Why am I so scarred of Games

[enoc1de]

Iam scarred in not only horror games but also games like metro exodus or destiny 2 with super little horror elements. This really annoys me because it makes the games with the smallest scary things in them, which are a lot, really hard for me to play because this state of being scarred is really stress full so I hop on the game for like 30 - 60 min and then i have enough. Do u think there is a way for me to overcome this unnecessary fear or am I just a huge pus*y.

 

[Brian Boru]

Do u think there is a way for me to overcome this unnecessary fear

Why do you say "unnecessary"?

I avoid horror movies & games because I find the usually cheap shock tactics boring. That's just my thing, doesn't make me any less than someone who enjoys same.

If it's not your thing, then avoid it. You be who you are, not who you think you should be, or what others say you should be.

 

[Sarafan]

I'd suggest something else than Brian Boru. If you want to overcome your fear, play these games more frequently. In time the fear should fall down. Exposition to fears is one of the forms of therapy in psychology.

 

[enoc1de]

Why do you say "unnecessary"?

I avoid horror movies & games because I find the usually cheap shock tactics boring. That's just my thing, doesn't make me any less than someone who enjoys same.

If it's not your thing, then avoid it. You be who you are, not who you think you should be, or what others say you should be.

Yeah that makes sense definetly but at generally I enjoy these Games for example Destiny and Metro Exodus and those little horror aspects then destroys my fun in them because as I said I dont play for long because it stresses me.

 

[enoc1de]

I'd suggest something else than Brian Boru. If you want to overcome your fear, play these games more frequently. In time the fear should fall down. Exposition to fears is one of the forms of therapy in psychology.

That definetly a good Idea I will try it this way and just force me thru it and hopefully It gets better.

 

[Alm]

You could try keep reminding yourself that, being a game, nothing bad can happen to you even if your in game character is attacked/killed. It might help to ease the nerves after a while.

 

[Johnway]

There was several things i did:

1. maintain a constant sense of caution. Trying to think one step ahead of the game and be a constant state of readiness. Be aware of your surroundings and follow sound ques. Always assume the monster is around the corner or some crappy monster closet is near. It should reduce most of the fear....

2.... a clear and calm mind. Relax and think. Most of the fear frequently is of your own creation; you're letting devs do all the work. The fear of the unknown is the killer.


Those were the things that got me through System shock 2. i absolutely hated the spiders but after a while seeing so many of them and generally being predictable i overcame that fear. In games. In real life, i hate them and can't touch them etc.

 

[Zloth]

Sounds like a job for Dr. Skinner! Find a game that only scares you a little bit. Screenshots and short videos might work, too. You're aiming for something that's just a little stressful. If you start tensing up, bail out and find a different game to play/watch. I'm guessing that part of what is frightening is the expectation of being frightened, so, once you start expecting a game to actually frighten you, it's no longer useful.

Then simply keep aiming for that spot where the stress level is there, but only weakly so. The sweet spot should slowly get into more and more frightening games. Some of the ones you had to bail on will be do-able. Stick with it and, over the months, you'll be good.

If you're not making progress with the do-it-yourself method, call a pro. Yanking out phobias is one of the things they do best.

 

[enoc1de]

Sounds like a job for Dr. Skinner! Find a game that only scares you a little bit. Screenshots and short videos might work, too. You're aiming for something that's just a little stressful. If you start tensing up, bail out and find a different game to play/watch. I'm guessing that part of what is frightening is the expectation of being frightened, so, once you start expecting a game to actually frighten you, it's no longer useful.

Then simply keep aiming for that spot where the stress level is there, but only weakly so. The sweet spot should slowly get into more and more frightening games. Some of the ones you had to bail on will be do-able. Stick with it and, over the months, you'll be good.

If you're not making progress with the do-it-yourself method, call a pro. Yanking out phobias is one of the things they do best.

Thanks for the great advice. Ill definetly try this out. Do u have some suggestions for some games that could help me get into it?

 

[Zloth]

Not real sure I could. You never know what will scare a given person. Darkness may really frighten some people, while others are just annoyed they can't see very well, for instance.

Hmmm... maybe if you went back to earlier games, when graphics weren't so good? Fallout 3 could certainly scare, but Fallout 2's graphics would make that harder.

All in all, I would say just check some gameplay videos on YouTube. You could still get burned by some part of a game that's rough ("We don't go to Ravenholm" in Half Life 2), but, like I said in the earlier post, just bail out if you hit one of those. You can come back later as you get desensitized - or not, if there's other games you would rather play.

 

[ZedClampet]

Iam scarred in not only horror games but also games like metro exodus or destiny 2 with super little horror elements. This really annoys me because it makes the games with the smallest scary things in them, which are a lot, really hard for me to play because this state of being scarred is really stress full so I hop on the game for like 30 - 60 min and then i have enough. Do u think there is a way for me to overcome this unnecessary fear or am I just a huge pus*y.

You could try what I did to overcome my fear of rollercoasters (my kids are big fans). People may think this technique is weird, but it 100 percent worked for me. What I did was force myself to smile whenever the coaster got to a part that made me scared, like big drops. Then one day, after having done this for a little while, I got on a coaster and didn't even think about it. And when the coaster got to a big drop, I realized I was genuinely smiling. I was actually having fun.

 

[enoc1de]

You could try what I did to overcome my fear of rollercoasters (my kids are big fans). People may think this technique is weird, but it 100 percent worked for me. What I did was force myself to smile whenever the coaster got to a part that made me scared, like big drops. Then one day, after having done this for a little while, I got on a coaster and didn't even think about it. And when the coaster got to a big drop, I realized I was genuinely smiling. I was actually having fun.

Interesting Technique ! Definitely will try that out, thanks.

 

[Brian Boru]

force myself to smile whenever the coaster got to a part that made me scared

I remember that from a long time ago, a psychological thing where you modify behavior first in order to change attitudes.

 

[Frindis]

I have conditioned myself into being extremely scared while playing horror-themed games and for me what works is turning off the lights, play with headsets, play at night, and being all alone. In the games I walk around really slow, sucking in all the atmosphere, and dreading what might be behind the next door. I get so scared that I most of the time now try to avoid playing those games, BUT, when I do try to play them, ohhhh boy, it is a rush! Sweaty palms, heart beating, and every bone in my body wants to just stay in the starter area!

Since this type of conditioning works for me, perhaps the opposite could work for you? Play in the daytime, turn on all the lights, and perhaps play with a friend for shits and giggles. Turn off the game sounds or on very low settings and/or rush through the content, not really thinking about the consequences. I believe that if you do this for a longer period of time, eventually you'll find these types of games less horrifying.