I just realized I have a pattern. Am I alone?

[van_arn]

The homecoming effect is strong with this game. You're not unusual and there's nothing wrong with it. Play when you want, and come back when you want. Keep up with the patch trailers, though!

[Illmaeran]

The homecoming effect is strong with this game. You're not unusual and there's nothing wrong with it. Play when you want, and come back when you want. Keep up with the patch trailers, though!

I like how you said that, The Homecoming Effect. It's so true!

I agree with the rest too; you're probably in the majority of players who come in for the story expansions, play a little bit of something else, and then go do other things for a while. There's not one thing wrong with this pattern; it's a hobby activity after all and hobbies are meant to be enjoyed. If you're not enjoying it, change how you do it until you do enjoy it or take a break to refresh.



My XIV journey has included extended breaks for various reasons. While I do regret not maintaining my sub to do things like seasonal events, I don't regret taking breaks when necessary. I recently realized that my need for breaks outside of RL circumstances, have been due to me taking the game more seriously than I should have and treating it like a To Do List of things to check off rather than a toy box full of things to play with for a little while when I feel like it. Now that I've started taking the Toy Box approach I'm finding myself enjoying the game a lot more than I used to, which is saying something! I recently decided I want more emotes and have started farming Diadem and doing Ishgard Restoration, something I've barely touched in the past. Once I've got everything I want I'll probably go back to doing Beast Tribes until I've had enough and move on to something else.

I also did something I thought I'd never do; started an alt. When EW got that two week delay and I'd taken a few days off work since it was Thanksgiving here in the US, I decided to see what it was like to go through ARR on a fresh character seven years after starting the game. It was a fun experience and I look forward to seeing HW again. I won't deny it, having a drop-dead gorgeous Femroe has got me spending quite a bit of time gathering/making glamours for my new dress-up doll. <3

Giving myself permission to take breaks or cut back my play time to prioritize other things has improved my gameplay experience significantly. It's only a couple months into my return after a post-5.0 break so we'll see how well it works out, but so far I'm not feeling the urge to put them game down for the next year or until the next content patch I look forward to. I'm hoping this leads to continued activity throughout the entire expansion this time. We'll see how it goes.