i also need to actually do the exercises my physical therapist left me with on a regular basis

but in the meantime while i recover, there's a lot of things i can't do as easily anymore. i can't get all the laundry done in a single day. i can't stand at the stove or counter long enough to cook a meal start to finish, much less wash a good amount of dishes in the deep sink. i can't bend forward for very long as is required for washing the bathroom, cleaning the litter box, sweeping, folding laundry, mending clothes, clean out the fridge, et cetera, et cetera!

personally I stand with frog defender on this issue

Biological atlas with text. 1880. Book cover.

so here’s an ACTUAL post about the matter. here’s the reason why you should generally avoid spending money on gacha: they operate on lottery mechanics. this goes double for ppl who’ve struggled w/ addiction in the past and/or individuals who may be more susceptible to developing addictions. indeed, gacha addictions operate much like gambling addictions, and could effectively be considered to be a variation of them. 

going into a Huge Ramble regarding the exact particulars of how gambling addiction works is beyond this post, but the basic principle we all tend to be familiar with. gambling establishments will draw in players through offering a minimal amount of free currency to get started with, and cheap lodging (with the expectation that the money lost will be made back through gambling). gachas do much the same through offering players free currency ESPECIALLY to newer players. the idea is to start players off with enough in-game currency so they can make several draws, to the point they will inevitably get some kind of reward. 

ppl do not need a financial reward to develop gambling addictions. drawing a character you like, especially when accompanied with flashy graphics + audio cues can be more than enough to invoke incredibly powerful pleasure responses. indeed, many testimonials from gambling addicts will allude to this, saying that it becomes LESS about the financial reward and MORE about the feeling they get from getting that big win, even if they burned a lot of money to get there. this is how gambling systems still retain their allure even AFTER people begin to lose resources from investing in them. 

in short: people who become addicted to these games are not stupid, and even You, who thinks they “know better”, can still be influenced by them as these games are SPECIFICALLY designed to engage with the brain’s reward center.

now, is every single person who plays gacha going to end up addicted to them? absolutely not, but it would be a lie to say that the risk isn’t there, indeed, thats what these games are designed to do. but ultimately, you know yourself the best, and you know your limits. however, if you do think you have a problem, do know that despite whatever tumblrina234234 says, you are not stupid, and it is not your fault. the path you take after that depends on you, but know that at least.

and FINALLY: yeah, ill say that if you’re someone who believes they may be at-risk of developing a gambling addiction, you should try to avoid gacha/lootbox games if possible. HOWEVER, i will ALSO say that is GENERALLY an unhelpful suggestion, and one i roll my eyes at myself, because the problem is that gacha & lootbox systems have completely taken over the gaming industry, ESPECIALLY in free to play (f2p) games. it is INCREDIBLY hard to avoid these systems now. the problem is with the system, not the individual. as such, i recommend advocating against these systems in games, and yes that is with the awareness that this is how many f2p games make their money. while i recognize that the people who make these games need to make a paycheck, it SHOULD NOT be done through the use of predatory systems such as gacha and lootbox. this is NOT to shame people WHO have spent money on gacha, but rather is the moral stance i take knowing what i do about these systems and how they operate.

resources used in this post:

1. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1046878118819677

2. https://www.pcgamer.com/behind-the-addictive-psychology-and-seductive-art-of-loot-boxes/