Video games, sports, hiking, movies, the opera, flying ultralights, riding motorcycles, and all other such activities are leisure. They take up precisely the amount of time you devote to them.

Eliminating all leisure from your life just lowers your quality of life. You are a human being. You need to enjoy life and that means doing what brings joy to your life. Life isn't just about being productive. The biggest regret that men have on their deathbeds is spending too much time at work. The best approach to life is to maintain a balance between productivity, leisure, self-improvement, and charity.

Everything in moderation. That even applies to playing games.

certainly most casual gaming is about as productive as bating off but you guys all need to at least make an exception for top esports players who make actually tons of money competing and streaming and get pussy. Top Starcraft 2/dota/lol/fortnite players can make millions of dollars. Ninja was paid a million dollars just to stream Apex Legends at launch. Even Mang0 who plays fucking melee for the nintendo gamecube makes 6 figures a month and has a wife and kid and a house in SoCal mostly from streaming money. prolly a better example for this sub is Zero who's loaded, has a hot latina gf, and is basically famous or atleast compared to anybody on this sub unless jordan peterson is lurking around on here. You're really gonna tell them to stop playing videogames cuz its bad for their personal development? Not that most people have any good chance of becoming a top esport player but if its your dream it couldn't be much worse than trying to become an artist

Used to game for 8+ hours every day.

On a recovery from gaming. Got a job, currently studying(although I hate studying but i gotta get my diploma). Working on my discipline and hitting the gym whenever free. Maximum amount is one hour/day, no more. Also, got goals to learn to drive and an extra language, for fun.

While I replaced(the key is to replace, not to "cut" - it will come easy) gaming with gym/studying/job/personal development, I still feel pretty lonely. That is the biggest con there. Since I live in a metropolis, people are busy as hell, and have no time for small things usually.

How do I eliminate loneliness? Despite studying/occassional gym/job I am still kind of a homebody fuckface with a messy room. I don't get invited to parties too much and etc.

This is a really good point and I am trying to get my head around quitting or cutting down massively on gaming. But the main problem I have is that my family is religious and I has home schooled. So I am actually not allowed to go out with friends from school and my friends that are religious live far away + beta they're cucks. So when i'm not working, spending time at the gym or cooking up some meals all I can do is stay on my computer, watch youtube and play video games. And the thing that is good about computers is that my parents DO NOT get involved, it's like a small bit of freedom for me with my tyrannical christian parents.

If anyone has any advice I would really appreciate it, and I AM open to changing. Really not trying to make excuses.

I made a decent amount of money as a kid playing games professionally and I can still agree with this sentiment. For majority of people, it is going to be a huge stunt to your development as a Red Pilled man. When you have your shit in order and discipline is on point, you can then afford to introduce more leisure bullshit activities like gaming.

Men, just remember when you're on your deathbed and you look over your life you'll realise you have nothing to show for who you were or your achievements to your son/family. All those thousands of hours accumulating pixels just to have nothing to show of it really changes ones perspective.

Or just think about how quick all that time invested into a game dissapears when the game shuts down/new series hit.

It's just a major waste of time boys. Find a musical instrument to learn, go out to a bar and enjoy your night, or find a local group of interest online. Also eat enough protein each day to gain muscle.

Best of luck.

[deleted]

I see a lot of yo'all saying that every other hobby but games brings some gains, like guitar or photography.

​

You're wrong, games cane also help with your personal development, you just need to know *how* to play a game. When I have my shit together, I have *scheduled* daily games' sessions. Why? Here's why:

1. Whether you like it or not, you're a human, you must rest and relax. If a challenge that the games gives you is just right, you relax and recharge. This is especially important when you are going through a stressfull period of you life and sleeping is more problematic. You can drink, jerk off, or play.
2. You can learn from games. A lot. I really enjoy learning languages, so when I want to polish my Spanish/Swedish/English or whatever, I just change language in one of my favorite games to the language I am currently learning. Strategy and FPS are easy, RPGs once I am more advanced. This is the easiest way to learn.
3. You can learn other things too. EU-like game for the world map, fact based games for other/documentaries purposes (vide "1979 Revolution").
4. For those with SO - easy bonding time.

​

Recently I am doing it too much (see first point) and I know will cut it back, but I would not shame other gamers just because they do like it.

I agree. I’m just glad I realised this before it was too late. dramatically cut out gaming time since I turned 19 and replaced it with learning Forex and I’m hoping to remove gaming from my life permanently.

This entire post can be summarized here:

Here’s the difference between those art forms, though… nobody watches their favorite film for hours and hours, day after day after day.

Is it possible to enjoy video games responsibly and live a happy, productive life? You bet. But it’s also possible to live a happy, productive life with a snail fetish. That doesn’t make the snail fetish a positive thing.

Building a lovely city in Cities Skylines, skill in Fortnite or base in Minecraft or Day is like taking care of a garden. You're building something beautiful and getting lost in the process of achievement and fun it brings. That's all and good. Very few people want to only work, sleep and eat all their life. But if you garden for 16 hours a day, then you have a problem, not a garden.

This is something that has really resonated with me as of recent.

