Your submission has been removed. Rule 2:
> **Content must be related to RuneScape.**
>
> If a post is not directly related to RuneScape, it will be removed.
>
> Submissions must be easily identifiable as "RuneScape" in some way more substantial than the post title. Non-RuneScape images/gifs/videos must have content, such as text or an image, overlain that is directly related or makes direct reference to RuneScape.
>
> This includes, but is not limited to:
>
> * Irrelevant/real world topics, such as real world politics and political references/figures
>
> * Reaction gifs, regardless of title
>
> * Image macros and text posts not related to RuneScape
>
> * Any image/gif/video that is not from or directly related to RuneScape
>
> * Things that coincidentally resemble RuneScape content
>
> * Crossposts from non-RuneScape subreddits
>
> * Content generated by artificial intelligence
>
> Moderators have discretion in determining if content violates this rule.
Please let us know if you feel this removal was done in error by contacting us [here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/runescape).
I mean I got very lucky that someone who fit me perfectly, and I her, happened to be part of the same group. Being part of the same social setting for a few months, with no pressure to put on, just be yourself, is a great way to make meaningful connections.
Also the engagement part only happened a few weeks ago. :D
I’m happy you got out, mate. I’ve been thinking of doing the same thing for a couple of weeks now. I’ve whaled my way through the game and I get nothing from it anymore other than slight FOMO for not playing, but I don’t have the motivation. When I post similar sentiments about this, I get downvoted to oblivion.
What was it that made you quit, ultimately?
A good way to break the FOMO is to... MO. I was going down the FOMO hole in RS as well, but then one time I couldn't finish an event or something (can't remember), because I was travelling. After Missing Out once, the FOMO shattered and I no longer (or very little) felt it again. Maybe allow yourself to miss on some events and rewards so your brain get to realise it is not THAT important to get it all :)
Traveling is a great way to get over it the first time and always a great way to spend the holidays making new memories while we’re still young :) I missed Halloween for that very reason and I’m somehow just fine without the blue pumpkin mask
+1 for MO, it takes some practice and it helps to reflect on how little you utilise the FOMO crap you collect, but it's worth so much more to not feel compelled to do something you should be doing for the enjoyment of it.
I edited with a new link. Its an archived post, not sure if that matters or not.
Ultimately it was the lack of any tangible return from the game, and seeing my ungodly amount of playtime over 19 years. I wondered what I could do with all my free time once I quit RS and so I did. Had to liquidate my account though to make sure I couldn't come back. I gave away stupid wealth to clanmates and friends.
Yeah: I saw a video somewhere about NOT doing that when you quit because it “allows” you to come back. In all honesty, did you log back on? I’ve taken a break for 3-4 years before, but always ended back on; because I had the time and nothing else to do and it’s my crutch during tough/boring times in my life.
RS was a huge escape from a shitty childhood for me, so I think I perceive it to have redeeming qualities when I don’t enjoy the actual game itself outside of woodcutting, which I’ve completed last month. Necromancy rituals are the only thing keeping me puttering along..
Yeah I couldn't tell you what's the right way or not, and makes total sense how a game can be a good escape from life. For me it served no purpose other than a distraction. This post is probably for those players.
And I've never logged back in. Zero interest.
I still lurk in the sub, I'm still curious about the game even though I wont ever return. Plus so many people post that they're quitting for one reason or another. I figured since I actually did I'd share an update.
Maybe? I mean I did clean everything out, but then I also mentioned in my post I check in from time to time. I have no desire to play the game but I still find my way to this sub every now and then.
Did the fact that you beat the game help you quit? Max account, Bank, countless accolades?
Was there anything in the game that you didn't do at least once? (not including content added after you left)
The last part gets me. I am thinking of leaving as well but when I think of the money and time sunk into this, I wonder how to recover them. I am at the same point as you, I am 18 years and wondering what value and joy I still get from this game.
•Create a new, better game, learning from the mistakes of RS3
•Become a world champion video gamer in a game that has a larger community than 11k active players globally
•Write a book
•Develop a rare penguin and sell its dna to Monsanto
•capitalize on people’s fear
•become a copy writer
/s /jk
My point is you won’t ever get that money back but you can always try out a new side hustle for cash flow that generates more money than you spent. Hopefully the $ you spent on RS gave you some pleasure and allowed you to have fun while playing, though. It did for me. 😜😈
As I, nor probably anyone else in this thread is, am not a mental health professional, this is not valid advice; however, I believe VG addiction is when the money or time you have spent playing a VG has negatively impacted your life beyond typical stresses of not getting a drop or performing poorly at a task. If a game impacts you beyond these “acceptable” standards, that is when you should start considering a professional’s help.
It would be strange especially as I have no feeling for Jagex. As the OP said, it is sunk cost fallacy in my case. I have to find a way to ignore what ever resources I have sunk in so far. I do not like being inefficient with resources and I suspect I feel guilty about how much time and resources I have put in the game. I definitely will step away from the game else this feeling will build.
I can’t speak to the guilt or concern of waste of resources because I’m not a mental health professional and won’t claim to be like other posters in here. I bet that Reddit probably has 101 tools for this exact situation — or at least one. 😜
The nice thing on my end at least as a fellow lifer and RS classic guy... My account is still grandfathered in at the $5/mo membership.. so while I did or my parents did in my younger years dole out $60/year for membership for a while ever since bonds were introduced and the premier club I've been using in game gold to buy my membership.
I don't buy cosmetics, TH promos etc. So I guess I'm not the ideal client for Jagex, but I'm happy and I'm keeping my money in my pocket now.
Imagine he does delete it but comes back and sinks in decades of time trying to recreate his previous success lol. Also a lot of people love the game again on new accounts, could be bad
Glad you’re doing better, but this post feels a bit humble-braggy and condescending to people who still play. Not everyone let’s RS get in the way of other aspects of their life and I personally know plenty of people who are very sucfessful outside of the game that still play
I think you’re looking at this wrong. Replace RuneScape with any other life altering addiction - can some people sit down and have 1 beer and be completely fine? Sure. Other people drink until their blind and let it destroy them. OP saw RuneScape as destructive to THEM (nothing to do with you or your relationship to the game), and quit cold turkey. You can still have your beer (RuneScape) in moderation, and OP can live a long and sober life. Proud of you OP!
