erratio comments on The True Rejection Challenge - Less Wrong

43 Post author: Alicorn 27 June 2011 07:18AM

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Comment author: [deleted] 29 June 2011 11:22:55AM *  6 points [-]

I should play games (of the video, card, or board variety.) I get told this a lot, by very intelligent people.

Reasons I don't:

  1. I already have a hard time getting work done while having a side project, a relationship, and imperfect discipline; I dread adding another hobby.

  2. It actually takes a lot of work to get good at a game, and if I'm putting in work, I want to have something to show for it.

  3. Certain kinds of video games (i.e. Portal) are viscerally unpleasant for me; I'm not used to navigating a 3d virtual environment since I never played video games as a kid, and so I spend all my time bumping into walls and wondering why other people pay for the privilege.

  4. I could maybe justify poker to myself as useful practice in strategic thinking, but the only people who'd want to play with me live out of town.

Comment author: erratio 01 July 2011 11:31:52AM 2 points [-]

For number 2 and 3, my gut reaction is to say you haven't found the right kind of games for your aptitudes, if you're experiencing it as work. For computer games, there are genres which don't rely so much on spatial awareness and/or reflexes such as turn-based strategy. For board games and card games, there is an extremely wide range of play styles out there, some of which will appeal to you more than others.