Responsible Gaming

Keep online gaming where it belongs, in the entertainment bracket. Making money out of it, winning back what has gone, easing stress – none of those are things it can do for you. Covered below are the limits worth putting down, the warning signs to look out for, and the help that is out there.

Put limits down before you play

Choose the rules with a clear head, not once a session is already running. Jotting them down helps some people.

• A money limit: a figure you could lose from top to bottom and still be fine with, treated as what entertainment costs.
• A time limit: the point where a session ends, regardless of how things are going.
• A frequency limit: how many days out of a week involve any play at all.
• One rule you never bend – no limit here goes up while a session is running.

Things to look out for

Below sit the patterns that come up most often from people whose gaming turned into a problem. One by itself might mean nothing; a few showing up together are worth paying attention to.

• Putting down more than you meant to, or more than you could lose without it hurting.
• Chasing losses, trying to pull back money that has already gone.
• Borrowing, selling off possessions, or spending bill money just to keep going.
• Covering up how much you play, or being less than honest about it with people close to you.
• Playing your way out of stress, boredom, anxiety or a bad mood.
• Drifting off work, study, sleep, friendships or hobbies.
• Getting restless or snappy any time you try to cut down.

Tools worth using

Account tools come built into most regulated platforms. Wherever they exist, use them early on instead of saving them for when things have gone wrong.

• Deposit limits that put a lid on what goes in over a day, a week or a month.
• Session reminders telling you how long you have been at it.
• Time-outs, a short cooling-off spell with the account locked.
• Self-exclusion, a longer block for when a quick break is not enough.
• Account history, showing what you really spent rather than what you think you spent.

Everyday habits

• Think of whatever you stake as gone the moment it goes.
• Keep away from playing after drinking, while upset, or on too little sleep.
• Keep gaming money well away from anything you need for bills.
• Take breaks at set points, and walk off completely after a big win or a big loss.
• Keep gaming in balance with everything else you enjoy rather than letting it take over.
• Never think of gaming as earnings, and never borrow to pay for it.

Keeping children away

Online gaming is for adults of 18 and up. Where children share your device, turn device-level parental controls on, keep the account signed out, and never leave login details saved in a shared browser. Content filtering software can shut gambling sites out on family devices.

Where help is

If bits of this sound like you, talking to someone helps, and getting to it early helps a lot more. Gamblers Anonymous runs free peer support groups in plenty of countries, with local meetings across India. Treatment for gambling addiction is available through a doctor or a licensed counsellor, and it is a recognised condition with proper treatment behind it. Anyone in immediate distress should reach local emergency services or a mental health helpline covering their area.

One thing about the odds

Every commercial gaming product is put together to give back less over time than it takes. One session looks nothing like the next and wins do come along, only the long-run mathematics is never on the player's side. Any system, tip service or strategy that says it beats that deserves a very hard look.

On anything here, or to raise something about an account, write to [email protected].