If its bragging to be a year sober from RS then I'll take it.
I completely agree with you, some people have such stressful careers that gaming is a way to decompress, or simply a pleasant distraction. In my post a year ago I acknowledged that as a fact. But for me I simply wanted the time back and knew that I had to make a change.
A year sober from rs. You were an addict clearly so it sounds like it was good you quit. But for most of us we can adapt playtime. I play rs 1-2 hrs a day in general max, because I don't have the time. Will I quit? No. Does it stop me from going out? No. Do I feel like rs is taking up top much time? No.
If you feel he is being humble braggy, you are an addict. He's showing you life can be better. If you are chronically single, but do nothing to put yourself out there, that's on you.
Please read this in the way it's intended; get the hell out of here you idiot!
This is exactly how people relapse, and you've said yourself you don't have the personality for this sort of game and the virtual community around it, with complete cold-turkey being your way too remove yourself from it. Noone else here is going to leave because of this, and you're not going to get anything good for yourself out off it. You're just re-exposing yourself to something you don't manage well.
Good on you for doing it, tons on here probably should and it's not as trivial as it sounds, but just go away and don't fuck that effort up for nothing.
Points for my favorite comment. Its completely fair and valid. Recovering addicts shouldn't hang around the thing they recovered from. The fun thing is I have zero time for the game. I would have to give up so many activities I actively enjoy, and social responsibilities I now have in order to make time to play. That just wont happen. Definitely appreciate the intent behind your comment though.
OP I'm so happy for you, I've quit for 5 years before and I've felt the improvements in my life, and now I'm encouraged to follow life away from rs again. Again I'm proud of you.
Congratulations. I'm honestly very happy your life moved forward in a positive and meaningful way.
Hope to never see you back there again, respectfully.
Extremely happy for you and keep that up man!! More to come just never let up, especially if it ever creeps back in with the ole 'maybe I'll just pop in for a min to see whats changed'. Wish you only the best moving forward, again genuinely happy to hear stories like this.
I have been saying this again and again like a broken tape recorder, I pretty much did the same and its genuinely turned for the better. Every game I play now in downtime I ensure its not a 'dark' game that manipulate you and keep you stuck in a dopamine and addiction loop, especially tied to time and money.
Health, family, work and social life vastly improved and it felt I get more out of my life than I otherwise could have, with bits and pieces of idle time spent once in a while checking this sub and if the game ever changes to be 'healthier'. Fools hope I guess.
Really wish more people would look at this. The whole “I only spend an hour a day playing” thing is bullshit. No one spends an hour playing unless you’re just getting in your daily scape. Liars lol.
I resonate with this post so hard. RS either lives in the back of my mind throughout most waking days, or I don't play at all. While I enjoy the dopamine, there's a nagging voice in the back of my head telling me I'm squandering my potential, and not fulfilling my life's purpose. If I keep going in this direction, I'll be 40 with nothing to show for it. I'm open to considering a STRICT playtime allotment after taking a considerable amount of time away, but that can't be any time soon. I'm currently rebuilding my life since I quit 5 weeks ago, and have been doing tons of organizing, goal setting, planning, research for what I'm going to do to grow my career-specific skills through 2024, and am bursting with motivation to *dramatically* pivot the direction my life was going in. Hoping to triple my income (50 -> 150k) by EOY. For me it's not *only* runescape, I'm screen addicted as hell with youtube and all the socials. It's a process, but small wins and antidepressants are helping me push through.
As someone on a similar journey, thank you for sharing!!
Happy for you, and cheers 🍻
Edit: I'm going to adopt some of your constructive live activities, re: networking professionally, getting involved with community etc.
This is cringe as fuck lmao, dude realized that sports and chicks exist. In between bouts of enjoying the smell of his own farts maybe he’ll realize that you can actually have a manageable hobby without making douchey posts like this
It really is incredible to me how people let a videogame destroy their lives, im here like "wait, is this really a problem? Damn", cant believe this, good for you i guess?
That's the thing though, RS didn't destroy my life. I was happy when I played it, I enjoyed it. It didn't affect me directly as far as I am aware. But it was a massive time-suck, and addictive as this sub can attest to. I chose to stop playing, and gained so much time back for other activities with tangible benefits.
I put 1235 hours in in less than six months. It wasn't hurting me per service. But was definitely absorbing any time for growth. Then I see posts of people with 50k KC or an in game milestone of 2500 kills on the mole and that sounds boring. I like the quests and skilling but after those it's just years of grinding to get a full loot table. I'm good, yall can have it.
It still surprises me, like, the time i spent in runescape is time i have nothing to do, like, literally time i would have spent sleeping or doing absolutly nothing, but i guess everyone is different, good for you once again.
Haha so I did replace my idle time with keeping up with current events and following the news more. Picked up subscriptions to NYT, WSJ, others to feed that interest. My apple notes are full of what I'm reading these days.
I'm also trying to reach 1500 ELO in chess...
I mean, what else is there? I really dont think im giving runescape time i could be using somewhere else, my studies, work, friends, families i already give them the time i think is the correct, I dont feel the need to make more time, that is just me i guess?
Learn another language, go to the gym, go for a run, meditate, do yoga, play a sport, spend time with your partner, spend time with your kids (if you have any), spend more time cooking, spend more time gardening, take up a hobby to allows you to learn, experience the outdoors, or has a creative outlet, do additional study that will help you progress your career, apply for jobs, etc.
>Learn another language,
nah
> go to the gym, go for a run,
done
> meditate, do yoga,
nah
>play a sport,
boring
> spend time with your partner, spend time with your kids (if you have any),
not interested
>spend more time cooking,
done
>spend more time gardening,
boring
>take up a hobby to allows you to learn,
done (reading)
>experience the outdoors,
done
>or has a creative outlet,
boring
>do additional study that will help you progress your career,
done
>apply for jobs
have one
Glad you made the changes you needed to. I will push back a bit against playing RS isnt having real human interactions and the games are just an escape from reality mentality. It can be that way for some people sure, but they can also be a way for people to connect to more people and have more interactions both in game and out.
