Saveaholics and Levelites: Are YOU One of Them?

by Bill Johnson

Of those who associate with their own, most role-playing veterans know a saveaholic or two, and all but a scant few have at least one story about these, one of role-playing's least understood demographics: the saveaholic. What possesses them to play as they do, pursuing the next Save Point as though it were a golden treasure, and emitting a gleeful chuckle upon pressing the "Confirm Save" button? Hunched over the controller, playing for the thrill of the Save, these enigmatic characters seem to defy explanation. Their ways make no sense to the rest of the gaming public, but the faction somehow continues on; thriving, even. What molds these gamers into who they are? What sort of experience could lead to such bizarre playing habits?

I believe the roots lie in the individual's gaming youth. In our greenhorn years, who among us hasn't, in the intensity of an exciting session, gone hours without saving...only to have all our work wiped out by the hand of that friggin' Metal Slime? It's a common lesson among new RP'ers, as universal as it is tragic. But, like all of life's growing pains, different people respond in different ways. A healthy response might be to heave the controller; let out an aboriginal scream of Swahili epithets; or cry uncontrollably, as though for a dead relative, mourning the lost playing time. The healthy player acknowledges his feelings, and manages to accept the loss as part of the game. The saveaholic-to-be, however, reacts very differently. He blames himself for the incident. The burning shame he feels is indescribable, that such a heavy price could be exacted for so trivial an oversight. Where the ordinary gamer simply learns from the experience and moves on, the budding saveaholic fixates on his shortcoming, obsessed with preventing a recurrence. In most cases, the damage at this point is tragically irreversible. The focus of play shifts from enjoying the game, to avoiding at all cost the need to replay a part of it--a saveaholic is born. Additionally, saveaholism commonly develops in conjunction with another condition: levelitis.

Levelitis, another common affliction, is characterized by an obsessive compulsion to build levels while playing. The condition develops from similar circumstances to those which spawn saveaholism. The primary difference is the player's reaction to the defeat: a loathing of the forced replay brings saveaholism, and fear of the defeat itself gives rise to levelitis. Most "normal" gamers accept defeat as a part of gaming. They realize that to beat the dungeon, kill the boss monster, or whatever, they'll probably lose a few campaigns before hitting upon a strategy that works. Not so for a levelite: so powerfully do they despise losing, that even plowing through with brute force alone is preferable to facing the hated "Game Over" screen. Here again, the focus moves from attaining glorious success, to simply avoiding the blackness of defeat. These two diseases have robbed innumerable gamers of the gaming pleasure that is rightfully theirs.

But, all is not lost. Great advances have been made in treating these diseases. 12-step programs have proven themselves to be excellent techniques for overcoming these tragic illnesses, and support groups can help by providing an opportunity to share the burden with other victims. The first step, however, remains the same: the victim must admit to the problem. Only then can the healing begin.