I was sat thinking the other day about how all the people i know spend their spare time. It occurred to me that all of my successful friends, the ones who have good careers and great social lives, do not own gaming consoles. Literally none of them.

When they're bored they grab their bike and go for a cycle. They call up other friends and arrange to do something. They go online and learn how to make something.

Boredom can be a good thing. It can spur you to get up and do something worthwhile.

They socially isolate you.

It's true. There was a time in my teen/early adult years when all I could talk about was my last accomplishments in the current game I was playing. Meanwhile, the cool dudes from school and college had interesting stories to tell and that left me hanging there, wondering how to be interesting. Turns out that cool stories comes from stuff you do on your life that is out of the ordinary, paying attention to your surroundings and also make a spin on the fact to turn them interesting.

I still can't get away from video games though, have built a large part of my personal life around it. Old games still excite me, my best friends are really deep into this hobby and I spent a part of my life trying to be a game developer, which didn't worked out. Plus, if you hear the news, the truth is this isn't a very exciting job, specially in current political trends.

But I'm trying to treat it like a drug addiction. Started cutting the hours, doing creative hobbies, lifting and interacting socially more, including doing some approach.

OP is right, you probably spent too much of your life in a fantasy world and now wonder why it all feels so lonely and empty.

Its a tough reality, but i agree with OP. I feel most people fall into a routine that feels good, and if they can "Unwind" or "Kill and Hour or Two". But all your doing is wasting time, opposed to creating an interesting life. Read a book, learn something, use that time to work on some shit!

Noone is going to be impressed by your Call of Duty kill streak. Go work on your stuff!

RPG addict here. Yes it's 100% true so what if I've got a resume of beating all the top RPGs what does that get me IRL.

Imagine if I was doing self-development that whole time.

This is an important point that will probably be downvoted, but is correct. Too many dudes get ‘stuck’ at the same age when they first immerse themselves in games and never grow up.

Suddenly they’re 20 with no job, living at home, eating chips and drinking Mountain Dew whilst wondering why they have such poor social skills and are behind everyone else they know.

If they’re even self aware enough to wonder that - but most aren’t and will blame everything around them rather than admit they wasted so much time playing video games instead of bettering themselves.

Damn, boys. Based on the walls of text here I am guessing OP hit on a touchy subject.

I would advise you to use these heuristics:

1. Are you procrastinating doing something that you know will improve your life to play video games? Are you using games to avoid getting out of your comfort zone? Then you should read OP's advice.

2. Are you genuinely refreshed / in better mood after playing video games? Is that relief helping you get to your life goals? Then you probably don't need to worry about it.

Well, cable news is to old people what video games are to young men.

True. My grandma who sends me outside to play while she's in a different room doing her binge watching bullshit reality-TV, while I'm binge playing videogames. However she's 60 years older than me. And she's right.

Video games had been a focal point of my life every since I was a toddler until recently. Someone here directed me to the r stopgaming, best favor anyone has done for me. I really wish it had come earlier, in the form of my parents beating me over the head with my consoles. The subreddit directed me to WHO signs of gaming addiction, I finally accepted there was a problem when I showed every one of them. It was weird too because I'm well functioning: I'm in shape, educated, sociable, gainfully employed. However, it was like I had to do my best to keep everyone ignorant of this beast I had to feed.

The truth is that the habit is highly destructive. It takes up so much time. It messes with your reward system. It takes away your sense of autonomy as you become accustomed to a curated world. It holds you back in social circles. It exposes you to terrible, horrific things as if they are commonplace. It's not a way to unwind, it's stressful. Looking at games after you're off the addiction, all you see is stress for no reward; not excitement. It puts you on edge and harms your relationships with people close to you.

I do think that there are games out there that are fun and enriching experiences in imagination. But the industry has turned into casino exploitation for 90% of them and it's very difficult to get involved in games in general without participating in their cash grabs; getting absorbed completely. Slimy high business execs are entering the industry all over the place because they smell a great way to extract money from people they don't respect. I for one don't want to be a part of the latter group.

The moral is that yes, you can go on gaming your whole life and be just okay. However, I don't know a single gamer that thinks being "okay" is just fine or else they wouldn't find competitive joy in games. Some day, every gamer is confronted with the real rewards possessed by inferior men with superior habits and knows that awful disappointment in themselves. When that day comes you better hope you're still a young man.

Let's be clear this isn't just video games. That's also parties, going to the pub, game, sex, women, movies, books not related to self improvment or teaching, posting on reddit (including TRP)...

Actually nothing has meaning in this life, except the meaning you decide to put into it. I don't play video game that much (not at all actually) ,but I'am 100% convinced that many that are so obsessed with game and sex are as addict and un-productive as the one playing video games.

And that the point. Going too extreme on something is not necessarily great.

Many of trp 'hard' rules are only in place because they represent significant tripping blocks for building personal power

Ie:

• no booze

• no jerking off

• eat clean

• no weed

• no video games

• get off social media

Etc etc. The average user needs to start out by going cold turkey on these, as for many (or even most) of the guys on here, these habits have contributed significantly to lowering the quality of their lives.

These things are all fine in moderation, once you understand the reason they are dangerous. In order to truly internalize these lessons, you must put them into practise first.