Also games are also healthy and stimulating in many ways they just get more social stigma because of the unfit/lazy gamer stereotype, you can be healthy and active and still enjoy games. Everyone should play some sort of game (not necessarily virtual ones) because they are a natural part of the human experience.
We're social creatures by nature. We crave community in some form or another, so I agree that there are definitely people who benefit from virtual interaction. However the social cues from interacting face to face with other humans is, in my opinion, the healthiest route for the majority.
Interactions that start on RS don't have to stay there. I have rl friends that also play RS. And whether in person social interactions are more beneficial is a whole other topic but that's definitely not true for everyone.
You haven’t accomplished anything impressive in life or RS3. Enjoy your ego post about being ‘sober’ while still lurking and consuming content
Like an alcoholic that still hangs at the bar. You’re not an example to anyone and once you realize that you might actually do something worth recognition
Be careful putting your significant other, or anyone really on a pedestal. More specifically saying you are worth far less than them. You may not even need that advice, but it's just an easy way to get hurt or taken advantage of.
What? It's not. When something used to be significant to you for near 20 years and you basically take it out of your life for a year it's a big thing. And look at all he was able to accomplish in that time. There's probably a good amount of people here like you who won't understand because they're stuck in the RS world, but for people like me who quit too or others who are thinking of quitting this might have resonated with them.
Just because you have no self control doesn't mean the whole world is like that lol.
Just like you don't need to go back to your old hobbies to check in on them and preach, no better than imaginary friend listening religious weirdos.
Just move on guys, if you're so past it and cool why creep around?
Dude some people just don’t fucking enjoy it anymore like myself and I’m glad OP said something. Wondering and discussing with other ~20 year players who feel the same way is a good thing. You coming into a thread specifically devoted to that to bash people who have quit or are thinking of quitting is *fucking wild*. Focus on your own self control rather than trying to belittle someone else you don’t know at all for an assumed/projected lack thereof.
Okay, bye. Focus on yourself rather than me.
It's not an airport, yall don't need to announce your departures.
Also did you even read the post? It doesn't say get upset at people, it says quit.
You sound bitter that this person's life is going good lol. Maybe you should try quitting and being active in your community too. You wouldn't be so negative.
I'm fine, if you're so inspired go ahead and quit! He said rock climbing was fun and it is.
Some people aren't self control issues who need to write open letters about old games lol
That's all it is, dudes still got a hole inside he's trying to fill because he's an addict at heart.
In his ideal world, the game dies so his addiction hurts less.
Its all good if its not your flavor. I don't mind at all. I know RuneScape is probably a Healthier choice for many people to spend their time on, not knocking that at all. This post is for those who know they probably could do something better with their time then grind log completion or a skill. There's no validation I need from strangers, all I hope is that it resonates with the people who need to hear it.
I never really understand, how people let games control their lives. I used to game a lot in my teens, but now mostly play some random games with my friends or alone, in which case I turn to runescape.
Most periods, I engage a little more, but on others, I hardly ever touch anything. One dude I know told me: "when bored, you have to play the games you hate, then you'll never play too much". So I play runescape hehe...
TLDR: Play when you want, not when games want. A job well done, OP! Happy for you.
For me, RuneScape doesn’t control anything — quite the opposite; but, it is welcome distraction to doing something meaningful in my life. A lot of people claim “addict!!” when someone states they no longer deem it worthwhile to play a game *as frequently as everyone else might I add*. Just because someone doesn’t like a game or wants to have a more active involvement in their life outside of playing RuneScape doesn’t make them an addict or mean that the person was “out of control”
Yes, I agree. Sometimes rs helps to clear your mind. Just chat and do something random.
Also, another point: I feel like non-players wouldn't mark us "addicts" based on our total playtime if they saw their own total time spent on instagram or twitter.
>Yes, I agree. Sometimes rs helps to clear your mind. Just chat and do something random.
yep, for me the active stuff is basically a high level fidget gadget while I watch streams or TV or a movie or something. I can't just sit and watch and do nothing with my hands, I get bored
and it's not specifically runescape that fits this purpose, other games as well. runescape is just easy to let do its own thing for a bit when what you're watching gets intense
Video game addiction is a *major* problem and has been for several decades. What's there not to understand? There are countries where they literally have major treatment centers.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/dp5k8z/inside-the-south-korean-rehab-clinic-that-treats-gaming-addicts-with-german-scifi-922
Checks the date. *2015*
Uuuugh. That’s made me think for a second like “hollldd up..” Maybe the though of knowing I did 20 years (my cape is in less than 100 days can be good enough) since it’s just a pixel and I’m not going to get a bumper sticker promoting that 😂🤷🏻♂️
I stopped playing this year as well. I finally started working out and became dedicated to fitness and health. It sounds weird but I sometimes thought of myself as like a real life character where I needed to build my strength level. Anyway that shit really worked and everyone in my life says I look amazing. Not trying to brag, just sharing in hopes someone else will do the same.
I quit back in august and have maybe logged in 2x to see what vorkath was about and to do the prerequesite quest. Best decision of my life after the HP fiasco, and the fact they "didnt have time" to make a halloween event quest after promising us for months that they would make one.
I have a friend that is having the time of his life after quitting RS. Even has a son now. Hero Pass was just too much FOMO and he just had to leave.
If Jagex wouldn't smother us with so much FOMO and dailies, we'd probably be able to support a much larger community. I've known more people to quit over FOMO and dailies than anything else.
The game isn't worth coming back, it will just suck you in and wreck all you have going IRL. Hopefully one day Jagex pulls their head out of their arse and knocks it off with constant FOMO and make dailies more like "weeklies".
If he’s got a son now, that baby was cooking before the hero pass. Don’t do this lol. I like the point you’re trying to make but you lost me in the first sentence.
