Great video games can be fun and enriching. Unfortunately, most video games are designed to trigger reward systems in our brains that urge us to continue playing well after they cease providing any benefits. An excellent way to discover if you have been caught up in an addicting but unhelpful video game is to pause playing at random intervals and write down how you feel. If the results are negative overall, you are probably better off doing something else.

To reduce video game procrastination, it helps to find out why you play them in the first place. Video games can provide many benefits, including the following:

• Fun.
• Edication.
• Entertainmnt.
• Creativity.
• A sense of mastery.
• Rest.
• Excitement.
• Social connection.
• Comfort.
• Escape from troubling thoughts.
• Escape from stress.
• Escape from unpleasant feelings.
• Avoidance of an unpleasant task.
• Relief from boredom.

Once you understand why you use video games, you can devise strategies to reduce your use, including by replacing those benefits with more helpful alternatives.

These tools can help you get a fuller picture of your video game use:

• Record how much time you spend using video games in a day. Look for trends that can give you an insight into your video game use.
• Consider your experience when you use video games.
  • When do you do it?
  • Where do you do it?
  • Are there any common triggers for your video game use?
  • What kinds of video games do you use?
  • How do you feel before, during and after use?
• Write down why you want to reduce video game use.
  • What are the downsides to playing video games?
  • What are the positives that you hope to get from the change?

Remove the temptation

The simplest way to stop using video games is to not have access to them. The less willpower you need to use, the better your chances of success. If you get rid of your gaming consoles, computers and games, you won’t be able to give in to the temptation to play easily.

Breaks

A less drastic way to reduce video game procrastination is to take a break from video games for a set period. The length of the break doesn’t have to be particularly ambitious. You can always set another break once this one is completed. To make it easier, give your gaming device to someone you trust with instructions not to return it until the period ends.

Breaks can help for many reasons:

• They can break the habit of playing video games.
• Starting a break is easier if you know it’s not permanent.
• Knowing the break will end can help boost willpower to stick it out till the end.
• They show you that stopping is possible and easy.
• They can show you the benefits of stopping.
• They can show you that video games aren’t as vital as they may sometimes feel.

Limit use

Another strategy is to reduce video game use rather than cut it out altogether. For example:

• Don’t play them for one day a week.
• Don’t play them for the first hour of your day.
• Don’t use them in the mornings.
• Don’t use them in the evenings.
• Aim to reduce the time spent on video games each day.
• Use video games as a reward: only play them once you have completed your tasks for that day.

Make it easy to reduce video game use

• Store your gaming devices somewhere you can’t see them.
• Don’t keep gaming devices in your bedroom.
• Unplug the device and put it away in a cupboard after each time you use it.
• Limit the games you have. Get rid of old games and don’t buy new ones.
• Use apps or browser extensions to block or limit time spent on games.
• Stop or reduce time spent watching others play games.

Replace the benefits

When you reduce your video game use, you will reduce the benefits you get from them. To reduce video game use long term, it helps to replace those benefits by taking up another, more helpful activity that provides similar benefits. If you don’t, then you may fill the free time you have saved with another addictive and unhelpful habit. Aim to find an activity that brings you the benefits you get from video games but is less addictive and more helpful. If you can replace video games with an activity that helps you achieve one of your long-term goals, then even better.

Example replacements for video game use:

• Work towards a creative pursuit.
• Learn an instrument.
• Spend time with friends.
• Read.
• Pick up a hobby.
• Play sport.
• Walk.
• Write.
• Learn a language or skill.
• Take a class in a subject you are interested in.

If you tend to play video games in the evening after work, schedule something else for that time. It is easier not to play video games when doing something else you enjoy. It’s even easier if you involve other people in the activity, like with a sport or game. Having someone else rely upon you to attend another activity makes the lure of video games easier to ignore.

Sometimes we can use video games as a way to distract ourselves from uncomfortable feelings or thoughts. Unfortunately, video games rarely help us process those thoughts and feelings, so they sit in the back of our minds to arise again later on. Taking time to experience, accept and respond to uncomfortable feelings and thoughts can help reduce their effect on your life and the procrastination they trigger. The following experiences often drive procrastination:

• Stress.
• Difficult tasks.
• Fear.
• Overwhelm.
• Anxiety.

For most of us, video game use is a habit and can be overcome with the same tools that help break other unwanted habits.

For some people, video game use can become a serious problem. If you don’t have control over your video game use or it’s causing harm in other parts of your life, it may help to reach out to a doctor or someone you trust for help. There are effective medical treatments for video game addiction.