Most people who play League of Legends will display some sort of disdain for the game. However, whether we admit it or not, we all do feel some pull towards the game. Even the most disciplined people I’ve met have fallen prey to spending much more time on League than they would like.
So, what exactly makes League of Legends so addictive, and how can we deal with League of Legends addiction?
Why is League of Legends so Addictive
Ranked System & Feeling of Progress
There are certain games that just seem to have a strong gravitational-like pool towards their players, and the cause of this is not precisely clear. Here are some of those games: League of Legends, WoW, Runescape, CS:GO, Valorant. Although very different in many senses, all these games seem to share a common thread. They all have a ranking system that makes us feel good about the grinding.
Whenever we play these games, we invest something like 30 minutes per game, and we instantly get a sense of gratification. We see the rank go up, and we get all the cool rewards that make our progress feel slightly more worthwhile.
Aside from giving us competitive fulfillment, these games also train us to be active every day, essentially hard-wiring our behavior as a habit. They mainly do this type of incentivization through daily logins, various passes, and things of such nature.
So what about these grinding and behavior systems makes the game so addictive? Well, we are no psychologists by any means, but what we’ve found through analyzing our experience and experience of other people is that the game is often used as a substitute for goal-oriented behavior in life. Now, since the game is filling a gap in our lives, it can be really hard to quit the game unless we replace it with something else, as we will always be craving that experience of progress and moving towards a goal.
For example my gameplay time was significantly reduced when I started focusing on some other life endeavors, primarily bodybuilding, but I also developed a strong desire to excel academically. The feeling I got from hitting milestones in these domains was the same as ranking up in League, but much more rewarding and beneficial.
Social Interactions
We live in a time when loneliness is hitting the highest peaks ever, and more and more people are starting to feel extremely isolated. Although not a substitute for social experiences, League of Legends can still feel like a good outlet to connect with people. You might know so many people playing it and it’s easy to get stuck in a circle where most of your social needs are met online.
Relying on online social interactions can work for a brief period of time, but it will hardly lead anywhere in the long term, therefore, it’s much better to play the long game and invest in friendships outside the online realm.
Final Thoughts
League of Legends is a game that has been developed to be as interesting as possible for the longest period of time. It can be used as a fun outlet to blunt our emotions, it can also be used to achieve feelings of fulfillment that come with accomplishment, and finally, it can also satisfy some of our social needs.
Now if you do not know how to deal with League of Legends addiction, you might want to see if you are using League to meet any of the above-mentioned needs, if so, you could consider finding healthier substitutes, as they can majorly affect your life in a positive direction!