Gaming Marathon Advice From People Who’ve Actually Done It
With Cyberpunk 2077 on the way, the number of people engaging in so-called “gaming marathons” will shoot up over the coming months. We’re going to see gamers all over the world retreat to their PCs and consoles for possibly days at a time. This ritual has played out thousands of times before, and we expect it to fully happen again with the release of what will likely be the Game of the Year.
The idea of staying up for a 36-hour gaming stint is appealing for many of us. We like the idea of letting the rest of life take a backseat for a while we hammer away on our keyboards and controllers, trying to dominate new 3D virtual environments. Modern video games, however, demand so much more from players. There’s just so much to do and explore; you can find days and weeks melting away.
Cyberpunk 2077 will almost certainly take more than 100 hours to explore fully. And CD Projekt Red – the game’s developers – say that the world will be even bigger and more interactive than the Witcher 3 – which means that this game is going to soak up your time massively.
In this post, we’re going to take a look at some marathon gaming advice from people who’ve done it. None of this is specific to Cyberpunk 2077, but it gives you a flavour of the sort of things you need to do if you want to sit in your chair, blasting your enemies to kingdom come for twenty-four hours or more. We will cover everything from how to keep your mind sharp to managing bodily functions.
Charge Your Controllers (And Buy A Backup)
Before the game drops, be sure to charge up your controllers. You don’t want them dying on you when you get to a boss of a critical point in the story.
When it comes to controllers for a gaming marathon, it helps to have more than one. After about eight hours or so, the battery warning light will come on, and you’ll have to connect them to the mains somehow. Unfortunately, this can kind of wreck your enjoyment of the game if you mainly use free-floating controllers. And it can make you feel as though you’ve returned to the nineties where all controllers plugged into the mains.
Top gaming marathon experts put their controllers on rotation. One is always charging while the other is in use. They then get swapped over the moment the one in use starts to run out of battery.
Prepare Your Drinks And Snacks In Advance
What is a gaming marathon without snacks and drinks? Not much, if you ask a lot of gaming marathon gurus. Ideally, you want some drinks and nibbles handy, especially when you hit the early hours of the morning, and your body clock tells you it’s time to go to sleep.
When it comes to gaming marathon snacks, you want a combination of healthy stuff to keep your mind sharp, plus high-energy foods to keep your brain fizzing. Top of your list should be sugary cereals, Pop-tarts, Oreos, and Haribo to provide that instant energy you need as you battle your way through all of the encounters. You’ll also want to stock up on plenty of slow-release carbs, like beans and dried veggies you can grab when you start to get the munchies.
If you’re playing a super competitive game, you’ll also want to invest in snacks that improve your performance and help you get the most out of the experience. Chaga mushroom powder is a fantastic ingredient to add to your coffee because of its unique ability to increase energy levels in your brain and keep you alert. People who take it report having higher focus and feeling great even when staying up until the early hours to play video games.
Speaking of coffee, you’ll also want some form of caffeine to sip on if you plan on losing sleep to play the latest video game. We recommend filling up your coffee machine and setting it up in the same room. Most devices have tanks large enough for three or four freshly-made beverages, meaning that you don’t have to keep travelling to and from the kitchen. Just keep an assortment of pods in a bowl next to you, ready to go. One coffee every couple of hours should see you through.
If you want to take your coffee game up a notch, you can add extra ingredients to it to keep you buzzing. Chaga mushroom powder is one option. If you like mochas, you could try adding chocolate or cacao powder to the mix. Those with a penchant for coconut oil could also try adding it to see if it makes a difference. Remember, coconut oil is all about rigging your metabolism to keep you alert and active for long periods of time, while also slowing the absorption of sugar.
Finally, on the topic of drinks and snacks, don’t forget to choose items that you can eat without making your hands sticky or messy. The last thing you want is a gunky controller, keyboard, or mouse. If you can suck liquid out of a straw, that should keep your hands free to interact with your console or computer.
Wear Eye Protection
It sounds strange to say it, but many people who engine in twenty-four-hour-plus gaming marathons wear some form of eye protection – at least for part of their session.
Computer screens and TVs emit a kind of blue light which might be harmful to the retina with prolonged exposure. Gamers, therefore, should consider wearing eye protection to reduce fatigue and strain and make the experience more pleasurable.
If your TV or monitor doesn’t have an option to reduce blue light, you might want to try wearing blue light glasses. These contain a special filter that prevents blue light from hitting the retina, reducing the total energy of light hitting your eyes.
If you notice your eyes starting to get itchy, it could be because the light itself is irritating them and causing them to dry out. Wearing blue light glasses will slightly change the appearance of the image on the screen, but overall, it should enhance your experience of the game. If you are the kind of person who is prone to dry or itchy eyes, just keep a bottle of moisturizing eye drops next to you.
Get Your Friends Involved
Like so many other things in life, video gaming is something done best as part of a group, even if you’re playing a solo game. It helps to have your buddies there with you, offering their insights and encouragement and generally making the whole experience a lot more fun.
LAN parties might be old school, but actually having other people there wholly changes the social experience. You don’t literally have to hook your computers together with an ethernet cable, but it helps.
Of course, adults tend to lead busy lives, so finding times when everyone is free to get together is a challenge. Probably the best option is to set aside Friday night after work and game until bedtime on the following Saturday, giving you 24 hours or more.
If it is a big release and you’re all keen gamers, you can potentially arrange holiday time in advance, allowing you to game for several weekdays in a row – as well as the weekend.
Take Breaks Every Couple Of Hours
Taking breaks every couple of hours isn’t just essential for keeping your mind sharp – it is also medically advisable. Countless stories abound about gaming enthusiasts winding up with some awful dehydration or cardiovascular issues because they didn’t get up from their seats while playing.
You don’t have to take an extended break to get the benefits of movement. Just taking a quick walk to the bathroom is often enough to get your blood pumping properly again, encouraging the whole system to remain healthy and vibrant throughout the gaming marathon.
If you’re at risk of health complications, you can actually try standing while you game or even walk around. Some people will put treadmills in front of the TV and walk while controlling their games via a handheld controller.
Gaming marathons are a lot of fun and something that is going to become increasingly prevalent as we head into prime gaming season. The world just saw the release of Hades – one of the highest-rated games to hit store shelves this year and there are several more massive releases planned for the holiday season. Getting your gaming marathon right can mean the difference between having an enjoyable encounter with the latest titles and regretting ever taking them out of the box.
Remember, gaming marathons are challenging on your body. The less sleep you get, the slower your reaction times will be. Make sure that you get plenty of rest the night before and that you eat well for the rest of the week to get yourself in the mood. It would help if you went into a gaming marathon feeling your best.
