Main Forum Container minimized. Expand Tweet Rovena's Guide to Marathon gaming or how I approach a game launch 0 replies Rovena Posts: 163 Votes: +114 Level 5 LEVEL 5



In this post I will share a number of tips that I acquired in nearly two decades of being this crazy. A lost are things other people came up with, that I tried and found worked for me.



Goals



Fun

This is the most important thing of all. Having fun. We play games to have fun and if something changes that for you, it's time to adjust that something. But the other goals feed into this, it's hard to have fun, when your wrist hurts from strain or you get frustrated because you dies the bazillion time to a rather simple boss just because you did not realize how tiered you are.



Staying healthy

A single weekend (or even a week) of larval stage probably won't have any severe impact on your general health unless you have an preexisting condition. So why should you even care? Staying healthy is not only about long term effects. Long gaming session put a sort of stress onto your body and relieving that stress will make the session much more enjoyable and let's you play more. Headaches, wrist strain, loss of concentration .... there are a lot health related issues than can lessen the joy of gaming.



Playing efficient

This one is controversial, I know. You might not be aiming for endgame, you might not care for max level or fast progression. And that is totally fine! I won't tell you to stop goofing around or just relaxing during the session. We play for fun. But most of those tips are not about faster leveling. Actually there won't really be many SWL related things in this guide.



Disclaimer



I'm not a professional physician, nutrition expert, personal trainer or any other sort of profession that can offer fully qualified advise on health topics. If you have preexisting conditions, some of those tips might not apply to you. If in doubt ask your physician.



What I have written here is based on my experience and the scientific papers I have read but do not present an absolute truth. This is not the way to do it, just my way.



Tech prep



First things first. If you want to play games, you will need your computer in a good shape, the game working and all that. Here is a short check list of things



Update your operating system (Windows)

Update your graphics drivers (more important for new games than relaunches like SWL)

Update your browser

Download the game. (you can get the SWL installer here)

If you were in the beta, consider resetting your options & use the repair broken data function under options. You don't want corrupted files form the beta lingering and causing crashes.

Launch the game once and configure the settings to your liking. This way you can straight jump into the fun when the launch happens.

If you have the time, make a backup. You should not need it but sometimes you have a nasty bug and some guy in /global posted a solution where you just had to do X and nothing worked afterwards.

Clean up before launch



Desk

You might already have a clean desk, if that's the case, just jump to the next part. But if you are like me and end up with accumulating a lost stuff on your desk, you probably want to clean that up. Not because I care about how your desk looks, but you will accumulate more things there during the weekend. The coffee mug, the second coffee mug on the next day, the pizza box, empty soda cans .....



You need some space to operate mouse and keyboard and that also means that the mouse cord will need to run freely. Yes, we might be experts in stacking things high up, but after a day without sleep, that skill degrades and knocking half empty drinks over your keyboard really is no fun.



Mouse & keyboard

Just clean them like you usually do. Or is you never did, vacuum clean the crumps and dusk from the keyboard and use a moist but not wet microfiber cloth. Maybe a bit of soak or plastic cleaner. Don't follow guides like putting them into the dishwasher. It actually works with some models but seriously, don't risk it before a game launch.



If you have a fabric mousepad, you can hand-wash it with mild soap and warm water. But keep in mind, that it will take hours to dry. All other mousepads you can just clean with a moist cleaning cloth and some cleaner. I usually use kitchen cleaner.



Why clean them? First, it feels a lot nicer to not have the sticking of your old sweat on them, secondary, crumbs, hairs and those things can get in front of the mouse sensor or bock keys and mess up your inputs.



The rest

Yes, cleaning the monitor might give you a nicer picture if it is really dirty, in-ear headphones are more comfortable when cleaned and so on but for me, those things are optional and what I do when nothing else has to be done and the game still is not launched.



Stay Hydrated - or what to drink



Our brain (and let's face it, gaming is mostly a brain activity) starts to suffer relatively quickly from dehydration even before the rest of our body is effected. It spoils the mood, makes you feel fatigued, less energetic and has negative effects of your cognitive and fine motor skills. So in short, even lacking a bit of water in your body can spoil the fun and makes you playing worse.



