Passionate gamers will often look for something more to occupy their free time. If you find yourself with some free time between gaming sessions, a good way to use that time would be to start a hobby. A good hobby should incorporate aspects of something you love and that you are interested in taking part in. Since you are already a gamer, why not start a hobby that taps into this passion?
Create Fan Art
A great way to spend your free time as well as show your love and appreciation for the game you love is to create fan art. A lot of gamers do this by either recreating the game characters they love in their own vision or creating entirely new characters. If you do not know where to start, there are a lot of great online tutorials and courses that will give you the tools and skills to get started. The good thing about this hobby is that it can be turned into something more. If you get good enough at it, you could sell your original art to be integrated into indie games. That way, you know your hobby and creations are being enjoyed by other gamers out there.
Collecting Game Figurines
If you like collecting gaming items, collecting game figurines could be a great hobby for you. Game figurines are molded after your favorite game characters including Mario, Sonic, and more. They come in many styles and genres which means starting a collection could help you discover games you have never played before. These game figurines can be bought from retailers who stock similar items such as comic books but buying them online is more convenient. If you like, you can start with one collection, such as all the characters from your favorite retro video games, and keep adding to it.
Learn to Code
Coding can be a hobby to take on during your free time or one you use to replace gaming. Learning to code can be gamified and there are lots of platforms that will help you to learn to code this way. Learning to code takes advantage of your hunger to learn – the same hunger you would use if you wanted to get really good at a game.
As with creating your own fan art, coding can earn you some money, especially if you learn to create your own games.
Attending Local Conferences
As gaming keeps growing., more companies, businesses, and conference organizers are finding more ways to bring gamers together. Gaming conferences are getting bigger, sometimes drawing tens of thousands of attendees. Once there, you can meet likeminded gamers or even discover new games you would like to play. In addition, you could get a chance to buy the collectibles and game figurines you need to complete your collections.
If you want to take it a bit further, you could take up cosplaying where you attend these conferences dressed up as your favorite gaming character. Cosplaying is another hobby in itself and it can introduce you to new communities and like-minded gamers.
Reading
Reading is another amazing hobby that gamers can take up. Books build new worlds just like games do, and it can even be a good way to improve your reading and comprehension skills. To get started, you can find books in the same genres as the games you like to play. That way, you get to enjoy the books without having to switch to different genres.
If you like, you can even start collecting books. Some fictional titles come as part of a collection which tells a long story. Such a series of books is great for gamers who like longer stories and who like seeing and experiencing new worlds being built.
There are lots of game-inspired hobbies that gamers can take on. The most important thing to remember is to ensure these new hobbies line up with your likes so that you enjoy them and do not get bored.
