14 DAY TRIAL // Depending on your religious orientation, you’re almost sure to celebrate something in the next few weeks, even if it’s just the New Year. Unfortunately, while this should be a time of peace on Earth and getting together with your family, friends or relatives, it’s quite a difficult time to be a gamer.
I’ve already talked about the following weeks and how they relate to gaming because they offer extra free time to indulge in this hobby, but it’s now time to take a look at the general picture and how the holidays are pretty bad for a gamer, due to a couple of reasons.
First up, while you do get some free time, most of it will no doubt be filled with the actual winter holidays and their specific rituals, not to mention the various family gatherings you might participate in.
From decorating a Christmas tree to lighting Hanukkah candles, all these things will no doubt carve into your gaming time, no matter if you go to school or have a steady job. Throw in the occasional trip outside your current city to visit friends, family or just a new place, and you can pretty much kiss your gaming time goodbye.
Thankfully this can be fixed, somewhat, by the various mobile gaming solutions, either in the form of a dedicated device, like the Nintendo 3DS or a PSP, or through smartphones or tablets, which can provide some satisfying gaming experiences through their multitude of apps.
Secondly, there’s the financial aspect, which also affects gamers, largely because most of them find their holiday budgets being spent on actual preparations, decorations or presents for loved ones, thus preventing them from getting games they usually postponed buying.
Besides the actual holiday spending spree, most gamers are now assaulted by various sales and discounts on a variety of digital distribution and retail stores, with the likes of Steam, Microsoft or Sony, cutting prices on a variety of games and content for them.
As such, during this holiday season, gamers and their wallets need to strike a perfect balance between actually indulging in their hobby and getting to spend an appropriate amount of money on it, unless they want to pay full price for games afterwards.
For me, at least, it’s about setting a precise schedule to prepare and celebrate the holidays, with gaming time sprinkled in between, and refraining, as much as possible, from any impulse buys just because prices are low on games I might not play at all.
What about you? Share your tips for finding this balance in the comment section below.