TL;DR stop being a lazy ass faggot if you want to get somewhere in life

Come on, guys. You have to live your life the way this guy says to be a REAL red piller, and you want to be a REAL red piller, don't you?

When did this sub turn into random dudes talking about how things they don't like are "pathetic"? Listening to these dweebs is the embodiment of blue pill. If someone tells you that something you enjoy in moderation as part of a well rounded life is "pathetic," that person is trash and his views are trash. That person is merely trying to build up what they like by saying what you like is "pathetic," and there are few things in the world more beta than that. Have the balls to like what you like and not worry about what other people like. Be your own man, don't puff yourself up by slamming what other people enjoy in moderation.

Here's where i challenge you people.

If you wanna play video games, sure. But make sure you are fucking willing to get up at 4am to do so. At that hour, you can go do whatever the fuck you want for an hour or so.

The rest of your waking hours should be spent improving yourself and situation.

Waking up extremely early is the key. You get an hour of additional time ahead of the world. That is the "free" hour you get to waste.

If you dont get up before everyone else does, then too fucking bad. You arent allowed to game or waste a productive day.

Remember, we are all in a fucking Darwinian competition. Survival of the fittest here. You want that dream job, fuck you, so does a hundred of people do. Are you hungrier than them? I doubt it. You want to start a successful business? Fuck you. So does the next Bezos. He is hungrier than you and not wasting his time playing video games.

That chick you wanted to fuck so badly. She's happy fucking a non gamer.

The message is crystal clear. Games are a consumption. When you game, you are a consumer. Not a producer. You are wasting your time. And the only time you are allowed to waste is 4-5am in the morning.

You are very right. The problem with gaming is that that time you invest in it is almost never capitalised on. You invest a lot but gain nothing on the long run. Instant gratification only. And believe me I know what I'm talking about : I absolutely love video games. Always have, like, to the core. The culture, the games, the art, everything.

So quitting completely and forever is especially hard for someone like me. Even if I make sure to not launch a single game these days I still can't stop scrolling the gaming news almost everyday for exemple. It's deeply embedded in me.

It is so hard to see what's wrong with such a hobby. All you know is that it brings you joy. And I sure used to rationalise it by telling myself that the time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.

But I know perfectly that your post has a point and a solid one because in the end am I happy with what I have accomplished after decades and countless hours of gaming? ...

I bloody am not!

I mean go and try figuring out any sort of meaning out of accomplishing average stats on some arbitrary virtual entertainment values... So preposterous it's kinda sad.

I never capitalised on all that time that I spent and it's for sure completely wasted. Forever.

The sad part is that you'll all probably only realise that when getting older once it's almost too late. Good news is that it never really is too late. But you have to unplug first and it's the hardest part. We know that all to well around here.

I get shit done and still game. Also make money while I game.

One thing rep pill taught me is to not give a fuck. Call me a looser if I game for 6 hrs straight, whatever. I'm still hitting goals, gyming, and building an empire Baby.

I put over 750 hours in to Overwatch over the last 2 years and I wholeheartedly agree with this post. My PS4 is currently packed up but I've unpacked it on impulses before. It's an addiction I'm constantly battling. However, as my body is improving from the lifting, I'm gaining more confidence to go out and explore the world as if real life is a videogame in itself.

I believe videogames are potentially the worst thing to have happened to the modern generations. It doesn't help that they are getting ultra-immersive (think Cyberpunk and Death Stranding) because all that's doing is beautifying the gigantic time sink that is videogames. I left friends who were in their early-mid 20s that had the emotional maturity of 15 year olds. Most of them also never had a gf. They constantly talked about growing up in to strong, adventurous travellers (basically the typical characteristics that make up a good protagonist) but would finish each day with 3-6 hours of Fortnite. I was watching them destroy their lives and left their friend group (for many other reasons too) before they destroyed mine.

I know somebody who spent the last two weeks playing FIFA for 10 hours a day and thus getting fired from his apprentice. Although this person is somebody i fringly know, it has inversely affected my life in ripples. He left his flat so a work partner, his roommate, is now too stressed out to get any work done.

Moral of the story. Even if you dont give a fuck about what might happen, you are always affecting people around you.

Too many people I know who went straight to a job instead of higher education come home, fuck their ugly gf and then play the newest vidya. I remember seeing the video game collection of another fringe relative growing everytime I came by, games that objectively sucked, bought new at 60-80$ a pop. Thats nearly a full days work at minimum wage, just to come home and waste 4-6 hours on games and Netflix. These guys were fat, lazy, had no discipline. Their girlfriends reflected that too. Unfuckable even with a stick.

​

Personally I have had troubles with vidya, but I have managed to leave it behind me. I like to play one game every now and then. It took me all of June-February to complete God Of War, which is about 100 hours. Thats 8*30 = 240 days. I played at a rate of half an hour a day, and this was in a period of my life where I was dealing with a lot of mental stress, since then Ive pretty much left the PS4 untouched, I simply dont have time to between all the stuff going on in my life.