So, always have a large bottle or carafe of water close by. Mineral water, tap water, with gas, without. It does not really matter. (There are arguments for either, but it is a controversial discussion in nutrition science, depends on where you live and has no huge impact) If you prefer flavored water, either make if yourself but putting a slice of fruit into your water or buy some with minimal calories and without artificial sweeter.



Other drinks

Of course a lot of us also want to drink something other than water. There are main sections about caffeine further below, so I won't cover those drinks now. But hydration wise most of them, should be good to go. Tea and coffee can be dehydrating, but that effect is not present anymore with people who regularly drink them.



Alcoholic drinks do cause dehydration (part of why we get hangovers). I won't tell you not to drink and game, but make sure to also drink some water or so in between your alcoholic drinks.



My personal favorite are juices either mixed with water or not. They are refreshing, have some vitamins and provide you with the sugar your brain needs. When I have to stay awake for more than one day (either for work or gaming), they are my go-to drinks.



I know the next part is controversial and technically does not belong into a gaming guide, but I want to raise awareness. The research about this topic is still in progress and so far results are only indications and not hard facts.



Artificial sweetened like those in sugar free soda are, in short and very simplified way, suspected to mess with the metabolism. They make your body think there is sugar when there is not and that can alter your blood sugar levels and might causes more appetite and increases the risk for diabetes. Some natural sweeteners like Stevia are not suspected though.



But as for our gaming session, you should not worry too much about it. Drink what you enjoy but maybe keep an eye out on how this research develops.



Caffeine



Caffeine keeps us awake, improve our cognitive abilities and focus. It even is suggested that it has positive effects on the mood and might help you better cope with light depressions. So brew a coffee, open a can of energy drink and go? Yes and No. You might have figured it by me giving it it's own headline, things are more complicated.



First things first, the beneficial effects are there and when used with moderation, ingesting caffeine can help you with your marathon gaming session. Like with so many things, the dosage is important.



Negative effects of caffeine:

Even slight overdoses cause jitters and unrest (worse if you play high precision games but yeah )

Your sleep is less deep and refreshing when caffeine is still in your metabolism (it is in there 4-6 hours on average, oral contraception can prolong that time)

You get a down after the beneficial effects run out and just taking in more caffeine won't fix that infinitive.

Are all caffeine sources equal?

Nope. Sadly no. Caffeine in coffee or soda takes about 45 minutes to get absorbed to 99% into your body, but other drinks like yerba mate tea or things containing guarana have the caffeine bound to other substances. While your body digests them, the caffeine gets released. Drinks with Taurin increase the metabolic effect of caffeine.



My way

Now that we know how caffeine works, I'll give you my recommendations but this is purely based on my experience.

If you usually start your day with a tea or coffee, keep doing that, no need to mess with your morning ritual and make you grumpy.

Don't drink caffeinated drinks just for the taste, make sure you have other options

Don't take caffeine when you plan to sleep soon

To avoid the downs, try to avoid caffeine for most of the time

Deliberately drink some if you feel exhausted, tired or unfocused but don't want to sleep yet

No large or super large cans of energy drink. Unless you are used to a lot caffeine it probably is too much.

Wait at least 20 minutes for the effect before drinking more

Food



Let's make this short. Yes, eating healthy will get you better through the weekend but we all know you won't be cooking and the unhealthy snacks are (for me at least) part of the fun. So, just a few quick suggestions:



Instead of getting food delivered, walk to the restaurant. It helps with the next two major tips and you can get even better food. If you have a partner, maybe invite them. Sure they know you and your gaming times, but most of the time it still will be a pleasant surprise.

If you want to eat fruits & vegetables prepare them ahead of time so they are easy to snack. And only prepare some you really enjoy. If you love strawberries for example, those are the fruits for you, if you prefer banana, have those.

Having real meals keeps you from snacking only.

Don't overdose on sugar. It might feel great, but the down will come.

make sure you have all you need at home

Move & stretch



Sitting for a long time has a detrimental effect on your health and can impact your brains performance as well. But the good news is, just walking a bit and doing some stretches can fend of the worst of it.



Long loading screen, cinematic (and SWL has many of them) and waiting times until everyone is ready for the boss are perfect opportunities to stretch your hands, forearms and neck. Try to slips a stretch or two in as often as you can.



