How to Rekindle Your Passion for Gaming When All Hope Is Lost

Are you going through a phase where you feel like you’ll never enjoy gaming ever again? I’ve been through this a few times myself, and I’ve always pulled myself back from the brink. You can, too, with these tips.

Stop Playing Games You Don’t Enjoy

I have never been one to 100% every game I play, but I did at least try to complete them. Before launching each game, I prayed to the gaming gods that I would enjoy it. If I didn’t, I forced myself to see it through, which drained my passion for gaming over time.

There is fallacious logic at play here known as the sunken cost fallacy. Your brain tells you to stick with something not because you enjoy it but because you’ve invested time or money in it. But I’m here to tell you that it’s okay to drop a game if you’re not having fun and find another one that will excite you.

You’re done with a game when you’ve finished having fun with it. There is no correlation between the price you pay and the amount of “fun” you need to have. We don’t apply this logic to movies, where three-hour epics cost twice the price of 90-minute romcoms, which is why critically acclaimed short games like Inside or Journey were absolutely worth their retail price at launch.

And don’t worry if this means you will have a growing list of unfinished games. That backlog is not a problem you’re meant to solve.

Add Some Variety

After exhausting my fair share of shooters, hack-and-slash games, and turn-based RPGs, I decided to look into a game everyone was raving about at the time—Disco Elysium. If you told me I would enjoy a dialogue-heavy game with very little combat, I would have called you insane. Then I tried another interesting one called 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, a visual novel and real-time strategy (RTS) game, and that blew my mind again.

So if you’re not enjoying the types of games you are used to lately, it’s not that your passion for gaming is gone. Your tastes may have just evolved like mine did.

Try exploring new genres or move from AAA releases to indie games. In my case, exploring these new types of games was the palate cleanser I needed before returning to the genres I liked. Furthermore, I can now enjoy a wider variety of games because I stepped outside of my comfort zone and expanded my horizons.

Replay a Game You Love

When you can’t find joy in gaming anymore, it’s important to ask yourself why you fell in love with it in the first place. One way to figure this out is to replay a game you love.

Never underestimate the power of nostalgia. It can allow you to revisit some of your favorite moments, rediscover mechanics, refresh your perspective, and even inspire you to seek similar games or revisit some more games you love. All these things can rekindle your passion for gaming.

It doesn’t even have to be a retro title. There are lots of PS4 games that are worth replaying on the PS5 again, and you’ll get benefits like smoother frame rates and higher-quality visuals to boot.

Play With Friends

If you’ve been playing solo all along, turning gaming into a social experience can reignite your passion. Playing with friends can enrich your gaming life in many ways. For instance, they can introduce you to new games, help you beat tough challenges, inject some friendly competition, and offer motivation and support.

Before you know it, you’re eager to jump into the next multiplayer play session to experience that collective joy. While you’re doing this, you’re developing stronger connections with people who can help you beyond the realm of gaming.

If you can game in person, there are lots of couch co-op games that will hook even non-gamers. If you have children and they’re old enough to hold a controller, the Switch is full of co-op titles that are both accessible and fun.

Have You Considered Mobile?

I once thought I was losing my passion for gaming, only to realize that it was because I was just too busy. I didn’t have time to sit down, turn on a console, and play the games that required big time commitments. Then it dawned on me: I always have a games console in my pocket built for short play sessions—my phone!

Thankfully, there was a game I had been meaning to try called Zenless Zone Zero. It is a gacha game, but it’s one of the better titles from the popular Hoyoverse (best known for titles like Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail). Whenever I had a break, I would play it in short bursts, and it kept my passion for gaming alive until I was no longer busy.

When I finally had time to sit down, I downloaded Zenless Zone Zero to my console and picked up right where I left off on the mobile version. Some of the most popular games of the last few years have fleshed-out mobile versions that you can take anywhere, like the award-winning Balatro and utterly addictive Vampire Survivors.

Give Yourself Some Distance

If you’ve tried everything and are still not excited about gaming, it might be time to take a break before you permanently burn out. Watch movies or TV shows, go to the gym, hang out with friends, or enjoy a nature walk—just stay away from gaming-related activities for a while.

Getting some distance can help you break the routine by experiencing other activities. This will give you a chance to miss gaming and, hopefully, get you excited to jump back into it. When you do decide it’s finally time, make sure you take some of these lessons on board to avoid that feeling of burnout again any time soon.

For me, gaming is a lifestyle and not just a hobby. Many things in this life make me happy, and gaming is one of the major ones. I never gave up on it, even when it seemed like I should, and neither should you.