List: 14 New Year’s resolutions for gamers

Make 2015 a great year for games. As a lover of games, that should be your task for the next year. Play games, enjoy them and let others enjoy them with you. Hopefully you’ll get some great computer accessories for Christmas to enhance your gaming experiences too, like speakers and headsets. If you’re not sure which to put on your Christmas list, learn more about the different options here.

And while you’re making promises about saving money (not an easy task as a gamer) or losing some weight (not an easy task for anyone), you should also promise yourself to enjoy your hobby more.

In that vein, we came up with a series of New Year’s resolutions that will help you enjoy your hobby as much as possible. Pick one (or more, we don’t mind) and try to stay true to it the whole year through.

So, repeat after us:

In 2015, I resolve to…

…play games for fun. I feel this is the most important one on the list: It’s not about the achievement. It’s not about beating everyone else. Games are about having a good time. So go. Have some fun.

…play the games in my collection. You do it. I do it. We all have a shelf full of games that we’d love to play and some of them have never been opened. Get those games out. Let them be enjoyed.

…finish all of my old video games. If you’re like me, you can barely contain your excitement when that video game you’ve been waiting for hits the shelf. In fact, you forego finishing your current favorite to jump into the next one. And if you continue to be like me, that becomes an endless cycle. After a year has passed, I realized I played 20 games but only finished 5 of them. I don’t want to do that anymore.

…try a game outside of my comfort zone. If you like D&D and Pathfinder, try a game set in a sci-fi universe. If you like first-person shooters, try out an RPG. If you hate sports, take a shot at a sports game and you might be surprised how much you like it.

…replay my favorite classic games. Last year, I replayed Metroid start-to-finish, which is in my top 5 video games of all time. It was a blast, and I’m ready to tackle some of my other old favorites.

…chill out. In competitive games, tensions can rise and people get upset. Just try to remember Wheaton’s Law and we’ll all be better for it.

…invite a non-gamer friend to play games. We all have friends or family member that don’t get our gaming, so extend an invitation to play a game with you. (We recommend something that meshes with their interests.) You may not convert them to gamerdom, but they will at least get an appreciation for why you like what you do. Remember you do not have to throw them in at the deep end though. For example, if you decide to play League of Legends together, you could use LOL boosting techniques to get their account up to speed and at a division that makes it easier for them to get used to the controls and maybe even secure a win.

…get really nerdy. You know that franchise you love? Buy an action figure. Cosplay as the main character. Read a spin-off novel. Write some fanfiction. Indulge in your nerdiness and pursue your deepest nerdy desires at least once.

…donate to a Kickstarter. Give a hard-working developer/designer a little bit of cash and feel good that you helped get that game made. Then buy a copy when it comes out and play it knowing you had a hand in it.

…be proud to play games. Too often, those of us who play tabletop games and spend a lot of time on Xbox Live are derided for being weirdos with few social skills. We’re not, and it’s OK to let people know that. When someone asks about your hobby, tell them you play D&D. Tell them you’re working on your “Super Mario Bros.” speed run time. Tell them you’d rather play “League of Legends” and check out sites like Unranked LoL Accounts to improve your skillset than go drink. They might think this is strange, but if this is what you want to do, don’t give in. Surely you can go drinking with your friends at any time?

…get myself something nice. Face it: Your favorite controller is wearing down. Your old d20 doesn’t roll like it used to. You went the cheap route when you bought that gaming joystick a few years back, and you want to improve your game ranking using dota mmr boost. Spend a little money to improve your setup and you’ll play better.
…play games in public. Organize a board game night at the coffee shop. Join a video game tournament. Finally hit up Friday Night Magic. Proudly play your games in a public forum.

…give games as gifts. Get a friend into it by giving them a game for a birthday or holiday that they’ll dig. And then play it with them.

…get really good at one Street Fighter character and then school everyone you know. I’m going to pick Ryu. And you’re all going down in a hail of Hadouken.

What’s your gaming New Year’s resolution? Tell us in the comments.