How Do You Deal With Mobile Game Addiction?

September 16, 2022
Article No 210

It's already the 16th of the month and this is only my fifth article on this platform this month. Another slow start for me. I could say "I got preoccupied with my offline job"... but that's not completely true. Yes, I am preoccupied with my part-time teaching job, but I still had a lot of time to spare.

What's the main reason I was not able to write as often as I wanted?

Mobile game!

Greetings once again my dear readers. Many, if not all, of us here wanted to upload an article a day. The more we write, the more chances that rusty and the other members will notice us, right? As long as we write "quality" and engaging articles, we get a higher chance of earning more here.

Even if each article will earn only a dollar on average, we will get at least $30 for a month. That's $30 more than wasting our time on Facebook, IG, mobile games, and other non-paying platforms.

However, it seems those no-paying platforms seem more addictive than the paying platforms such as this one.

I think I have mentioned the reason why in my previous article. (read: https://read.cash/@JLoberiza/why-are-mobile-games-so-addictive-de72e70a)

I hate to admit it, but in the last two weeks, I fell prey to a trap and got hooked (again) on a mobile game. I thought I can limit the time I will spend on that game every day. But my Digital Balance proves that I cannot. For the nth Time, I got hooked on the game "The Last Day on Earth".

Looking Back.

I think it was last year when I installed the game "The Last Day on Earth" on my phone. Since it was not a multiplayer game, I thought I can play the game in my own time. I was wrong. The game was full of time-limited quests and tasks.

After struggling for three weeks, I finally decided to uninstall it.

However, after I few months, I installed it again. Then after getting hooked for a few weeks again, I removed it.

Three Weeks Ago.

I came back from work one afternoon, exhausted. I thought of trying the game to help me pass the time and cure my "boredom". There were some changes in the game. It still has time-limited quests and tasks, but it wasn't as "demanding" as it was. I thought I could play for about 15 to 30 minutes a day. For the first few days, I did. I learned that I can even ignore some events since they come and go every few days.

However, as I progressed in the game, I started playing longer each day. The screenshot below showed that I played for more than four hours a day.

Struggling to Limit My Game Time

For a few days, I took it as a challenge. I thought I can't learn to control myself in the absence of a challenge. If I delete it now, I will soon encounter another form of distraction that will get me hooked. I must learn to refrain from playing even while the game is on my tab.

But it got worst. I even spent more time watching walkthroughs and tutorials on Youtube!

I wasted more time each day. The time that I could have spent writing and earning.

My Final Decision.

Finally, four days ago, I decided to delete the game. At the moment, it's the only way for me to take back control of my time.

In Closing

Mobile game addiction is one of the problems that came along with social media addiction. Perhaps it's even more of a problem than social media addiction.

I guess the only way to get rid of this addiction is to get rid of the cause... namely, deleting the game.

The question is, "Will I install the game again in the future?"

Maybe... but only if I can find a way to make money from it.

Thanks For Reading.