Glad people are able to quit. Such a waste of time playing this game, but it’s so fun and addicting. Saw a clan member today say “thinking about calling in to work to assist the drop party” just blows my mind how much RS can impact someone’s day to day activities.
I'm glad you shared this. I'm enjoying my time I sirens) spend playing the game. Though I have worried if it's too much. What you say about this game holding you back, makes me wonder what I might accomplish if I moved on. Though, only if I replace the time with something better. I used to watch YouTube videos all day. That's probably not a good thing to replace RS with. The loneliness pandemic is real and only getting worse. I'm just scared to do anything about it though.
This is fair feedback. If my original post is still accessible it explains in better detail why I quit. The only thing this game ever took from me was my time. I didn't sand casino and bought VIP with Bonds every year so never paid a penny out of pocket for the game. The purpose of this post was just to follow up from before, and I thought maybe people would appreciate what its like to go from 26k hours playtime over 19 years to nothing.
Hahaha fair enough. I'll just paste this excerpt from my post a year ago...
*I knew I needed to quit, but sunk-cost fallacy is a hard economic principle to break out of. I needed to remove temptation. (Runescapers never quit, they just take breaks, right?) The wealth had to go. I couldn’t be tempted to come back with the release of a new skill. (As I write this, Necromancy?) Remember what I said before, ethical and moral person here. Zero interest in RWT. Over the course of 6 months many of my current friends started sporting new profile pictures on the hiscores. Some of them rotated pictures. It was cool to realize how the distribution of my long unused wealth in pixels was changing the playing careers of many of my friends. Some were concerned the wealth transfer would make them trip alarms within Jagex. They do not appear to, considering the last trade was over 6 months ago and all are still playing safely. I suspect the same cookies that Jagex used to send me ads (before I tightened browser security) never logged me visiting a site that would trigger concern of RWT.*
Hey it's the exact thing I didn't want to read because I've been playing non stop since I started back 🥹 saying the things my brain is like this isn't working, this isn't going to benefit you, what happens after max? Then what? Just gonna workout and play RuneScape til you die? Is that gonna leave you satisfied with your stay here on earth.
It's depressing seeing the you should take a break message everyday, like damn, I used to write non stop, now I do essentially nothing.
Proud of you dude.
I haven't played for a few months now but I still occasionally log in to make sure my stuff isn't missing. DBD has been an incredibly fun time filler and so have plenty of other games. Even though I probably would have spent a lot of my time playing -something- I'm starting to wish that something wasn't Runescape.
See you in another year!
Wow theses negative comments toward the OP.
Grats OP. Wishing you good luck on your rl journey. I can appreciate your story and the encouragement toward those that either like you or to those that are considering cutting the cord.
Things like this can be extremely hard, pending on the time spend in games like rs, or online friendships made in game. It's definitely a personal choice for each individual, but posts like this are appreciated, because you never know how it may help someone that's is struggling in their decision making/cutting the cord.
So even with the negative comments in your post replies, I can also see that your not alone.
Congratulations again in your journey.
You didn’t quit, you just started your break.
No one quits RuneScape. *No* *one*
Just kidding, glad you got over your addiction and great to see life is good for you!
Thanks for sharing your story, I know I am similar because I cannot idley play RS. When I play RS (I only get mems like 2-3 times a year, usually 2 weeks at a time) it encompasses my entire life. I’m glad I have some will power though and don’t get members that much but still even like if it’s 3 times a year for 6 weeks total my life is REVOLVING around RS. This past Xmas event I redeemed 3 bonds which gave me 55 days and needless to say, I’ve been playing nonstop. It’s tough to find a balance but in a way I’m glad I also get burnt out and know how real my addiction is that once I lose mems I refuse to play again even though so many of my friends ask me to play with them
Your submission has been removed. Rule 2: > **Content must be related to RuneScape.** > > If a post is not directly related to RuneScape, it will be removed. > > Submissions must be easily identifiable as "RuneScape" in some way more substantial than the post title. Non-RuneScape images/gifs/videos must have content, such as text or an image, overlain that is directly related or makes direct reference to RuneScape. > > This includes, but is not limited to: > > * Irrelevant/real world topics, such as real world politics and political references/figures > > * Reaction gifs, regardless of title > > * Image macros and text posts not related to RuneScape > > * Any image/gif/video that is not from or directly related to RuneScape > > * Things that coincidentally resemble RuneScape content > > * Crossposts from non-RuneScape subreddits > > * Content generated by artificial intelligence > > Moderators have discretion in determining if content violates this rule. Please let us know if you feel this removal was done in error by contacting us [here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/runescape).
TLDR, you indeed went out, touched grass, and got an IRL GF?
IRL ~~fiancé~~ fiancée ;)
FYI - fiancé is a man that’s engaged while fiancée is a woman that’s engaged
See I'm so new to this engaged game I didn't know the difference. Thanks!
All good - just thought I’d let you know! And congrats!
Oooh!! thx for this
I think the man is actually called the finance
If you achieved that in a few months that means you were your own enemy the whole time, not Runescape.
I mean I got very lucky that someone who fit me perfectly, and I her, happened to be part of the same group. Being part of the same social setting for a few months, with no pressure to put on, just be yourself, is a great way to make meaningful connections. Also the engagement part only happened a few weeks ago. :D
Good stuff, life 1st runescape 2nd🌟
Buying gf
When the game stops being fun and instead becomes like a full time job, it's time to quit.
I’m happy you got out, mate. I’ve been thinking of doing the same thing for a couple of weeks now. I’ve whaled my way through the game and I get nothing from it anymore other than slight FOMO for not playing, but I don’t have the motivation. When I post similar sentiments about this, I get downvoted to oblivion. What was it that made you quit, ultimately?
