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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Dh obsession with gaming?

42 replies

comfysofty · 27/08/2024 20:39

Ok so I knew he was a gamer when we met but I had thought that after 10 years of marriage and 3 children later he would come off and spend time with the family.
He comes home from work and games until about 9:00 then he makes something to eat, usually pizza or toasted sandwiches and will watch tv for half an hour to an hour while eating before bed, he calls this spending time with me.

He works Saturday so only has Sunday off and likes to spend it gaming, we do have a few hours out as a family but then he's usually playing a game on his phone while we're out.
He plays games on the toilet, watches gaming talk on youtube in bed.
The children have a tv in their room because the tv in the lounge is for gaming, I generally go for walks or find something on my phone to do while he games as he's playing on the tv and I don't want to just sit there.
I feel like he is married to his games console and I'm his bit on the side who he just meets in bed later.

OP posts:
VimesandhisCardboardBoots · 02/09/2024 09:49

I don't get how people end up in relationships with people like this? And I don't just mean gaming, but golf, football, drinking, anything to excess!

It doesn't sound like your husbands gaming habit has gotten progressively worse @comfysofty , but that it's stayed consistent despite other things that should be taking up his time instead. How wasn't that a deal breaker when you moved in together, before you got married, before you had kids? I don't understand why people expect their partners to change just because kids are involved.

I love gaming. It's probably my main hobby. But I don't do it to the exclusion of other things. Even before DP, I had a busy social life outside of it. When we got together and had DD, Tuesday night became gaming night for me, (because Tuesday night was also Holby City and CSI night for DP. Ah, the days before On Demand). I'd find a couple of hours here and there at other times during the week, but I kept my gaming to a healthy level that didn't interfere with time spent as a family.

Ironically, about 5 years ago DP (who has never been interested in gaming) discovered Stardew Valley on our daughters Switch, and got absolutely hooked. Initially, I thought "Great, I can take myself off to the computer and game guilt free!". But it started being most nights, and I started missing DP and getting bored of spending all evening playing games, so we had a conversation and limited it to a couple of evenings a week. Had DP been that obsessed when we first moved in together, I'd have probably moved right back out again, because that's not a relationship.

When you first meet someone, they're on their best behaviour. If they're already ignoring you for the sake of a hobby then, then why would you expect them to be any different years later?

CreativeOriginalUsername · 02/09/2024 10:06

Sock puppeting there OP?

CleanShirt · 02/09/2024 10:15

This would make my vagina clamp shut like a bear trap. What does this man actually bring to your life?

MrsKwazi · 02/09/2024 10:23

Oooh a live sockpuppet thread!

TinyFlamingo · 02/09/2024 14:55

You need to find a space for a game area and reclaim the TV/living room as communally TV space. It's not good for your 3 LOs being cooped up in their rooms on screens and the family being separate.
Also boundaries, no gaming in bed and no gaming when out on Family time. Times where he has to be present. It's going to be hard, but he can have chunks of gaming still, also long as he's present for family time.
I'd switch it, you can time first then his gaming time.
He's obviously addicted so start small an build on it.
But this isn't going to change unless you stop enabling his addiction/behavior.

KreedKafer · 02/09/2024 14:56

comfysofty · 28/08/2024 13:57

I think you completely missed the point. OP said she goes out for walks on her own while he games to avoid sitting doing nothing because she can't even watch tv.
How is that often wanting him to do things she wants to do?

LOL. Someone forgot to change their name.

Petunia2024 · 02/09/2024 15:02

I only joined last week can someone please explain what a sock puppet is?

afaloren · 02/09/2024 15:03

Oh dear OP. Weren’t enough people agreeing with you?

DaisyChain505 · 02/09/2024 15:06

It doesn’t matter if it helps him unwind that’s absolute bullshit.

Im sure lying on an exotic beach, taking long baths and drinking wine 24.7 would help you unwind but the fact is when you have children and a family you don’t get to do those things everyday or as much as you’d like.

remind him that he created three children with you and you expect him to make drastic changes and start being an equal parent in the family.

if he doesn’t, get rid of him. You’re basically just raising an extra (man)child in your house.

Merryoldgoat · 02/09/2024 15:09

It doesn’t matter what the hobby is - doing it to the exclusion of everything else isn’t acceptable.

If it were golf/knitting/cycling it would be the same.

He doesn’t care about you and your children. It’s time to move on.

Scottsy200 · 02/09/2024 16:58

People telling her to to game with him instead of him having to be told he is a complete and utter waste of space, hilarious

xboxforlife · 02/09/2024 17:39

I play alot and i mean alot of xbox. Ive played one game in particular for about seven years. I complete games and play them over and over again. Im still able to act like an adult and have plenty of time with friends and family. I put them first and dont act like the world revolves around my hobby. He should have learnt these skills growing up. Its probably too late now.

Gravystain · 02/09/2024 17:40

This reply has been deleted

This has been deleted by MNHQ for breaking our Talk Guidelines.

MumsTheWordYouKnow · 02/09/2024 22:41

You’re worried about him seeing friends. Aren’t you worried your children are growing up with a completely absent parent and you have no partner. It all sounds totally unacceptable and you need to take him to marriage counselling so he can see what it’s doing to you all as a family. Sounds totally dysfunctional for a family.

Hungrycaterpillarsmummy · 02/09/2024 22:42

Jesus what a loser he is.

You're wasting your life with him

MumsTheWordYouKnow · 02/09/2024 22:45

Why are you talking about yourself in the third person 🤣

Ihateusernames91 · 03/09/2024 11:54

My partner is a gamer (pc not console). I never thought I'd be the type of person who would enjoy playing but I have come to really love it.
Maybe you can get him to go for a walk with you and the kids once he finishes work, then after dinner try playing with him as a way of compromise? Get him to teach you, there are lots of games you can play to work together and it's actually helped our relationship to play something that reinforces teamwork. If you can't get into playing (not everyone can), then treat it like a movie watching him play, engaging with him about it. Sometimes I see things my partner missed.
Maybe it's worth getting some games that the kids can join in on and make it a family thing (minecraft for example can be played multiplayer and is kid friendly and can be educational in some ways).

Sounds like you also need to establish some boundaries. Eg. No devices during dinner, he eats with you all as a family, Sundays are family days and devices need to be away until a certain time. Maybe suggest some alternatives to unwind that involve the 2 of you if you catch my drift haha like a reward for good behaviour (don't kill me mumsnet) 😉

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