1 HP has a great 5 min stretch video for the wrists I highly recommend.



Like I said, you don't have to walk much, but you have to walk. Even short distances like to the kitchen will help and get you better through the weekend. But I know we don't get up if we don't have to, not if we could just keep gaming. So here are a few tips to encourage yourself to get up.



Keep drinks in the kitchen and only pour a glass so you have to get up and walk there to get more. (does not count for the water, always have that close by, you don't want to dehydrate and "just one more quests before I get up" is a thing.)

Keep snacks in a different room too and only grab a few each time.

Be verbal in a group about needing a new drink / snack instead of just pushing through. Chances are, someone else want a new drink too or has to take a bio break but is to shy to ask.

Eat at a restaurant, cook yourself or at least go pick up your take out.

Ask someone out for a short walk ahead of time so you have a commitment.

Yes, stretching and getting up might look silly and most streamers avoid it, but seriously, just do it on stream and encourage your audience to join in. Be silly together, have fun and enjoy the better feeling afterwards.



Take breaks



But Rov, isn't this about how to play for long times without stopping? Yup, it is. But small breaks will improve your focus. As a rule of thumb try to take about 5 minutes every hour at least. (yes that's less than what usually is recommended but let's not have unrealistic goals.)



Take a bio break, make a hot chocolate, head over to the ice cream parlor, whatever, just do something other than gaming.



Every few hours you should take a longer break. It is amazing how many "impossible" puzzles are suddenly not that hard if you gave your brain time to process and relax. Like with walking, you want to set things up to encourage the taking of breaks.



Sleep

You should sleep. Yes staying up 72 hours and beating a game in one big session can feel epic and rewarding, but you will have to sleep at some point and after a weekend without sleep, you will feel the negative effects for several days of the next week and it can mess up your sleep schedule.



Luckily as adults we can make an informed decision and decide that's something we are okay with. ;-)



Still my recommendation stands, if you feel sleepy, get sleep. You might stay up longer, sure, but get some sleep eventually. It can be tough to find the right moment to sleep when the game is pushing you and the adrenaline & excitement are keeping you away. But that's just more of a reason to take regular breaks and allows your body to calm down again. If you are sleepy, that will settle in.



Keep a positive Mindset & Manage Expectations



Each game launch is a stressful event. For your body if you do a gaming marathon, but also for the servers and the developers. There will be bugs, there might be crashes. Try to keep that in mind. Have options for that.



You could continue to work on your char's wiki profile, get out and enjoy the sun for half an hour before seeing if things have been fixed, thing like that. Make a list of things you would enjoy ahead of time, so you have something to look at when you can't think of something other than trying to relogg the 120th time.



Stay engaged with other people on social media and chats but also know how to turn those off if people start to get on your nerves. It might be a good idea to stay off them as well if there are issues with the game and others are getting negative. Don't let this drag you down.



Set up a nice playlist of music you enjoy that keeps you in an upbeat and energetic mood if that is something that works for you.



Regardless of how the launch goes, send the dev a few nice notes on social media. Be thankful to the GMs that help you out. They are most likely sleep deprived and work massive long hours to make the launch as smooth as possible.



Wrap up



I hope at least some of those tips will help you to have a better time during this weekend. A lot can also applied to general gaming sessions too by the way.