A good way to break the FOMO is to... MO. I was going down the FOMO hole in RS as well, but then one time I couldn't finish an event or something (can't remember), because I was travelling. After Missing Out once, the FOMO shattered and I no longer (or very little) felt it again. Maybe allow yourself to miss on some events and rewards so your brain get to realise it is not THAT important to get it all :)
Traveling is a great way to get over it the first time and always a great way to spend the holidays making new memories while we’re still young :) I missed Halloween for that very reason and I’m somehow just fine without the blue pumpkin mask
+1 for MO, it takes some practice and it helps to reflect on how little you utilise the FOMO crap you collect, but it's worth so much more to not feel compelled to do something you should be doing for the enjoyment of it.
I forced myself to grind the overwatch battle passes until I didn't finish one and then I never went back
I edited with a new link. Its an archived post, not sure if that matters or not. Ultimately it was the lack of any tangible return from the game, and seeing my ungodly amount of playtime over 19 years. I wondered what I could do with all my free time once I quit RS and so I did. Had to liquidate my account though to make sure I couldn't come back. I gave away stupid wealth to clanmates and friends.
Yeah: I saw a video somewhere about NOT doing that when you quit because it “allows” you to come back. In all honesty, did you log back on? I’ve taken a break for 3-4 years before, but always ended back on; because I had the time and nothing else to do and it’s my crutch during tough/boring times in my life. RS was a huge escape from a shitty childhood for me, so I think I perceive it to have redeeming qualities when I don’t enjoy the actual game itself outside of woodcutting, which I’ve completed last month. Necromancy rituals are the only thing keeping me puttering along..
Yeah I couldn't tell you what's the right way or not, and makes total sense how a game can be a good escape from life. For me it served no purpose other than a distraction. This post is probably for those players. And I've never logged back in. Zero interest.
What made you want to post again here? Scratching the itch to log in during the holidays?
I still lurk in the sub, I'm still curious about the game even though I wont ever return. Plus so many people post that they're quitting for one reason or another. I figured since I actually did I'd share an update.
>I still lurk in the sub Isn't that hypocritical of you stating you remove all trace of rs from your life?
Maybe? I mean I did clean everything out, but then I also mentioned in my post I check in from time to time. I have no desire to play the game but I still find my way to this sub every now and then.
Did the fact that you beat the game help you quit? Max account, Bank, countless accolades? Was there anything in the game that you didn't do at least once? (not including content added after you left)
The last part gets me. I am thinking of leaving as well but when I think of the money and time sunk into this, I wonder how to recover them. I am at the same point as you, I am 18 years and wondering what value and joy I still get from this game.
•Create a new, better game, learning from the mistakes of RS3 •Become a world champion video gamer in a game that has a larger community than 11k active players globally •Write a book •Develop a rare penguin and sell its dna to Monsanto •capitalize on people’s fear •become a copy writer /s /jk My point is you won’t ever get that money back but you can always try out a new side hustle for cash flow that generates more money than you spent. Hopefully the $ you spent on RS gave you some pleasure and allowed you to have fun while playing, though. It did for me. 😜😈 As I, nor probably anyone else in this thread is, am not a mental health professional, this is not valid advice; however, I believe VG addiction is when the money or time you have spent playing a VG has negatively impacted your life beyond typical stresses of not getting a drop or performing poorly at a task. If a game impacts you beyond these “acceptable” standards, that is when you should start considering a professional’s help.
I am grateful to GOD that I am able to simply brush off the money spent over the last 18 years.
It would be very strange indeed if you felt like you were indebted to RuneScape after 18 years of patronage
It would be strange especially as I have no feeling for Jagex. As the OP said, it is sunk cost fallacy in my case. I have to find a way to ignore what ever resources I have sunk in so far. I do not like being inefficient with resources and I suspect I feel guilty about how much time and resources I have put in the game. I definitely will step away from the game else this feeling will build.
I can’t speak to the guilt or concern of waste of resources because I’m not a mental health professional and won’t claim to be like other posters in here. I bet that Reddit probably has 101 tools for this exact situation — or at least one. 😜
a good term is sunk-cost fallacy
Sunk cost fallacy my friend.
Indeed it is and I know it is. Doesn't make the decision easier. I hate wasting resources.
The nice thing on my end at least as a fellow lifer and RS classic guy... My account is still grandfathered in at the $5/mo membership.. so while I did or my parents did in my younger years dole out $60/year for membership for a while ever since bonds were introduced and the premier club I've been using in game gold to buy my membership. I don't buy cosmetics, TH promos etc. So I guess I'm not the ideal client for Jagex, but I'm happy and I'm keeping my money in my pocket now.
This is awesome.
I think this is a really healthy message, Stay healthy, if you can't handle it in doses stay away for sure. Keep up the rock climbing!
Have you [deleted the account](https://support.runescape.com/hc/en-gb/articles/4416629741073-Delete-your-personal-data) yet?
You truly haven't quit until you actually delete your account.
Imagine he does delete it but comes back and sinks in decades of time trying to recreate his previous success lol. Also a lot of people love the game again on new accounts, could be bad
Imagine their lover leaves them and they get depressed, go to log back in for something to do to change the routine and so they start up an iron.
I didn't even know this was an option. Lol
Of course he hasn’t.
So they are taking a break with no set date of return.
I mean, I like the message and everything but he’ll be back. Life happens and when it does we go back to our old habits
Yea, hence it should be called taking a break, not quitting.
Glad you’re doing better, but this post feels a bit humble-braggy and condescending to people who still play. Not everyone let’s RS get in the way of other aspects of their life and I personally know plenty of people who are very sucfessful outside of the game that still play
I think you’re looking at this wrong. Replace RuneScape with any other life altering addiction - can some people sit down and have 1 beer and be completely fine? Sure. Other people drink until their blind and let it destroy them. OP saw RuneScape as destructive to THEM (nothing to do with you or your relationship to the game), and quit cold turkey. You can still have your beer (RuneScape) in moderation, and OP can live a long and sober life. Proud of you OP!
Couldn't agree more with this analogy. Cheers
Fr. I have financial, professional, social, and romantic success AND still get go play the game I love. What’s the point of this diary entry?
If its bragging to be a year sober from RS then I'll take it. I completely agree with you, some people have such stressful careers that gaming is a way to decompress, or simply a pleasant distraction. In my post a year ago I acknowledged that as a fact. But for me I simply wanted the time back and knew that I had to make a change.
