@Neybulot BlueSky -will- be open though. Eventually. Probably.

@keliff I can only speak for my own experiences here. I'm a fairly reserved guy, and I did not know that I had any serious anger issue until I started playing specific types of games online. I never hurt myself or anyone else, but I went through a good number of keyboards, mice and drywall before I finally stopped.

Why didn't I just quit when I realized there was a problem? I think about the answer to that a lot. Video games can be a great source of endorphins, and a sanctuary to a lot of us. The dissonance of discovering such strong negative reactions to a game that could also bring such joy was difficult to accept.

I felt weak; I felt like the way to beat those emotions was to face them head on. "It's just a video game. Stop getting mad." It doesn't help that there's a lot of stigma involved in talking about video game anger, not to mention humiliation - see the countless gamer rage compilations on Youtube.

We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to handle our own problems, but anyone with emotional triggers knows it's not that easy. Quitting the game meant losing not just a source of fun but ties with a lot of people I'd met through it. But losing at the game kept making me feel like someone was blaming me for it. A lot of times that happened explicitly. And that in turn was opening a lot of old wounds. And that in turn made me angry at myself for not controlling it better. And so the cycle continued.

I wasn't angry at the game. I was angry at myself. I didn't understand why. And when I did understand why, I realized I was worth more than the game. It didn't happen all at once, mind you; I had to wean myself off and replace it with better games. Funnily enough, I think becoming a variety streamer has helped regulate my gaming schedule and keep me from getting too fixated on any one thing (which still does happen on occasion but it's better now than it was).

Since I don't know either of you well I don't want to give too specific advice, but if you can talk to a professional about this I would suggest it's worth it. It may be a long hard road ahead, but it's great to identify this sort of thing before it becomes a bigger problem.

Good luck, and happy gaming. 🎮❤️

@Spextherat I tried doing that for a while, but after Elon's recent endorsement of Scott Adams' inhuman rambling, I realized my arms aren't long enough.

I'm going the route of reaching out to friends I've made through streaming and try selling them on at least using Twitter to start funneling their followers into a more tailored community. What passes for "content" on Twitter is largely noise.