I'll see you in SWL So, the SWL launch is imminent and some gamers like me get quite crazy at launches or major content patches and end up playing for extended periods (aka very long days). I have heard this being called larval stage and it pretty surely sound correct, at least when I look at myself.In this post I will share a number of tips that I acquired in nearly two decades of being this crazy. A lost are things other people came up with, that I tried and found worked for me.This is the most important thing of all. Having fun. We play games to have fun and if something changes that for you, it's time to adjust that something. But the other goals feed into this, it's hard to have fun, when your wrist hurts from strain or you get frustrated because you dies the bazillion time to a rather simple boss just because you did not realize how tiered you are.A single weekend (or even a week) of larval stage probably won't have any severe impact on your general health unless you have an preexisting condition. So why should you even care? Staying healthy is not only about long term effects. Long gaming session put a sort of stress onto your body and relieving that stress will make the session much more enjoyable and let's you play more. Headaches, wrist strain, loss of concentration .... there are a lot health related issues than can lessen the joy of gaming.This one is controversial, I know. You might not be aiming for endgame, you might not care for max level or fast progression.I won't tell you to stop goofing around or just relaxing during the session. We play for fun. But most of those tips are not about faster leveling. Actually there won't really be many SWL related things in this guide.First things first. If you want to play games, you will need your computer in a good shape, the game working and all that. Here is a short check list of thingsYou might already have a clean desk, if that's the case, just jump to the next part. But if you are like me and end up with accumulating a lost stuff on your desk, you probably want to clean that up. Not because I care about how your desk looks, but you will accumulate more things there during the weekend. The coffee mug, the second coffee mug on the next day, the pizza box, empty soda cans .....You need some space to operate mouse and keyboard and that also means that the mouse cord will need to run freely. Yes, we might be experts in stacking things high up, but after a day without sleep, that skill degrades and knocking half empty drinks over your keyboard really is no fun.Just clean them like you usually do. Or is you never did, vacuum clean the crumps and dusk from the keyboard and use a moist but not wet microfiber cloth. Maybe a bit of soak or plastic cleaner. Don't follow guides like putting them into the dishwasher. It actually works with some models but seriously, don't risk it before a game launch.If you have a fabric mousepad, youhand-wash it with mild soap and warm water. But keep in mind, that it will take hours to dry. All other mousepads you can just clean with a moist cleaning cloth and some cleaner. I usually use kitchen cleaner.Why clean them? First, it feels a lot nicer to not have the sticking of your old sweat on them, secondary, crumbs, hairs and those things can get in front of the mouse sensor or bock keys and mess up your inputs.Yes, cleaning the monitor might give you a nicer picture if it is really dirty, in-ear headphones are more comfortable when cleaned and so on but for me, those things are optional and what I do when nothing else has to be done and the game still is not launched.Our brain (and let's face it, gaming is mostly a brain activity) starts to suffer relatively quickly from dehydration even before the rest of our body is effected. It spoils the mood, makes you feel fatigued, less energetic and has negative effects of your cognitive and fine motor skills. So in short, even lacking a bit of water in your body can spoil the fun and makes you playing worse.So, always have a large bottle or carafe of water close by. Mineral water, tap water, with gas, without. It does not really matter. (There are arguments for either, but it is a controversial discussion in nutrition science, depends on where you live and has no huge impact) If you prefer flavored water, either make if yourself but putting a slice of fruit into your water or buy some with minimal calories and without artificial sweeter.Of course a lot of us also want to drink something other than water. There are main sections about caffeine further below, so I won't cover those drinks now. But hydration wise most of them, should be good to go. Tea and coffee can be dehydrating, but that effect is not present anymore with people who regularly drink them.Alcoholic drinks do cause dehydration (part of why we get hangovers). I won't tell you not to drink and game, but make sure to also drink some water or so in between your alcoholic drinks.My personal favorite are juices either mixed with water or not. They are refreshing, have some vitamins and provide you with the sugar your brain needs. When I have to stay awake for more than one day (either for work or gaming), they are my go-to drinks.I know the next part is controversial and technically does not belong into a gaming guide, but I want to raise awareness. The research about this topic is still in progress and so far results are only indications and not hard facts.Artificial sweetened like those in sugar free soda are, in short and very simplified way, suspected to mess with the metabolism. They make your body think there is sugar when there is not and that can alter your blood sugar levels and might causes more appetite and increases the risk for diabetes. Some natural sweeteners like Stevia are not suspected though.But as for our gaming session, you should not worry too much about it. Drink what you enjoy but maybe keep an eye out on how this research