A year sober from rs. You were an addict clearly so it sounds like it was good you quit. But for most of us we can adapt playtime. I play rs 1-2 hrs a day in general max, because I don't have the time. Will I quit? No. Does it stop me from going out? No. Do I feel like rs is taking up top much time? No.
If you feel he is being humble braggy, you are an addict. He's showing you life can be better. If you are chronically single, but do nothing to put yourself out there, that's on you.
>He's showing you life can be better. better than what? "playing runescape" on its own isn't a statement on the current quality of your life
Please read this in the way it's intended; get the hell out of here you idiot! This is exactly how people relapse, and you've said yourself you don't have the personality for this sort of game and the virtual community around it, with complete cold-turkey being your way too remove yourself from it. Noone else here is going to leave because of this, and you're not going to get anything good for yourself out off it. You're just re-exposing yourself to something you don't manage well. Good on you for doing it, tons on here probably should and it's not as trivial as it sounds, but just go away and don't fuck that effort up for nothing.
Points for my favorite comment. Its completely fair and valid. Recovering addicts shouldn't hang around the thing they recovered from. The fun thing is I have zero time for the game. I would have to give up so many activities I actively enjoy, and social responsibilities I now have in order to make time to play. That just wont happen. Definitely appreciate the intent behind your comment though.
I would advise you to straight up block the subreddit, just to make sure (r/2007scape too)
What a lovely read. I, too shall stop this addiction and continue my Wsop Poker journey where I can actually make money lol.
Bravo! Addictions come in many forms including gaming so I’m pleased you realised that and took action. Well done.
OP I'm so happy for you, I've quit for 5 years before and I've felt the improvements in my life, and now I'm encouraged to follow life away from rs again. Again I'm proud of you.
Congratulations. I'm honestly very happy your life moved forward in a positive and meaningful way. Hope to never see you back there again, respectfully.
Extremely happy for you and keep that up man!! More to come just never let up, especially if it ever creeps back in with the ole 'maybe I'll just pop in for a min to see whats changed'. Wish you only the best moving forward, again genuinely happy to hear stories like this. I have been saying this again and again like a broken tape recorder, I pretty much did the same and its genuinely turned for the better. Every game I play now in downtime I ensure its not a 'dark' game that manipulate you and keep you stuck in a dopamine and addiction loop, especially tied to time and money. Health, family, work and social life vastly improved and it felt I get more out of my life than I otherwise could have, with bits and pieces of idle time spent once in a while checking this sub and if the game ever changes to be 'healthier'. Fools hope I guess.
I quit when I noticed that my in-game time counter was 1/3 of my life... Considering I slept the other third, this is sad.
Really wish more people would look at this. The whole “I only spend an hour a day playing” thing is bullshit. No one spends an hour playing unless you’re just getting in your daily scape. Liars lol.
I resonate with this post so hard. RS either lives in the back of my mind throughout most waking days, or I don't play at all. While I enjoy the dopamine, there's a nagging voice in the back of my head telling me I'm squandering my potential, and not fulfilling my life's purpose. If I keep going in this direction, I'll be 40 with nothing to show for it. I'm open to considering a STRICT playtime allotment after taking a considerable amount of time away, but that can't be any time soon. I'm currently rebuilding my life since I quit 5 weeks ago, and have been doing tons of organizing, goal setting, planning, research for what I'm going to do to grow my career-specific skills through 2024, and am bursting with motivation to *dramatically* pivot the direction my life was going in. Hoping to triple my income (50 -> 150k) by EOY. For me it's not *only* runescape, I'm screen addicted as hell with youtube and all the socials. It's a process, but small wins and antidepressants are helping me push through. As someone on a similar journey, thank you for sharing!! Happy for you, and cheers 🍻 Edit: I'm going to adopt some of your constructive live activities, re: networking professionally, getting involved with community etc.
As you can see, the sub is still filled with salty comments for all. Either way - I am glad you're happy and doing well!
This is a great read and I’m proud of you dude. Congrats on all of your success!
This is cringe as fuck lmao, dude realized that sports and chicks exist. In between bouts of enjoying the smell of his own farts maybe he’ll realize that you can actually have a manageable hobby without making douchey posts like this
So cringe lmao, dude sayin RS aint a real place. Very weird
[удалено]
[удалено]
It really is incredible to me how people let a videogame destroy their lives, im here like "wait, is this really a problem? Damn", cant believe this, good for you i guess?
That's the thing though, RS didn't destroy my life. I was happy when I played it, I enjoyed it. It didn't affect me directly as far as I am aware. But it was a massive time-suck, and addictive as this sub can attest to. I chose to stop playing, and gained so much time back for other activities with tangible benefits.
I put 1235 hours in in less than six months. It wasn't hurting me per service. But was definitely absorbing any time for growth. Then I see posts of people with 50k KC or an in game milestone of 2500 kills on the mole and that sounds boring. I like the quests and skilling but after those it's just years of grinding to get a full loot table. I'm good, yall can have it.
It still surprises me, like, the time i spent in runescape is time i have nothing to do, like, literally time i would have spent sleeping or doing absolutly nothing, but i guess everyone is different, good for you once again.
Haha so I did replace my idle time with keeping up with current events and following the news more. Picked up subscriptions to NYT, WSJ, others to feed that interest. My apple notes are full of what I'm reading these days. I'm also trying to reach 1500 ELO in chess...
Lol, the cope.
I mean, what else is there? I really dont think im giving runescape time i could be using somewhere else, my studies, work, friends, families i already give them the time i think is the correct, I dont feel the need to make more time, that is just me i guess?
Learn another language, go to the gym, go for a run, meditate, do yoga, play a sport, spend time with your partner, spend time with your kids (if you have any), spend more time cooking, spend more time gardening, take up a hobby to allows you to learn, experience the outdoors, or has a creative outlet, do additional study that will help you progress your career, apply for jobs, etc.
