No matter if it’s cheats, hacks, sneaky mods, or reloading after a bad choice – none of us are free from gaming sins.
Players like to boast a bit – and usually about themselves. After all, one is a little proud of their own skills. Whether it’s a “World First Kill” in World of Warcraft, a particularly spectacular kill streak in Call of Duty, or 10,000 hours of gameplay in that strategy game that just won’t let go.
However, some people like to leave behind this “gamer honor” when something specific bothers them. Then game saves are manipulated, cheats are pulled out, or the difficulty level is casually changed from “normal” to “easy”.
In the gaming subreddit, the user ZhangtheGreat sparked a huge discussion with nearly 6,000 comments and over 13,000 upvotes. There, he talks about his gaming sin – and invites everyone else to open up as well.
He begins with the statement:
In single-player games, whenever there is an inventory limitation, I cheat to bypass it (if possible). I don’t spend a second deciding what to take and what to throw away: I carry everything to the next NPC merchant and turn it into money. And your sin?
This little contribution prompted many others to reveal their “sins” as well. For example, doxtorwhom writes that he simply cannot break old patterns:
I start a game again and tell myself: I will play it completely differently than in my previous run, with a new build, different choices, and new relationships/companions!
Then I make exactly the same decisions again and again with the same builds and the same NPCs.
Especially during the time of Baldur’s Gate 3, “save scumming” has become popular – that is, immediately reloading a save if a choice afterward doesn’t feel right or if the consequences were not 100% foreseeable. Disdained by most gamers, Dv_George admits to this:
I always reload my save when I have made a wrong dialogue choice or a bad decision, especially in story games. I can’t stand living with the consequences, even if that is part of the intended gaming experience.
Many also seem to have simply forgotten how to solve problems in games independently or to seek the answer to something in the game. Instead, the internet is often consulted immediately – at least that’s what dredd-garcia admits with over 12,500 upvotes:
I often look for a walkthrough for games as soon as I encounter the slightest resistance.
This is complemented by nullv with the addition:
As a child, I did this because it was too hard for me to figure out. As an adult, I do it because I don’t have the time to figure it out.
Other “gaming sins” do not take place in the game but outside of it. So therealsunshinem81 admits:
I’m a mother who is just scrolling by. I call every game console a Nintendo. It drives my kids crazy.
Another common “sin” is frequently mentioned. Do you remember the elixirs in the Final Fantasy games? They are so powerful that most heroes save them for that one emergency that never comes:
The “too good to use” syndrome.
In my defense, I must say, I played in the 90s and those old games traumatized my young mind.That’s what’s brilliant about the Estus Flask. Use it or lose it.
What are your biggest “gaming sins” that you know the majority would probably despise?
