Hey guys,
I'm a mid-twenties software engineer who plays a lot of video games in my spare time. Games of choice are mostly FPS titles (e.g. Overwatch, CS:GO) and I tend to be competitive when I play. In case it's relevant, I also have a particularly vicious case of ADHD.
The nature of the games I play make a headset effectively mandatory, as sound cues are particularly important. That being the case, I've noticed that, for some reason that I can't pin down, I tend to perform better overall in-game when I'm not wearing a headset. Specifically, when I don't wear a headset, I:
- Auto-pilot less (I think more about my objectives, how I want to execute, and what I'm doing in general)
- Tense up less during "stressful situations" (I'm generally overall calmer)
- Seem to aim/track targets better (likely a result of the above; my mouse arm is more relaxed)
- Am overall more focused
- Simply win more games
As a result, I frequently opt to put my headset around my neck and simply turn up the volume, however this is far from ideal.
Why would just wearing a headset impact my performance? Is this a known problem?
At first I thought it was a comfort thing, and tried other headsets to no avail. I'm now leaning towards it being psychological (sound makes the experience more immersive, the increased immersion makes the "virtually stressful" situations actually stressful, and the increased stress impedes my higher-level thinking), however that's just baseless intuition on my part.
I'd really appreciate any insights any of you have. :)
I'm a mid-twenties software engineer who plays a lot of video games in my spare time. Games of choice are mostly FPS titles (e.g. Overwatch, CS:GO) and I tend to be competitive when I play. In case it's relevant, I also have a particularly vicious case of ADHD.
The nature of the games I play make a headset effectively mandatory, as sound cues are particularly important. That being the case, I've noticed that, for some reason that I can't pin down, I tend to perform better overall in-game when I'm not wearing a headset. Specifically, when I don't wear a headset, I:
- Auto-pilot less (I think more about my objectives, how I want to execute, and what I'm doing in general) - Tense up less during "stressful situations" (I'm generally overall calmer) - Seem to aim/track targets better (likely a result of the above; my mouse arm is more relaxed) - Am overall more focused - Simply win more games
As a result, I frequently opt to put my headset around my neck and simply turn up the volume, however this is far from ideal.
Why would just wearing a headset impact my performance? Is this a known problem?
At first I thought it was a comfort thing, and tried other headsets to no avail. I'm now leaning towards it being psychological (sound makes the experience more immersive, the increased immersion makes the "virtually stressful" situations actually stressful, and the increased stress impedes my higher-level thinking), however that's just baseless intuition on my part.
I'd really appreciate any insights any of you have. :)