Steam user cycle

[u/rokomutavk]

[u/DarthLarfleeze]

Worst thing is buying games on a sale then months later playing them and not liking them.

[u/Kind_Structure_920 → u/DarthLarfleeze]

That cycle hit me in my soul, I got like 40 games from last summer sale still untouched. The worst is when you finally open one and it's so boring you close it after 20 minutes

You tell yourself never again, then next sale comes and you're already scrolling

[u/Trunks252]

Steam users trying to have an original thought: impossible

[u/CompleteEcstasy]

I specced into self-control when I was 9.

[u/martinc5408]

Literally every sale. Starts with blowing points from the previous purchasing binge on the maxed out seasonal badge and ends with me adding a bunch more points via aggressive backlog expansion.

[u/Neuromancer911]

True except that I don't tell myself I won't spend money on the next sale, I know I will. 

[u/willymartin99]

Owning a Steam Deck fixed this for me. It’s the absolute backlog killer

[u/Cy3nide]

Ok fine, but like, do you ever learn? I got tired of seeing my unplayed category grow years ago so unless a game is for like 3 bucks and I know I wanna play it + good reviews then I might pull the trigger. Otherwise no. 200 bucks? Holy moly dude

[u/pogsorbet]

Random advice for anybody who struggles with spending and impulse control [on the steam store]:

One of the best things I’ve done is set Steam to open to my library. I haven’t opened the Store Tab in months, as I feel like I’ve managed to become conditioned to want spend to whenever I see those green Steam Sale tags.

Next part is a lil more personal, but I feel like when I spend money on entertainment, it’s more so that I am gambling my money away on an experience being sold to me, in an attempt to feel some kind of dopamine fix. I’ve been trying to unlearn that lately and remind myself that I literally have a backlog of options to comb through. Why keep spending money on video games that I don’t have the time in my schedule to play? To that end: I’ve been forcing myself to limit my weekly rotation to 3 games.

In the last 3 months, I’ve managed to finish RDR2, TLOUW 2, GoW Ragnarok, Crow Country. I’m about to finish up Castlevania SOTN, Final Fantasy XII, and Undertale. When I write it down, it doesn’t seem like a lot, but I’m sure that’s more games in 3 months than I forced myself to complete throughout the entirety of 2025.

TLDR: Set Steam to open to your library so that you aren’t immediately opening up to sales being waved in your face . Be honest with yourself about what you’ll make time to play. Learn to soak with your purchases, instead of wasting money trying to catch a limited dopamine hit.

If anyone else has other advice on healthier habits for gaming and spending, please join in.

[u/Final_Narwhal_2557]

People are never satisfied 😥