo.”
Provided by Luke from Hundstrasse
Giving characters unique names
“I do a weird thing with names. Besides giving the main character always the name ‘Jonez’, the names of the other characters in the games I play are mostly names of people that are currently in my social circle. It’s a strange way and handy way for me to keep track of when I played the game. Yet, I take this to a whole new level when it comes to save game names. ‘After shower’ and ‘Rainy Sunday’ are pretty common occurrences.”
Provided by NekoJonez from NekoJonez’s Gaming Blog
Cleaning your controller
“I also this thing pretty regularly (before big fights especially) where I wrap up the controller in a t-shirt or something and just give it a little clean, just in case it’s got a bit oily. Can’t have my fingers losing traction at critical moments! I mean, that’s the reason I started doing it (when it was warm and my hands were sweaty… gross) but now it’s just a habit for good luck regardless of actual moisture levels.”
Provided by Chris from OverThinker Y
Doing your research
“I don’t know if this is really considered a weird habit or not, but before starting a new game I like to do a bit of reconnaissance. I tend to scout out the trophies or achievements first. I guess that can be kind of considered spoiling the game for me, but I want to ensure that I don’t miss out on any silly trophies or achievements that I’d have to start the game again for, or spend 30 hours in an RPG like The Witcher for instance, to find out that I was meant to dispatch of a certain enemy in a particular method to gain a trophy or achievement. I guess I’m still very much into trying to boost trophies although not as much as I used to in the past.
“With regard to a game like Stardew Valley, I’d previously read that it can be a little bit tough to start with – as in, not being sure what the best path of action is to start. So again, a little bit of research to find out what the best things to aim for are in the initial stages of the game. I’m now well on my way to a profitable farm in year two. Same for No Man’s Sky since the 1.3 patch. I’ve been reading peoples experiences of the patch before I dive back in to give me a heads up on what to do when I step back into space.
“As mentioned, perhaps some would say I’m spoiling the game for myself? But I wouldn’t say that at all. I still absolutely loved everything that was thrown at me when playing Horizon: Zero Dawn or Uncharted 4 for the first time, and never read story spoilers. I just did a little scout to see what I might need to be aiming for at the start of the game.”
Provided by Murr from geeksleeprinserepeat
Being very quiet
“Personally, in RPG games when I have to be stealthy, if I am talking to someone in real life or in a party, I notice that I start whispering. So if I’m trying to sneak past a guard or pickpocket, I make sure to be extra quiet even out loud lol.
“My friend Emily has two weird gaming habits. For racing games or driving games, she turns the controller physically when making a turn or drifting. Also, she has to check EVERYTHING in the room! If there are boxes, drawers, etc, she is checking everyone even if she has found the item needed.”
Provided by Luna from GamersUnitedGG Blog
In talking about this subject with these awesome people, we also noticed a strange trend… more about that in part two coming soon! In the meantime, let us know about your own weird gaming habits in the comments below.
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Kim | Later Levels View All
Video game lover, Later Levels blogger and SpecialEffect volunteer. Big fan of wannabe pirates and fine leather jackets.
I play scary games w/ the sound low or off, and oddly it helps me cheat in Minecraft XD Visual jump scares don’t startle me, but creepy noises really get to me after awhile. Because mobs creep up on the player in Minecraft, I muted the game AND turned captions on for my safety and sanity. The captions provide handy little carats that tell the player which direction mobs are coming from and track most sounds w/in a chunk; so, I’ve used those indicators to track down fortresses in the Nether and slime chunks in the Overworld~
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I used to do that with scary movies: the visual stuff was fine but I couldn’t deal with the sounds as well! These days, my other half drags me along to the cinema to see horror films, and it’s kind of hard to turn the sound off there…
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Why have I never thought of doing this before? I’m a wimp when it comes to playing horror games – I usually let the other-half have the controller while I hide behind a cushion – but this could really help!!
Chris: ear-plugs. 😉
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That’s normal if you don’t like jumpscares.
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Now you mention it, I should probably spend a little more time cleaning my gaming stuff. I’ve not properly cleaned my keyboard since I got it (5+ years ago), and my 6 month old Dualshock 4 is already showing signs of…you know…sweat and stuff. Yuck.
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Not going to deny it… it’s something we’re all guilty of as gamers… *looks down at keyboard and grabs can of air-duster*
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Only thing i do really is have weird naming conventions.
Aerith is always my childhood crush.
Everyone else is an immature name based on their character. So Tidus is ” Douche” because he is a whiney douche. And so on.
