Comment on My mental health has improved after deleting games that have microtransactions in them
RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I don’t think its so much the microtransactions as it is games with a highly competitive spirit. PvP games in particular. I don’t find myself having any negative feelings after playing a game like Zenless Zone Zero or Goddess of Victory NIKKE, but after about two matches of Dead by Daylight, a game with a notoriously toxic playerbase, I definitely feel worse than before I play, particularly if the matches do not go well for me.
Im the kind of player that doesn’t spend money unless I feel like something provides me value. Ive played ZZZ since release and haven’t spent a single cent, and NIKKE since its release and only spent $25 total. I have enough self-control to handle those games and can spot bad value in games like gacha games pretty fast. So for me it isn’t really about microtransactions, its definitely about competition with other players, and interactions with them. Playing a game of DBD, winning, and then having everyone (usually TTV streamers) call you names in chat or on their stream and report/mercilessly harrass you ( for winning in a video game, mind you) is a completly different level of toxic that I doubt many would be able to properly handle long term.
Its why I pretty much never recommend DBD to people.
Buttflapper@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I agree with the rest of what you said but this part is crazy. Gacha games are so heavily monetized it’s wild. I played zenless as well up until a few weeks ago, that game is such a trash can. I used every single currency that I had earned in the entire game and couldn’t get The character I wanted. Some people spend as much as $2,000 on the game just trying to get a single character. That kind of gambling is even worse than what I’m talking about
RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Well the issue is that some people confuse a want for a need.
Wanting characters is great but the problem comes from being disappointed that you didn’t get what you want as fast as you thought you should. The true method of playing a gacha game is like running a marathon, its not a race and you take it slow. Play in your free time, down time, whatever. I don’t play those games as my main game, just as a side game. Sometimes I miss a day for the login or a special event or even a character that I really wanted but at the end of the day, its just a video game and I am not going to die without that thing or character I wanted. If I get it, its simply a bonus to the joy I get from playing the game already. I don’t play a game long if I don’t have fun with it at least more than when I don’t.
Some people don’t have self control, and I am not saying that the games are not monetized in a predatory way. But I view it no different from actual gachapon: capsule toys. You know, like a gumball machine, but the little plastic ball that has a random small toy or stickers inside. You pay, turn the knob, and you always win something, you just don’t know what. To me, I dont consider that the same as gambling like with a slot machine. That’s just my opinion, and I sure I am in the minority with that, and with my overall attitude towards gacha games in general.
Buttflapper@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Any lottery style game (let’s be honest, Gacha = Lottery) is psychologically harmful in my opinion because it trains you to gamble, there’s no other way around it. These games purposefully condition you to spend currency that you’ve earned, lose majorly, and then get rushes of dopamine when you finally win. They are designed to keep you wanting more. If you think I’m making this up, then read Got ya!: The Psychology of Gacha Addiction
There’s nothing remotely healthy about this at all, which runs completely contrary to what my personal goals are
RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Well as I said, it is my opinion and I have the self-control to be able to play and enjoy gacha games without being financially irresponsible. When I pull for a character in a gacha game, for example, I just skip the animation to go directly to the results. Not only is it faster but it also bypasses the “anticipation building” that the animation and sound effects create. I am glad you have learned for yourself how to have better mental health, but I am saying for me its not about MTX, its more about competition or competitive style games.
Don’t get me wrong, I still play competitive games. I love me some Battlefield 4, Forza Motorsport, Dead By Daylight (when the people I play against decide to not be serial harrassers), and others. Its just that I try to view it differently. Again, its only a video game and at the end of the day, I am not going to die over anything in the game, winning or losing or whatever. It can sometimes make me feel bad when I have a long losing streak or if I get harrassed, but when that happens I just turn off that game for a week or two and play something else. I don’t have to go to the extreme of uninstalling, but I can understand that some do and that’s totally fine.