Everybody knows that feeling… You’re playing an MMORPG or any Free2Play game and you find yourself unable to stop. Either you start panicking when you might not be able to log in for one day… Or you constantly find yourself spending tons of money in the in-game store because you don’t want to fall behind the others. All these negative feelings come from the same origin: The Fear Of Missing Out In Games. But why exactly do we have that nagging feeling of anxiety in the first place?
FOMO – What Is It & Why Do We Have It?
The Fear Of Missing out, also called FOMO for short, is a social phenomenon that is closely linked to digital media. The biggest contributor to this type of anxiety is in fact not games but social media. More and more people have become familiar with FOMO and over a long period of time it can cause serious psychological strain on a person.
Fear Of Missing Out – The Definition
FOMO is a pervasive psychological state characterized by a persistent feeling of anxiety or worry that one may miss out on pleasurable experiences, items or opportunities others are enjoying. Not being able to have the same things others do can lead to a sense of inadequacy or a feeling that that you fall behind of the others… Or even that you’re not living your life to the fullest.
Most of the time people associate FOMO with social media alone… But the experienced gamer of course knows that it is not only social media exclusive. Arguably, FOMO is probably the biggest cause why people get addicted to certain games or spend thousands of dollars on goods. Now that we know what FOMO is… Let’s take a look at typical behaviors peoples have if they suffer from it.
Common Signs Of FOMO
It’s important to know if you or someone you know has a Fear Of Missing Out. Especially when it comes to video games. There are a lot of different signs that can tell you that a person is affected by FOMO. But keep in mind, that they can vary from individual to individual:
- Constantly Online: Logging into the game daily and playing for a long period of time is one of the first indicators of FOMO. People spend hours if not days of their lives in certain games. Either in order to grind and farm the newest and strongest items or to simply hang out. Sometimes, missing even a single day can put you behind quite a bit in certain games. This causes people to get really anxious. Especially when they are not able to login daily. This can cause panic attacks or even rage in certain individuals.
- Social Comparison: Another part that is fueling FOMO is when you compare yourself with others. This not only makes you feel inadequate or inferior but it also makes you feel anxious. In games it often is pure luck if you get a certain drop or not. So, when your friend gets that one rare loot you tried to get for weeks… It only makes you want to farm harder. Some games use this fear to bind their players. They make their customers to spend money on in-game cash in order to buy it instead of grinding for it. This leads to an even bigger dependence on the came and pushes FOMO even more.
- Social Media Addiction: Social media itself is very dangerous, especially when it comes to FOMO. Everyone knows that feeling. You check your socials and see all the things other people are doing and more often than not… People feel left out. In games, it is not much different. If people can’t be online in-game for a certain amount of time… They are either online on various platforms or browsing different forums about their favorite games. This constant exposure to information and messages surrounding the game, keeps their mind constantly occupied with it. At work, at school, at family dinners… It doesn’t matter.
- Spending Sprees: One of the most dangerous habits of people affected by FOMO, is how they like to spend their money. My favorite example for this is Genshin Impact. You can watch streamers spend thousands and thousands of dollars in hope to pull a certain character… And they are by far not the only ones. Of course people can spend their money however they like. But sadly FOMO tends to dry up their savings rather quickly if they are not careful.
Symptoms & Consequences Of FOMO
After looking at the typical signs of someone who has FOMO, we now need to look at the common symptoms. Those often develop over time and can also have long term consequences:
- Depression: We already touched this subject in the previous chapter but I can’t stress it enough. The increased anxiety and stress level that can develop from it is very dangerous. It can cause severe depression and can lead in extreme cases to more dire consequences.
- Lack Of Focus: The constant distractions and interruption caused by FOMO can make it incredibly difficult to focus on other tasks and responsibilities. A notification on the phone, a message on Discord, a new patch etc… When the mind is constantly distracted by the game in question… Everything else quickly fades into the background and the game becomes priority number one.
- Insomnia: Most of us know that feeling when you have tons of things to do and your head is just constantly reminding you of it. It is making it hard to sleep while you toss and turn, trying to push those thoughts aside. FOMO is very similar to this. The fear of falling behind the other players keeps people awake for hours. Some even spend the whole night gaming away until they can’t keep their eyes open any more.
- Social Isolation: Following up after insomnia comes social isolation. More often than not, people who play all night tend to skip school or even work in order to either catch up on sleep or even continue to play. While people might form online friendships with people across the world, their social circle at home tends to shrink quite a bit which ultimately leads to social isolation. This of course doesn’t happen overnight. Either people move on or their interests just don’t align anymore so they end the friendship. On top of that… People often won’t acknowledged gaming as a hobby. Especially those who have nothing to do with it which makes people avoid you even more.
- Burnout: Games can take a lot of time and effort to get to the top. So, even if you don’t get stressed by the game itself… It can come from the outside as well. Because people tend to neglect their other duties which keep piling up, it often ends in burnout. Not to mention the stress it causes because you miss out on other things which basically causes a FOMO spiral to form.
- Obesity & Other Health Issues: The more people get stuck at home because of their FOMO, the more health issues can arise. A lack of movement and a healthy diet quickly leads to obesity and a lot of other follow up illnesses. This can cause a whole new downwards spiral from insecurities to depression and much much more.
Countermeasures Against FOMO
As you can see, FOMO is a very serious problem in the gaming community. If you or someone you know are affected by it, here we have several strategies you can try in order to beat it:
- Limit Your Online Time: Reducing the amount of time you spend online or on social media can help you fastly reduce FOMO, but this is probably also the hardest step to take since the Fear Of Missing Out often goes hand in hand with addiction.
- Focus On Your Own Life: Instead of constantly comparing yourself with others, rather focus on yourself and what you can do. Some people have more money or more time than you, so don’t worry about what they have but rather what you can do.
- Practice Mindfulness & Meditation: Taking a step back and clear your mind is a great way to reduce stress and anxiety in general. It takes a while to get used to, but we definitely recommend to give it a try.
- Workouts & Fresh Air: Working out and going outside to get some air really boosts both your mental and physical health. Besides that it also forces you to take a break from your device from time to time which really helps to break the downward spiral.
- Seek Professional Help: If you feel like you reached a dead end and nothing helps, please seek out a professional. Therapists are specialized in mental health issues and they can definitely show you the way to go.
FOMO is definitely not something you should underestimate. It can have a serious impact on both your mental and physical health and can even drain your wallet to a dangerous level. If you are prone to fall for the fear of missing out, try to avoid any games with microtransactions or online obligations and always stay vigilant of the dangers of FOMO! If you want to read another interesting article about FOMO and that you are your own worst enemy, you can read this one over on PC Gamers as well!
Since Free2Play games are one of the most dangerous games for FOMO, you might want to know more about them as well:
Free To Play, Play To Win: Why Games Use Microtransaction
Leave a Reply