RPG characters;
Aids Burger is always a melee powerhouse that could sweet talk the final boss into submission.
Gavin is the magic master that is useless at everything social.
In games like Xcom everyone is named after friends.
Football manager types games (all simulators really);
Cecil P Higginbottom is the old school rigid dinosaur doing things “how they’ve always been done”
Jaminiho Van Rockingham is the flamboyant foreigner that does things his own way.
I also usually add Roman Numerals to names even on a new game. So some of those numbers are quite high.
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Yay! Somebody else who does weird things with names. I remember picking up my Pokémon Blue cartridge and launching up that old save file. Oh deary me, I named Charizard to my best friend and things like that. I tend also to try and translate it into my mother language.
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In our household, we tend to name all of our characters ‘Badgerwithagun’. It’s a long story… 😉
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Well, you sayimg that reminds me off https://youtube.com/watch?v=NL6CDFn2i3I
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My other-half and stepson sing this to each other all the time – they’re nuts!!
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Securing the area. Every time, as soon as I enter a new room or section of a map I guarantee you I will *obsessively* peek out of every window, try every door handle and blow every box to make sure nothing is planning on bursting in or out on my arse.
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That’s not obsessive – that’s just damn good common sense. Everybody knows just how cunning those zombies can be…
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If I am playing any online multiplayer shooter, I will reload constantly. Even if I shoot one bullet and miss, I will reload instantly. Most of the time this helps me, but more than likely this will result in me getting gunned down with my pants down.
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I confess: I’m guilty of this too. It’s got me killed on more than several occasions but I do it without even thinking about it!
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Reblogged this on Hurricane thought process.
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If I have the option to scan for items to pick up in a game (like in Dragon Age Inquisition where you can press R3 and have all lootable items light up) then I will do it constantly, even if I’ve already been over one area, my inventory is full, or if I don’t need or want anything.
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I’m really bad when it comes to inventory… a friend was watching me while I was playing Horizon Zero Dawn earlier this year and was surprised I had enough resources to make anything I wanted at a given time. What he then started to realise is that I’m really obsessive when it comes to picking up items and will grab everything even if I don’t need it… ‘just in case’.
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I have been known to be particularly obsessive when it comes to character creation. In games like Mass Effect and Dragon Age, once I create a new character (which can take…a while) and the game starts, if I see *anything* wrong in the character I created – her nose is too high, his hair is ugly, the skin tone looks off – I’ll go back and start over. Sometime its takes me a whole session of play to get my character *just right.* It drives my husband bonkers, haha. And actually, it makes me a little crazy too. 🙂
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We’ve started to notice a similar trait in my stepson: sometimes he enjoys creating his character and making sure they look ‘just right’, more than playing the game itself! He’ll also stop the gameplay at regular intervals and go into third-person mode so he can check out what he looks like. 😉
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I do that too! Especially when I get new armor or costumes – I always want to see what my character looks like in his/her new gear. Also, if I think the new stuff doesn’t look right, I’ll switch back to what was more appealing, even if it’s lower quality. 🙂
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Ethan does that as well ha ha ha! He asks us which bit of equipment is better in terms of stats – but will then proceed to check out the appearance of both and pick the one he thinks makes his character look more awesome!!
The next time he’s playing something, I’m going to record it and do an outtakes video of all the times he makes his character pose. 😉
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Reblogged this on DDOCentral.
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i have a really bad habit of binge gaming 😂 i went a month without playing fallout and then suddenly left work early for like two weeks straight so i could go home and play it 😂xx
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Come on, binge gaming is the best! It’s not often you get an entire day to do nothing but play one video game straight, without any adulting getting in the way – but when you do, you’ve got to make the most of it!!
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damn straight!
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Haha, great list! I’m actually guilty of cleaning the controller or doing research. With the controller thing, especially if family or friends use it and there’s a smudge or dirt on it, I clean the crap out of that thing. My clean hands are not touching a dirty controller. Nope, not happening! 😛
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I must admit, I’m guilty of cleaning my controller after my stepson uses it. Ten-year olds tend to pick up plenty of germs at school and get lots of colds!
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If I’m grinding or doing something repetitive and not story oriented, I’ll turn the volume down low, put on my headphones, and listen to a podcast or something. It’s a great way to multitask! Other than that I can’t think of anything particularly weird I do. I’m already weird enough :p
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I need to try this out when I’ve got to be on a conference call for work! He he he
We like weirdness here – normal is boring. 😉
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In multiplayer games, I constantly reload my weapon after killing someone, even if it only took one shot. I need my ammo to be at full in my weapon at all times, I feel uncomfortable if it is not.
