I've had a problem...

...And what better people to ask than random people on the internet that I dont know, right? (Either way, you people seem like cool guys/gals) So, recently I've gotten into pokemon, and I really like it. The problem is, I'm a bit ashamed that I like it. I've already admitted it to several people I know, but I'm still not sure about it. The thing I want to avoid is that usually when I get into something new, I become crazy obbsessed with it for a while (some examples was yugioh, when i was younger, and of course, Sentinels, more recently). But I want to avoid that, because I can imaginge it akes me a fairly annoying person to be aroud, when I litteraly spout about the same thing for a week or more. The other thing is (and I have no idea why), but I just can't bring myself to play it when nobody else is around, I just feel like a wierdo when I do. So what do you guys think I should do? Because I honestly have no idea where I should go. I want to like it, but i know if I do, it may become an obsession for a while, and I want to avoid that at all costs,

Never be ashamed of liking a game.  Each game brings its own interesting rules and strategies.  When you dismiss a game out of hand you miss all the awesome things about it.  Just like when you dismiss people out of hand.  And remember that awesome things are done by people doing what they love, not by people looking down on others.

As for obsession....I don't have a perfect solution.

I've been through exactly what you are going through, so I feel like I can speak to everything you just said.

1. Own what you like. I don't mean buy it with money, I mean fully embrace the things you enjoy. This can be difficult because it requires a certain measure of self confidence that can be hard for a lot of people (like myself) to achieve. But once you can embrace and accept yourself and the things you like, others can't use it against you, and you can't use it against yourself to shame yourself out of liking something. Own it.

2. Obessive tendencies. Oh yeah. I got those in spades. Just be fully aware of those tendencies (which it sounds like you are) and don't let them interfere with other aspects of your life and relationships with other people. Theres a time and a place for everything.

3. To accompany #1, seek out others who share your passions and obsessions. It is amazing how being around others with like minded passions changes the way you can see yourself and your hobbies. Use the internet, find group meets or game nights around your area and find a healthy social setting you can use as an outlet for your #2. I joined these forums long ago for this very reason, to revel in my obession with a great game with other people who share that. What I love about gaming, especially tabletop, is that it's an excersise in social interaction and missing that component is a huge disadvantage.

I play solo games of SotM frequently, but it's no substitue for playing it with others. My roomates might look at me strangly sitting at the kitcken table doing a solitare run, but I know what I like to do in my free time and I own it enough where it's not really a "strange" or "weirdo" thing to do.

I can't stress #3 enough though. Really put an effort into finding others to share your gaming interests with. I really should have put this at #1, because my first two points all kinda fall into place on their own if #3 is accomplished. I know around my area, theres a lot of board game nights and meetups scheduled through Meetup.com which would be an excellent place to start, or going to open game nights at your local game shop.

I played Red/Blue on GameBoy way back when they first came out over here.

I was in my early 20s, plus I'm female, so I was absolutely not the typical Pokémon player. Some people laughed at me, but I argued that there's a solid RPG under all that merchandising fluff, and who cares if something's aimed at kids if you're getting enjoyment out of it?

If you're having fun and not hurting others, don't worry what others might think.

"Why are you playing that?"

"Because it's a good game. Wanna try it?"

For obsessive tendencies, There are a couple of different solutions I've used.

1.  Barter for time to talk about your obsessions.

I do that with my wife a lot.  I'll tell her I want to talk to her about Sentinels playtesting, or some bizarre theory I've come up with, and we'll work out a trade, I used to do it with friends as well.  It helps if you have friends that obsess about wierd stuff that you might not care about.  My one friend and I used to actually time our conversations and switch topics.

2.  Learn when you are being an ass.

This was hard for me, I tend to get my brain stuck on a single thought, and become a jerk about it.  I've gotten pretty good at avoiding jerk mode, but I don't always succeed, which leads to:

3.  Knowing when to apologize.

Also making it up to your friends when you just can't not talk about whatever it is.

4.  Don't be ashamed of your passion, just learn to not inflict it on others unfairly.

If none of this is really applicable then you are far better off than I am with your obsessions, so don't worry about it.

Samesies dude. Totally samesies.

I'm in that club too. 

I think the ability to geek out about stuff is a glorious thing and nothing anybody ought to be embarassed about. Like with most things, it really only ever becomes a problem when it impacts you or others in a negative way (if you veg out on the couch day in and day out playing Pokemon for instance, when there is really other stuff that need to be done). Just try not to make it 'all about my new obsession'. I often do that, and at that point, all the other things I also really like just get completly ignored, which is rubbish, because that way I sometimes miss out on cool stuff and once my obsession fades, having missed out is kind of a bummer. Keeping in mind that obsessions are often only temporary actually helps me an awful lot, because that way I can enjoy it while it lasts, but I also know not to sink disproportionate amounts of time and money into it.

Also, in my experience, most people are pretty good at letting others know when they've heard enough about a thing- if they don't, definitely stop when their eyes glaze over. Example: One of my best friends has *all* Pokemon. And I mean all of them. He has a frickin' Mew. He has gone to other cities to swap Pokemon. We put a Relaxo on his wedding cake. Also, he's in his 50s (so much for age rocommendations!). Now, I have played a fair amount of Pokemon myself, so we occasionally chat about it when we meet, like a couple of weeks ago. But when he started to go over all the Eevee evolutions, and then went on about Fairy type and someone asked him if he could name all Pokemon in order by heart, I just said "Too much information!" and he stopped right away and nobody got offended over it. In general, most people can handle a funny annecdote about something they are not otherwise interested in, but not the repetition of long lists or extensive use of jargon, and not every day.

Not being a jerk about it is pretty sound advice, though. It works for everything, really.

All right, I managed to express that I do like pokemon a lot to my friends, Thank you guys for the tips

I don't think we need to tell anyone that reads the Playtester forums. . .

A jerk?  I'm never a jerk.  You'd have to be a blithering inconsiderate nincompoop to be a jerk.  Why on earth would you be a jerk?

[/hypocrisy]

Silliness aside, I need to start using "blithering" more often.

Have you seen the youtube videos by folks like TamashiiHiroka or TheJWittz?

they talk about some awesome Pokemon stuff!  I've actually been making Perler bead sprite art for a lot of the original Pokemon from Red and Blue!

I even made a Missingno.!

But I have an idea of what you're talking about.  I've been carrying around my copy of Alpha Sapphire in my satchel with me since I got it for Christmas.  I haven't even opened it yet because I know I'd never stop playing!

Best of luck with your troubles, friend.  I hope I haven't exacerbated your problem with my talk of youtube shows and fan projects.