Op is spot on. I might add that even if you play video games "responsibily" we tend to talk to people about the things we do. Think vegans and CrossFitters. Well what's going to be a natural thing to talk about when you play video games all day? That's right, Fortnight, FIFA, Call of Duty, etc. Good luck finding an HB7+ that will tolerate that day in and day out. I have buddies that play games and I'm annoyed after hearing them speak about it for 3 mins. And full disclosure I played games all while growing up and into early adulthood (mid 30's now) until I realized just how much it was holding me back. Go lift and talk to chicks about that!

Just like every other substance that can be abused without proper moderation. Video games aren’t objectively bad, it’s not being able to make yourself a rounded person because it’s the only thing you do is what’s bad. If I sat in my room playing guitar 6 hours a day I’d say that’s bad as well. It’s socially isolating, no real-world accomplishment accept for my own pleasure, etc.

I play video games, I practice guitar, I go to the gym, I study for my classes, and I hang out with friends when I have time. Spread out your interests.

Absolutely 100% true. Really well written too. Cold stone hard truths.

We all die anyway, so in fact any achievements are meaningless. If you want to enjoy life then games are good as long as you satisfied with other areas of your life and you have nothing more interesting to do. Life is hollow and anyone can decide how to fill this hollowness, be it with games or new car or hobbies, etc.

Great post, valuable insights here.

"If reading my post provoked an emotional response in you, that should tell you something. Stuff that doesn’t have a kernel of truth doesn’t bother people." This is an important idea that applies not only to video games but to anything in life.

If something makes us feel a negative emotion, are response is to dismiss it. But really, there's almost always an opportunity to learn something whether that be an article that pisses you off, a new habit that stresses you out, or a person that makes you feel envy.

Negative emotions are like a compass that points towards hidden value.

They’re nothing but dopamine vacuums. Game designers sit for hours behind closed doors using A/B testing and plenty of other tactics on how to make these games addicting as possible.

When you achieve something in the game, it tricks your brain, making you think you actually achieved something. When in reality, all you did was virtually jack off in your fake pixelated life.

Break the cycle, brothers. Rise above.

Meh. It's not videogames that are the problem. People who loose themselves in them would find another way to screw up their lives if there were no videogames around. It's just entertainment. Playing games isn't any different from watching movies and tv shows, reading novels, watching sports, going out to drink beer with friends. Neither of those activities is really beneficial to you, but they're pleasurable and people need some pure pleasure in their lives. Existence that's solely about making money and improving yourself is a miserable proposition.

I’m saying your life is pathetic.

By who's standard? Yours? The all holy TRP doctrine written by people claiming to fuck 12 different chicks every weekend and have 30 more on the waiting list? Lol, okay.

I'll say it again. TRP is about self improvement. It's not about adhering to some universal TRP standard or fucking as many chicks as possible. TRP is a set of tools to reaching your own self set goals in life, whatever those may be. Sure, videogames bad, if the goal is to reach whatever life goal you're trying to reach. But your life goal isn't my life goal, and you and I are not the same. We take joy from entirely different things in life. Maybe your idea of fun is going out with friends every saturday, dancing and owning the club or some shit. Guess what? To me that would be the worst possible way to ever spend my free saturday and no amount of shoving red pills down my throat will ever change that, because I simply don't enjoy clubbing.

So how about you let people have interests in whatever way they want and we meet on some common ground; doing anything too much is bad. Everyone here agrees that videogames can be extremely addicting and it can be very easy to let them dominate your life to an unhealthy degree.

Also, just to feed some balance into this argument, videogames are the biggest entertainment industry in the world. They have outgrown movies, music, concerts and any kind of art form you can think of. There are people making more money than you can ever dream of making simply by playing videogames for 8 hours a day and spending another 8 hours turning that game play into videos on Youtube. There are people who have an audience of hundreds, thousands, or even millions of people. There are people who have built themselves a business, have their own office, their own merchandise, by playing video games every single day, for hours on end and entertaining others by doing so. And if you think this covers just a handful of people, you'd be wrong. This is a thriving industry that's getting bigger every day, that people want to be involved in and that can come with fame and fortune. And yeah that doesn't describe the group of people you're talking about, but it does illustrate the point that videogames aren't just some unimportant geek culture thing anymore that nobody cares about. It's real, it big and it's out there. And it can definitely be a social activity.

Moderation is key, and that goes for just about everything.

Why the fuck would you use Elon Musk as a role model for masculinity anyways

Only beta bois play video games. Real alpha men make posts on Reddit.

I did have waste a bunch of my life in games, but at least i don't enjoy it anymore i enjoyed while i was younger now it's just news or youtube video. Try to focus my attention on other stuff. Reading watching movies or studying trying to better myself.

Edit: only game on my mobile while on a bus or waiting, and only when i'm not on the mood to read. Same to browse instagram, but always trying to lower the ammount of time in it.

Dude quitting Fortnite made me realize how pathetic it is to scream about getting 20 kills over getting a job that pays well.

I agree with much of what you say, however, I would say the following in their defense:

1. You get a watered-down, simulated experience of WAR, minus the risk to life and limb. Eventually, they will have completely immersive VR War sims, as the technology is moving in that direction. Enough time spent in a war sim convinces one of the ultimate folly of participating in a war IRL, because no matter how "skilled" you get, you can still get fragged by a newb... just like in real life!