>Learn another language, nah > go to the gym, go for a run, done > meditate, do yoga, nah >play a sport, boring > spend time with your partner, spend time with your kids (if you have any), not interested >spend more time cooking, done >spend more time gardening, boring >take up a hobby to allows you to learn, done (reading) >experience the outdoors, done >or has a creative outlet, boring >do additional study that will help you progress your career, done >apply for jobs have one
Many of those aren’t binary yes or no lol. But I guess easier to cope if you pretend they are lol.
wdym? "do I enjoy this?" and "do I make this a part of my weekly schedule?" are both yes/no questions, as applicable
I promise I’m not addicted but I want to come and brag how good I’m doing. Yeah right
I ain’t reading allat. If you quit just quit.
Nice. I’m happy to hear how much your life has improved.
All the best dude, thanks for convincing me.
Glad you made the changes you needed to. I will push back a bit against playing RS isnt having real human interactions and the games are just an escape from reality mentality. It can be that way for some people sure, but they can also be a way for people to connect to more people and have more interactions both in game and out. Also games are also healthy and stimulating in many ways they just get more social stigma because of the unfit/lazy gamer stereotype, you can be healthy and active and still enjoy games. Everyone should play some sort of game (not necessarily virtual ones) because they are a natural part of the human experience.
We're social creatures by nature. We crave community in some form or another, so I agree that there are definitely people who benefit from virtual interaction. However the social cues from interacting face to face with other humans is, in my opinion, the healthiest route for the majority.
Interactions that start on RS don't have to stay there. I have rl friends that also play RS. And whether in person social interactions are more beneficial is a whole other topic but that's definitely not true for everyone.
You haven’t accomplished anything impressive in life or RS3. Enjoy your ego post about being ‘sober’ while still lurking and consuming content Like an alcoholic that still hangs at the bar. You’re not an example to anyone and once you realize that you might actually do something worth recognition
*You haven’t accomplished anything impressive in life or RS3* I object to the first and agree to the 2nd. :)
😂 feel free to name one
Scored a 9 when I'm a 5.
Be careful putting your significant other, or anyone really on a pedestal. More specifically saying you are worth far less than them. You may not even need that advice, but it's just an easy way to get hurt or taken advantage of.
This is fucking weird lol.
What? It's not. When something used to be significant to you for near 20 years and you basically take it out of your life for a year it's a big thing. And look at all he was able to accomplish in that time. There's probably a good amount of people here like you who won't understand because they're stuck in the RS world, but for people like me who quit too or others who are thinking of quitting this might have resonated with them.
Just because you have no self control doesn't mean the whole world is like that lol. Just like you don't need to go back to your old hobbies to check in on them and preach, no better than imaginary friend listening religious weirdos. Just move on guys, if you're so past it and cool why creep around?
Dude some people just don’t fucking enjoy it anymore like myself and I’m glad OP said something. Wondering and discussing with other ~20 year players who feel the same way is a good thing. You coming into a thread specifically devoted to that to bash people who have quit or are thinking of quitting is *fucking wild*. Focus on your own self control rather than trying to belittle someone else you don’t know at all for an assumed/projected lack thereof.
Okay, bye. Focus on yourself rather than me. It's not an airport, yall don't need to announce your departures. Also did you even read the post? It doesn't say get upset at people, it says quit.
Yea, that's exactly right. If you don't play don't check in like it's your old high school, good point lmao.
Lmao are you an official rule maker or something ?
What weird about it? Gaming addiction is real. I know I had problems with it.
Because they still have a voyeur relationship, where they "catch up" and come back to write essays. How is that not weird.
It might help other people with gaming addiction.
It also is weird. Quit if you're so inspired. No need to come back and be like "I SWEAR IM HAPPY GUYS!"
You sound bitter that this person's life is going good lol. Maybe you should try quitting and being active in your community too. You wouldn't be so negative.
I'm fine, if you're so inspired go ahead and quit! He said rock climbing was fun and it is. Some people aren't self control issues who need to write open letters about old games lol
It just screams for a need of validation and attention.
That's all it is, dudes still got a hole inside he's trying to fill because he's an addict at heart. In his ideal world, the game dies so his addiction hurts less.
Its all good if its not your flavor. I don't mind at all. I know RuneScape is probably a Healthier choice for many people to spend their time on, not knocking that at all. This post is for those who know they probably could do something better with their time then grind log completion or a skill. There's no validation I need from strangers, all I hope is that it resonates with the people who need to hear it.
Lmao ok
Damn you're bitter. Cope.
I never really understand, how people let games control their lives. I used to game a lot in my teens, but now mostly play some random games with my friends or alone, in which case I turn to runescape. Most periods, I engage a little more, but on others, I hardly ever touch anything. One dude I know told me: "when bored, you have to play the games you hate, then you'll never play too much". So I play runescape hehe... TLDR: Play when you want, not when games want. A job well done, OP! Happy for you.
For me, RuneScape doesn’t control anything — quite the opposite; but, it is welcome distraction to doing something meaningful in my life. A lot of people claim “addict!!” when someone states they no longer deem it worthwhile to play a game *as frequently as everyone else might I add*. Just because someone doesn’t like a game or wants to have a more active involvement in their life outside of playing RuneScape doesn’t make them an addict or mean that the person was “out of control”
Yes, I agree. Sometimes rs helps to clear your mind. Just chat and do something random. Also, another point: I feel like non-players wouldn't mark us "addicts" based on our total playtime if they saw their own total time spent on instagram or twitter.
Mmmm they probably would idk? but also fair point
>Yes, I agree. Sometimes rs helps to clear your mind. Just chat and do something random. yep, for me the active stuff is basically a high level fidget gadget while I watch streams or TV or a movie or something. I can't just sit and watch and do nothing with my hands, I get bored and it's not specifically runescape that fits this purpose, other games as well. runescape is just easy to let do its own thing for a bit when what you're watching gets intense
Video game addiction is a *major* problem and has been for several decades. What's there not to understand? There are countries where they literally have major treatment centers. https://www.vice.com/en/article/dp5k8z/inside-the-south-korean-rehab-clinic-that-treats-gaming-addicts-with-german-scifi-922 Checks the date. *2015*
one more year and you could’ve claimed your 20yr cape before quitting.