develops.Caffeine keeps us awake, improve our cognitive abilities and focus. It even is suggested that it has positive effects on the mood and might help you better cope with light depressions. So brew a coffee, open a can of energy drink and go? Yes and No. You might have figured it by me giving it it's own headline, things are more complicated.First things first, the beneficial effects are there and when used with moderation, ingesting caffeine can help you with your marathon gaming session. Like with so many things, the dosage is important.Negative effects of caffeine:Nope. Sadly no. Caffeine in coffee or soda takes about 45 minutes to get absorbed to 99% into your body, but other drinks like yerba mate tea or things containing guarana have the caffeine bound to other substances. While your body digests them, the caffeine gets released. Drinks with Taurin increase the metabolic effect of caffeine.Now that we know how caffeine works, I'll give you my recommendations but this is purely based on my experience.Let's make this short. Yes, eating healthy will get you better through the weekend but we all know you won't be cooking and the unhealthy snacks are (for me at least) part of the fun. So, just a few quick suggestions:Sitting for a long time has a detrimental effect on your health and can impact your brains performance as well. But the good news is, just walking a bit and doing some stretches can fend of the worst of it.Long loading screen, cinematic (and SWL has many of them) and waiting times until everyone is ready for the boss are perfect opportunities to stretch your hands, forearms and neck. Try to slips a stretch or two in as often as you can.1 HP has a great 5 min stretch video for the wrists I highly recommend.Like I said, you don't have to walk much, but you have to walk. Even short distances like to the kitchen will help and get you better through the weekend. But I know we don't get up if we don't have to, not if we could just keep gaming. So here are a few tips to encourage yourself to get up.Yes, stretching and getting up might look silly and most streamers avoid it, but seriously, just do it on stream and encourage your audience to join in. Be silly together, have fun and enjoy the better feeling afterwards.But Rov, isn't this about how to play for long times without stopping? Yup, it is. But small breaks will improve your focus. As a rule of thumb try to take about 5 minutes every hour at least. (yes that's less than what usually is recommended but let's not have unrealistic goals.)Take a bio break, make a hot chocolate, head over to the ice cream parlor, whatever, just do something other than gaming.Every few hours you should take a longer break. It is amazing how many "impossible" puzzles are suddenly not that hard if you gave your brain time to process and relax. Like with walking, you want to set things up to encourage the taking of breaks.You should sleep. Yes staying up 72 hours and beating a game in one big session can feel epic and rewarding, but you will have to sleep at some point and after a weekend without sleep, you will feel the negative effects for several days of the next week and it can mess up your sleep schedule.Luckily as adults we can make an informed decision and decide that's something we are okay with.Still my recommendation stands, if you feel sleepy, get sleep. You might stay up longer, sure, but get some sleep eventually. It can be tough to find the right moment to sleep when the game is pushing you and the adrenaline & excitement are keeping you away. But that's just more of a reason to take regular breaks and allows your body to calm down again. If you are sleepy, that will settle in.Each game launch is a stressful event. For your body if you do a gaming marathon, but also for the servers and the developers. There will be bugs, there might be crashes. Try to keep that in mind. Have options for that.You could continue to work on your char's wiki profile, get out and enjoy the sun for half an hour before seeing if things have been fixed, thing like that. Make a list of things you would enjoy ahead of time, so you have something to look at when you can't think of something other than trying to relogg the 120th time.Stay engaged with other people on social media and chats but also know how to turn those off if people start to get on your nerves. It might be a good idea to stay off them as well if there are issues with the game and others are getting negative. Don't let this drag you down.Set up a nice playlist of music you enjoy that keeps you in an upbeat and energetic mood if that is something that works for you.Regardless of how the launch goes, send the dev a few nice notes on social media. Be thankful to the GMs that help you out. They are most likely sleep deprived and work massive long hours to make the launch as smooth as possible.I hope at least some of those tips will help you to have a better time during this weekend. A lot can also applied to general gaming sessions too by the way.I'll see you in SWL IC Twitter: @A_Rovena Posted Jun 23, 17 · OP · Last edited Jun 23, 17 Like x 5 x 5 List Undo Quick navigation ------------------------------------------------------------------ Getting Started Forum Announcements Introductions & Departures ------------------------------------------------------------------ Gameplay Game News & Discussion Builds, Strategies, and Guides ------------------------------------------------------------------ Cabals & Groups Cabals & Groups Making Connections ------------------------------------------------------------------ Roleplay Community Content & Lore Single-Author Content Multi-Author Content Character Profiles (Wiki Redirect) Community Events RP Workshop Out-of-Character RP Discussion Official Lore Discussion Writing Prompts Tips & Tricks ------------------------------------------------------------------ Community Off-Topic Chat Other Games Community Creativity