2. You can learn a fair amount about complicated subject matter, in addition to war, such as economics, history, myth, psychology, etc. etc. all through the video-game media.

3. Art is embedded in video-games, or at least quality ones, and you can be turned on to art in other media, such as books, films, essays, short stories, that are presented in video-games.

4. Video-games, even though they are hypnotic time sinks, are interactive. You have to think when you play them, or at least react. You can also learn about programming.

It's a double-edged sword, as is everything else.

This is new, bleeding edge technology. Moralists have looked askance at gaming and gamers for years, and yet games like chess teach strategic thinking, games like poker teach one to read body language, so they aren't complete wastes of time. Are they the best ways of learning those objectives? Maybe not, but they are paths nonetheless. The danger is in dwelling there for too long without learning the lessons, or after the lessons have been learned because of the pure addictive nature of the experience.

Again, this is bleeding edge technology. The behavioral psychologists HOPED to create an addictive experience, but they didn't know they would succeed. However, people build immunity over time, resist, and in many cases, throw off the electronic shackles, and then they have a new sensitivity to the control potential of the technology. As someone who wasted a fair amount of time playing primitive games, I took one look at the games that create perma-quests for you, and noped the fuck away without even trying them, opting instead to pick experiences with built-in limits to replay value. Even so, the behaviorists pushed back by adding replay value in the form of "challenges," "easter eggs," "XP." It's obviously a digital ghetto for disenfranchised young males. The smarter ones figure it out early on and learn to profit from it in some way. The dumber ones are trapped their indefinitely. Just like any other ideology or religion can trap people in a false paradigm.

Some video games are works of art, most video games are crap, Deus Ex teaches you about the world you live in.

It's real easy to list the good shit games taught you but at the end of the day you are still isolated and stuck to a screen, the social aspect isn't completely real even with your online friends. I think the time invested elsewhere would benefit your life a lot more. If you're using it to escape you're fucked, but looking at it even from a point of doing it in moderation, I can see some unhealthy ass games that should just be avoided. I probably just value improving my reality and experiencing meaningful social interactions because I can't get over how pointless and disconnecting that feels like to do in a game. Life is just too intricate, I don't wanna boiled down version.

As a game developer, I beg to differ. Video games are my form of income!

So then you must not watch sports then right?

How come all the posts on here are these huge multi-paragraph essays?? Are people getting paid to write all this stuff?

The problem with playing vidya is that then I think about the whole day and become too unaware of my surroundings

I got over playing video games by myself around the age of 16. After that...unless I was with friends and we were playing together, I mostly didn't see the point.

But I can't take the high-ground in this one. I had other time/ energy wasting habits it took me many years to cut out of my life. It's funny how easy it is to nod your head in agreement in posts like these- but then fall silent with a reality check when you read something that hits closer to home.

I think real growth and personal progress comes when even in your free time, you choose to do things you don't feel like doing because of what they'll bring you in the long-term.

E.g I am currently learning Spanish on Duolingo. I do weight training at the gym 3 days a week and martial arts training one night a week.

Do I enjoy doing it?

Sometimes.

Do I do it because I 'feel' like it?

Often the answer is 'no'.

I've lost count of how many times I've been so tempted to go "Fuck it" and not bother going to gym because I didn't feel like it. So often I've opened up Duolingo, just wanting to get through my days' prescribed modules ASAP because I 'feel' like I'd rather be doing other things. So many times I've driven to karate training and quietly hoped, ever so slightly, that our sensei will message us to tell us training has been called off.

Yet I still do these things because I want the end results of regularly doing these things, and that means doing them even when I don't 'feel' like them. They bring me a body I'm proud of, the ability to speak the same language as the type of girls I generally have a thing for, and the confidence of knowing that if I find myself in a physical confrontation, I can back myself.

You can smoke as much weed, drink as much, watch as many hours of sport/ movies/ TV shows, play video games and jerk off as much as you want if you 'feel like it'- but the results of doing that are going to send your life down the shitter.

Just curious on what your view is about the way i handle video games. Before I found TRP I used to hit the 40 to 80 hour mark weekly, now I abide to a few rules when playing.

-I spend no more than 20% of my time 'unwinding', the other 80% is producing (work) or investing(working out). One week I spend 10% of my time chilling with friends, the other 10% playing video games. Other weeks I spend 20% of my time playing video games.

-I only play with friends or at least one other person, to counter the social declining aspect.

Would this be something you can get behind, and if not, what would you recommend i replace it with since literally my entire social circle plays video games, and multiple are even chasing high level diplomas in the gaming industry.

Don't they develop your hand-eye coordination and long/short-term thinking or something?

The best comment I've ever seen on here regarding this was by u/Thotwrecker.

"This subject comes up in many forms and I can always predict the top level comment.

I say stop playing video games, they are a waste of time building no real life skills, and tricking your brain into thinking you are improving / conquering challenges / facing down real competition. And thus sapping your will to find those opportunities in real life for masculine growth.