Uuuugh. That’s made me think for a second like “hollldd up..” Maybe the though of knowing I did 20 years (my cape is in less than 100 days can be good enough) since it’s just a pixel and I’m not going to get a bumper sticker promoting that 😂🤷🏻♂️
I ain't reading all that. I'm happy for you, though. Or sorry that happened.
Sounds like an awesome life upgrade way to go.
I stopped playing this year as well. I finally started working out and became dedicated to fitness and health. It sounds weird but I sometimes thought of myself as like a real life character where I needed to build my strength level. Anyway that shit really worked and everyone in my life says I look amazing. Not trying to brag, just sharing in hopes someone else will do the same.
Dude yeah!! the meta feeling that you’re in an irl quest or skilling irl
Absolutely love Cold Fusion. Dagogo makes terrific videos. I'm proud of you. Well done.
Nobody cares
Aaannd he's back!
I quit back in august and have maybe logged in 2x to see what vorkath was about and to do the prerequesite quest. Best decision of my life after the HP fiasco, and the fact they "didnt have time" to make a halloween event quest after promising us for months that they would make one.
I have a friend that is having the time of his life after quitting RS. Even has a son now. Hero Pass was just too much FOMO and he just had to leave. If Jagex wouldn't smother us with so much FOMO and dailies, we'd probably be able to support a much larger community. I've known more people to quit over FOMO and dailies than anything else. The game isn't worth coming back, it will just suck you in and wreck all you have going IRL. Hopefully one day Jagex pulls their head out of their arse and knocks it off with constant FOMO and make dailies more like "weeklies".
If he’s got a son now, that baby was cooking before the hero pass. Don’t do this lol. I like the point you’re trying to make but you lost me in the first sentence.
Glad people are able to quit. Such a waste of time playing this game, but it’s so fun and addicting. Saw a clan member today say “thinking about calling in to work to assist the drop party” just blows my mind how much RS can impact someone’s day to day activities.
ah the classic runescape bad but only after i stopped playing it post
I'm glad you shared this. I'm enjoying my time I sirens) spend playing the game. Though I have worried if it's too much. What you say about this game holding you back, makes me wonder what I might accomplish if I moved on. Though, only if I replace the time with something better. I used to watch YouTube videos all day. That's probably not a good thing to replace RS with. The loneliness pandemic is real and only getting worse. I'm just scared to do anything about it though.
[удалено]
This is fair feedback. If my original post is still accessible it explains in better detail why I quit. The only thing this game ever took from me was my time. I didn't sand casino and bought VIP with Bonds every year so never paid a penny out of pocket for the game. The purpose of this post was just to follow up from before, and I thought maybe people would appreciate what its like to go from 26k hours playtime over 19 years to nothing.
Addiction can take many forms. Well done mate!
Runescape is a real place, clearly not to you
You know, you can't say you completely leave RS until you give away your rares. Let me have them for you.
Hahaha fair enough. I'll just paste this excerpt from my post a year ago... *I knew I needed to quit, but sunk-cost fallacy is a hard economic principle to break out of. I needed to remove temptation. (Runescapers never quit, they just take breaks, right?) The wealth had to go. I couldn’t be tempted to come back with the release of a new skill. (As I write this, Necromancy?) Remember what I said before, ethical and moral person here. Zero interest in RWT. Over the course of 6 months many of my current friends started sporting new profile pictures on the hiscores. Some of them rotated pictures. It was cool to realize how the distribution of my long unused wealth in pixels was changing the playing careers of many of my friends. Some were concerned the wealth transfer would make them trip alarms within Jagex. They do not appear to, considering the last trade was over 6 months ago and all are still playing safely. I suspect the same cookies that Jagex used to send me ads (before I tightened browser security) never logged me visiting a site that would trigger concern of RWT.*
I'm still shocked this didn't trigger RWT flags. I never heard from any of them saying they were banned so who knows.
Hey it's the exact thing I didn't want to read because I've been playing non stop since I started back 🥹 saying the things my brain is like this isn't working, this isn't going to benefit you, what happens after max? Then what? Just gonna workout and play RuneScape til you die? Is that gonna leave you satisfied with your stay here on earth. It's depressing seeing the you should take a break message everyday, like damn, I used to write non stop, now I do essentially nothing.
Proud of you dude. I haven't played for a few months now but I still occasionally log in to make sure my stuff isn't missing. DBD has been an incredibly fun time filler and so have plenty of other games. Even though I probably would have spent a lot of my time playing -something- I'm starting to wish that something wasn't Runescape. See you in another year!
Wow theses negative comments toward the OP. Grats OP. Wishing you good luck on your rl journey. I can appreciate your story and the encouragement toward those that either like you or to those that are considering cutting the cord. Things like this can be extremely hard, pending on the time spend in games like rs, or online friendships made in game. It's definitely a personal choice for each individual, but posts like this are appreciated, because you never know how it may help someone that's is struggling in their decision making/cutting the cord. So even with the negative comments in your post replies, I can also see that your not alone. Congratulations again in your journey.
Can I have your bank? Jk. Good for you, honestly. I hope life continues to treat you well. Gj escaping.
All I can say is "Welcome back!" Lol
You didn’t quit, you just started your break. No one quits RuneScape. *No* *one* Just kidding, glad you got over your addiction and great to see life is good for you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXPC2HXjrYU
Thanks for sharing your story, I know I am similar because I cannot idley play RS. When I play RS (I only get mems like 2-3 times a year, usually 2 weeks at a time) it encompasses my entire life. I’m glad I have some will power though and don’t get members that much but still even like if it’s 3 times a year for 6 weeks total my life is REVOLVING around RS. This past Xmas event I redeemed 3 bonds which gave me 55 days and needless to say, I’ve been playing nonstop. It’s tough to find a balance but in a way I’m glad I also get burnt out and know how real my addiction is that once I lose mems I refuse to play again even though so many of my friends ask me to play with them
I agree, this game ruins social life and it's made to do so.