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Hey, another person who does this! Welcome to the club. 🙂
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in games that offer several branches of dialogue, i go through and select each and every dialogue option. I do this so much to the point that I’ll sometimes see a good vs evil choice, choose evil, see what happens, then reload my save, and choose good and continue playing… takes me a while to get through games…
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Wow… now that’s dedication… I can imagine how long it must take! Is it disappointing when you don’t see much of a change after selecting all the dialogue options?
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I’ve never really run into that situation where choosing both options weren’t different. Usually the games I feel do a good job of indicating the results will be drastically different before choosing.
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I’ve been replaying the Blackwell adventures recently after along time away from the series, and I was surprised at how little the dialogue choices affected the next line of conversation. Saying that though, it was kind of what I needed at the time; I wanted to be able to just sit back and enjoy the story, rather than feeling the pressure to choose the ‘right’ answer.
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Yea that pressure sucks. I mostly noticed it in things like Mass effect. Where you can for example, put up with a reporters questions or choose to knock them out, which was hilarious to watch
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Ah Mass Effect… I’ve been wanting to go back and replay the entire series from the start for a while now! With November 7th coming up, it could be the right time. 😉
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Ha, I just wrote about Monkey Island the other day in a blog about great games from 1997. Anyhow when I play old school zapper games, I always find myself reloading even when I have plenty of ammo. Maybe it’s some weird thing with my hands, don’t know… Cool Article 🙂
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It looks like so many of us do this! I wrote a part 2 for this post based on the fact a lot of people I chatted to do ‘multiple saves’ – I think I might have to do a part 3 on ‘continuous reloading’.
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This is one interesting blog post. Mine is I guess too much research & experimentation, and naming characters from other games, heck I also name my characters on celebrities and drag queens. lol!
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Welcome to our weird little community ha ha ha! Saying that though: after hearing that so many of us have these habits, perhaps we’re not so weird after all. 😉
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Interesting read! I don’t know if this would be considered a weird habit, but I tend to collect the game guides. I love to buy the guides the same time getting the game. But I don’t typically look inside the guide until after I beat the game.
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I buy the guides for games I’ve really enjoyed playing so I’ve got something to keep! There’s something about owning an item related to your favourite titles… I kind of miss the physical boxes and thick user manuals that used to come with games when I was a kid…
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Yes, I miss the boxes as well!
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True😂😂😂😂😂
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I’m definitely a frequent reloader, even if I’ve just spent a few bullets I’ll be ducking down or running a corner for cover to reload before jumping back into the action. Nothing worse than going up against several enemies and only having 12 bullets out of your 30 magazine! It’s heart breaking!
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Hey, another member in the reloading club – it’s amazing how many of us do this! Always be prepared, right? 😉
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I have found, recently, that I am getting more involved in lore for the games I’m playing. Not only what is happening right now in the game, but in the past as well. A well built story.
I also rarely use fast travel in a game unless I’m replaying it.
Great list and great idea!
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I completely agree with the fast-travel thing; I only ever use it if I’m so far away from where I need to be and I don’t have much time to play. Otherwise, I’m worried about missing something during the journey that I’d rather walk or ride to the destination.
This could make a good subject for a future post… thank you for the idea! 🙂
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Amazing stuff! If you’re interested in the new F1 2017 game by Codemasters, do check out the link, where I review the game and talk about some key differences to the predecessor.
[this out-of-context link has been edited by Later Levels – please think before you comment!]
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I’m definitely the type of person who turns/leans when playing actually racing games, but that also extends to pretty much any game where I have to dodge in battle. If I’m not thinking about it I will try and “dodge” out of the way of the enemy on screen with my physical body. I’m playing Witcher 3 right now and trying really hard not to do it as I keep losing track of Geralt. Oops!
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My other-half pointed out I doing this while playing Horizon Zero Dawn earlier this year! I didn’t even realise – it was only when he showed me that he and the cats had moved to one end of the sofa, that it actually made sense. 😂
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Ha ha! I’ve been ducking when my partner has been playing Horizon as well. It just feels so real! 😛
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I’m glad to hear I’m not the only one doing it. 😉
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Great article I love these type of games, I had few bad habits on some games where I would keep pressing wrong button and get me killed. No one would believe me lol they just thought I was terrible at the game.
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I do that too! I sometimes get myself into the habit of pressing the wrong button, then can’t seem to break the pattern even though I consciously try! My other-half never seems to believe me… 😉
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