Top level comment says "dude maybe YOU had a problem with video games but that's on you, video games are fine in moderation. I make 200k a year and play LoL daily, so kindly fuck off from attacking my beloved pasttime (present-time?).

You say "don't smoke, it's a worthless hobby, there's no point, and if you think it's adding value to your life you are probably just hamstering to rationalize it because it feels good."

Top comment... "Nah bro you can smoke in moderation. Here, smoke in these reddit approved ways, have a vape, have an edible, and by the way, you can be successful and healthy and productive while responsibly using pot."

The bottom line is we all have to make DIFFERENT sacrifices to reach a level of success. I can't eat all this delicious shit, I am a food addict and if I start eating shit food, my puny little brain is going to want more, and I will start eating more shit. I'll feel like crap then and I won't work out. 6 months will go by and I'll have undone my last cut. That is because I have self-knowledge; I know I love food, I know I have a bottomless stomach and I still can fuck up a buffet like I'm a broke college kid. So I have to have stricter control and stricter rules in order to be happy and fit on a long term basis.

Another guy might be eating whatever and working out 2x a week, and will look shredded. I know these guys, many of them are 'naturals' physically in the sense of having great genetics and athleticism. These guys can fuck a pizza into their gullet every week and wash it down with a few porters and they'll be fine. Their relationship with food gets to be "I eat what I feel like, and magically my body still looks and performs pretty good."

So the key to TRP is "I do not get to do what a natural gets to do."

If you are a fuck up, you don't get to eat shit. You have to eat the chicken and greens and sweet potatoes and shit. If you are a fuck up, you don't get to smoke. You need to be maximizing your alertness and productivity, and you never should be just chilling in a bored state. Ever, like fucking kill yourself if you want to do that, because you need to be extreme. If you are a fuckup, you need ESCAPE VELOCITY from the shithole of your life, which means you don't get to just do what you see already successful people doing.

Let me repeat that - if you are NOT SUCCESSFUL, then you cannot just do what you see successful people doing. You must have a more extreme work ethic, a more retarded absolutist attitude, and less "cheat" days if any.

Now about weed, is weed really that bad? No. The only problem with weed as far as I'm concerned (especially if you aren't smoking shit-tier reggie joints) is that it makes being bored and doing nothing "fun". Go fuck yourself if you want to chime in like "when I'm high I like to write books and compose music and program apps! Hurr hurr!" You know damn well you're the exception and 99% of redditors are watching netflix, eating food, or doing the same dumb shit with the same beta low achiever friends when they get high. South Park nailed it - weed is bad because instead of doing other things, you're smoking weed which is going to help you enjoy doing things that aren't helpful or productive.

"But but thotwrecker life isn't about being productive! Why do we have to be such nazis! You are allowed to relax bro!"

No fuck that, Elon Musk is allowed to relax. Successful people are allowed to relax and do things that aren't focused around accomplishing shit. Unsuccessful people aka all of you who don't own a home, don't drive what they want to drive, don't have the rotation of bitches they want, etc... you should orient your life around being productive. You shouldn't tolerate a hobby that lets you have fun sitting on the couch. If you are unsuccessful, you have weak will. If you have weak will, then the lucy leaf is too much for you - you will enjoy it responsibly until you realize you're smoking to help yourself avoid stress or anxiety about your life being shitty. You're using it responsibly until you blaze up when you have nothing better to do, and you realize that when I ask you what was the last book you read, you respond with something you read in college.

So that's my perspective. The Red Pill knowledge is only useful if you have the self-awareness to say "here is where I am in life, and here is where I'd like to be." TRP is also about looking at yourself in the mirror and figuring out why that gap exists. If there's a gap in your life and you're spending a lot of time on gaming, netflix, weed, shit friends, reddit, drinking, whatever it is... then chances are completely eliminating those shit hobbies with an autistic level of absolutism WILL help you. You have to have the self-knowledge to say "I'm a little fuck up who doesn't have the work ethic I need to hit my goals, I'm not fucking the bitches I want to fuck or making the money I want to make, so I don't get to do the fun stuff that a more successful guy would." That is the heart of TRP - you do not get to do what I get to do, and I do not get to do what Chris Pratt gets to do, and he doesn't get to do what Leo gets to do."

They give you ever-increasing dopamine hits for meaningless accomplishments.

This is the key. All the other negatives about video games can be considered acceptable in moderation, but they are very similar to porn in that they give you a false sense of accomplishment.

Jacking off is a lot worse, because you get used to easy solutions.
Watching series, watching tv (for entertainment), reading books (for entertainment), playing games, in general entertainment is bad for your personal development.
Look, you are not wrong about video games, and I'm not defending it, every man that is a grownup knows that. But you can't just bash something because you want to bash it, people will say to you "fuck you", because its something they like.

Like you said Elon plays games, but what people doesn't understand is that he won't play for 24 hours like some other dudes do, he got his shit together before sitting his ass off on his free time.
- And I will say it, *go fuck yourself**, never, ever say that a parent that created a son, had success in life, built a good family, is pathetic, you are fucking pathetic by that comment. Someone comes to me and say that my father or my grandfather is a loser because he likes to watch TV or read his newspaper to pass the time, I take that fucker down, be respectful. This is a no go area.* -

This is going to be filled with comments that are missing the forest for the trees, voicing every imaginable minute exception or addendum to your points.

This lesson is an important one. Hopefully people can see it on the other side of their defense mechanisms .

I agree in the sense that if you're an adult with adult responsibilities, it's probably a good idea to not spend that much time on games. But goddamn did video games teach me a lot of stuff growing up: teamwork, communication, English (not my first language), history, mythology, writing, storytelling, economics, and a bunch of other things that school miserably failed to teach.

Of course it's important to take these lessons and the knowledge and apply it in real life. Games simplify many concepts, and things just ain't as severe in the digital realm as they are in reality -- so one must go out into the real world sooner rather than later.

But video games are in many ways superior to movies or (fictional) books. The "why" is a topic for another time but I reckon there are plenty of book lovers here who will absolutely trash me for this opinion, whereas I don't understand how reading fiction enjoys the kind of reputation that it does -- probably by proxy because all reading is thought to be useful.

I used to play video games like you until I took an arrow to the knee

Weird post. Anything in excess is bad for personal development. Video games were the only reason I didn’t drop out of University after I suffered from injury and multiple health issues, it was the only thing that could satiate my competitive edge in a time where I could not play sports at all or go to the gym as frequently as I’d like.

I think to demonise a form of media like this shows a lack of understanding for the value it provides to peoples live. Maybe I could enhance my “Lifestyle” by only doing yoga, creating works of art or composing music in my free time, but fuck the human brain learns from and values consumption of media, not just production, which is why we as humans love thought provoking works. Now, are video games the most addictive medium? Very likely, it requires more discipline and restraint to play games and maintain balance in ones life but anything can become an addiction with detrimental effects.

A few years back I was overtraining excessively and overstudying, after I’d finished my work I would train for the sport I played to like 1/2am, sleep, wake up at 5:30am and go back and be the first student to get to college and start studying again. I completely burned myself out, because I couldn’t discipline myself to remove my tunnel vision and manage my time usage in a healthier way by limiting the time I trained and studied. Weirdly enough the two things I mentioned I burned out on would typically be considered traditionally “healthy” things to do in my free time.

My point is that any activity has the capacity to either be detrimental or beneficial. Drinking too much water can be deadly, likewise playing video games too much or training too much can lead to all sorts of negative outcomes. If there is one thing I would like people to takeaway from my comment, it would be to not focus on a specific activity like OP and demonise it, but rather to focus on an overall life balance, where neither production or consumption take hold of your life in a way that isolates you, stifles your growth or acts against the progress you’ve built in other areas.

Every time sink is bad for your productivity.

And we all know we have to be more productive because there are taxes to pay and feminists to feed.

Level yourself up in real life.

video games are preventing you from being a successful man.

Fuck being a successful man, then?

I do what makes me happy, period. Video games make me happy. I'm going to continue playing video games.

It's not just entertainment for me. I enjoy video games for the artistic value they have, the same way I'd appreciate a film, book, song, or painting.

You probably wouldn't brush off those art forms as being terrible for your personal development, and if you would, then you're a fucking dunce. Games are no different. It's just another form of art that some people really enjoy. It's okay if you're not into that shit. Everyone has their stupid fucking interests, and I'm sure your interests are REALLY fucking stupid and a complete waste of your life and time like everyone else's are. But to lack that self-awareness and tell other people to stop enjoying what THEY enjoy just because you think they're bad for you personally is the most obnoxious thing ever.

I'm sorry your lifestyle is so fucking dull and dry that all you want to do is fuck women and cry on the Internet when they don't let you or some shit, but some of us have some pretty fun and fulfilling hobbies outside of that, and video games are one of them. I don't envy your pathetic funless lifestyle whatsoever. Shove it up your ass.

Can confirm, spent most of my high school years and beginning of university isolating and playing video games in my room all day. My parents wanted me to work so I did. I had close friends I did shit with on the weekends but I barely studied or picked up hobbies other than guitar.

I had a girlfriend here or there but I was so focused and addicted. I wasted time I wish I had saved up to get into hobbies, hunting, etc. Another point was that I was getting aimlessly drunk with my friends going out to bars and while I grinded on THOTS and went to strip clubs (CAN) I was never really happy and always looking for a better tomorrow.

I am 25 and haven't played video games on a regular basis in over a year and while not perfect my life has improved greatly. I have a gorgeous ltr since then and while not hercules I am pretty lean and toned. Just working on a better job now. You will have nothing to show for your video game history. Absolutely nothing but wasted time.

I think most people can’t handle loneliness. They have this fascinating thing called brain but are totally enslaved by it. Constant entertainment distracts them from all of their problems.

I used to be addicted to gaming, too. I never really enjoyed it though. It made me very aggressive. It merely seemed more interesting then life back then. Maybe it was just a bad habit after all. One day, I simply had enough, sold of all my equipment and deleted all of my accounts. That was one of the better decisions I have made in my life.

But once you’re about to change, you’ll realize that your friends can’t be your friends anymore. Maybe they’ve never really been your friends as they won’t accept you’re new path. So I stopped contacting and answering them and opted for complete isolation (that means no friends whatsoever). Even though I struggled with other mass media distractions, I completely changed as a person. I grew up. It took a few years, but I’m embracing life now and I’m constantly working on myself in order to fulfill my dreams.

I saw those friends last year and I was disgusted because they are still the very same as they’ve always been. They’re kids. They refuse to grow up to see the world for what it is. I’m embracing now what they fear most: loneliness.

“Gaming in moderation” does not exist in my opinion. You’re either enslaved by virtuality or struggling in reality.

I used to be a gamer most my life and would play 8+ hours a day sometimes. Honestly, I can't even play them anymore, I get bored of them after an hour.

I do wish I didn't spend so much time on games though and focused on developing my social skills when I was younger.

Except for Dark Souls. You are allowed to play Dark Souls because that games kicks you so hard in the nuts that it builds character...

My real problem is that I can't find shit to do, I can't workout for 8 hours a day or whatever and other hobbies mean spending money on one-time things such as rock-climbing which I don't have the cash for.

Because feminism has stripped male authority and control over pretty much everything, it feels like the video gaming world is one of the few places where a man has some control and authority.

I'd argue that video games have many positive factors as well. I played the Final Fantasy series all my life and I was complimented on my vocabulary a lot in school.

I thank them games because you definitely had to read to understand them stories. They help with hand and eye coordination as well. There's many great factors about video games dude.

Just because YOU think they hold you back, doesn't mean it does with everyone. Not everyone is trying to be a chad and fuck every whore.

Lemme tell ya something buddy. I can guarantee you that females cause way more negative factors than video games. Why do you think women tend to hate video games bro? Because they can keep a guy happy and entertained and women take that as a direct threat.

I'm sorry but I disagree with this post entirely. I played games all my life and I'm not doing so bad man. I play guitar as well and I teach it as well. I love my life. Cheers mate.

I think video games are still the socially unacceptable hobby in today's society which is why it's the go-to example of a time wasting activity.

Even to this day I don't believe I've ever had any positive response when I've told someone my primary hobby is gaming, it's only acceptable if mentioned casually as just 'one of the things' I do for fun.

---

But what's true is that gaming is somewhat unique an activity that allows you to game for hours on end as it is accessible and engaging, personally I can't do any other housebound activity - TV/Youtube for 16 hours a day.

Gaming gave me a sense of productivity and achievement through ahem "Achievement points" or gamerscore. When I needed to face the harsh world and find a job, go to nerve wracking interviews, face rejection... I could just play games instead and escape from doing what I needed to do and not feel guilty because I was distracted by games and substituted the real life challenges with virtual ones and felt sense of accomplishment after completing Hard mode in a game to get a cheevo.

This went on for 4 years after I graduated, I still enjoyed the good games that I played but many, many of them I played to escape for sure.

Self discipline is great and all but this advice telling me to cut out anything that I find remotely enjoyable in pursuit of being an AlphaMaleTM is dumb.

Anyone who is struggling with vices like this, turn them in to rewards.

Once you have done X, Y and Z during the week - you can reward yourself with a video game, a beer or whatever. Life is way too short to spend 99% of it being an uptight ass desperately chasing pussy.

Video games are not the ultimate evil, they are procrastination like many other activities like watching sitcoms or mindless "entertainment" YouTube videos or reading social media feeds. I quit games many times and still was prone to procrastination. The thing is that you have to fill this time -wasting vortex with something and this requires getting your shit together on the deep inner lever. I can still play for an hour a day on my handheld during commute when I'm too tired to be creative. Sitting on the sofa playing some immersive online game for hours is a completely different story though. I recently tried getting back to a big RPG I still had to complete several times, but every time I would play it at home when I had so many useful things to do, it's like some self-preservation mechanism kicked in and I felt regret for wasting my time for even 2 hours. I'm glad I developed this feeling and I hope that everyone understands what we're talking about here when saying that video games are destructive for you.

Incredible article. This hits really hard home for me.

I got addicted to PUBG and I quit for 6 months only to return to it a few days ago. I got hooked instantly. Its like cocaine.

I am now going to continue building my dream life and fuck the games. We only have 1 life right? Not infinite like in games.

Cheers

Am I the only one here who gets bored very easily of video games? I used to play a lot until I became 19 then all of a sudden I just stopped playing because I no longer found them entertaining.

I play around 3-4 hours per month some online games for fun, but playing single player games bores the hell out of me. And yes, I've tried playing the witcher, fallout, the metro games etc. But after 1 hour (very long hour) I just had to stop because I was bored out of my mind.

caffeine

Internet alphas are so strong willed they’re afraid of getting addicted to coffee.

Stopped playing video games 2 or 3 years back, how much I loved counter strike and Call of Duty but I had to let it go. I felt like I didn't make the right decision at the time. As I was still in highschool. But Losing that Habit definitely gave me a lot of time to do other stuff. Too Bad, no one told me to go interact socially more and go out more, Always did in a moderate way. Only With boys.

Not played a video game in 2 weeks, I've tidied my flat, been more active going running etc and I've started to learn programming. I implore anyone to give them up and shit will start happening.