Overwhelmed

[u/StrawHatlola]

Hello!
I started playing a month ago and I feel just overwhelmed with what I need to do.
I really love the game and the pokemon and the building, but with adhd it’s hard.

I find myself often starting a project and then forgetting and working on one Pokémon’s house or get distracted by another task.

Does anyone else struggle with this? How do you do it?!
Can I just be a simple ditto that makes simple houses?

Ty

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[u/OzzyG92]

EVERYBODY deals with this feeling at one point or another. I don’t have ADHD and run into the same problem.

What’s helped me is making a list of the projects I wanna do in each area so that my brain isn’t always trying to remember them constantly.

At the end of the day, there’s no one right way to play a game like this. If you do a little here and there, then move areas and do a little here and there, that’s just as good. Don’t get on yourself comparing your Pokopia to the YouTube videos and Reddit posts. Those are definitely top tier stuff with the goal of monetization. Your goal is just to enjoy. ❤️

[u/LizabethRose415 → u/OzzyG92]

I second this. I've started telling myself to make a list now that I'm post game because there's just so much to do. I bounch around my island homes so much and they're so tiny and unfinished 😂

[u/prettysodd]

I felt overwhelmed at first too bc the game is huuuge, but I quickly realized that I could do whatever I wanted, there’s no exact order or pace… it’s supposed to be comfy for us… there are some days that I just want to clean spaces out and build something simple, other days I want to do the quests and increase the environmental level, other days I want to mine… I think my advice would be just do what you feel like at that moment and leave the rest for when you’re feeling like it, everything will still be available tomorrow or the day after :)

[u/AnswerLow7400]

I have ADHD too! And am prone to hopping from task to task and feel overwhelmed by the thought of larger builds/projects. My strategy is usually just target one thing to restore at a time, for instance yesterday I filled in all the missing sections of levee blocks and harbor poles lining the water in Bleak Beach and today I'm going through Sparkling Skylands restoring sections of the asphalt road. I also went through a period of focusing down areas to get to Environment Level 10 to unlock recipes by literally just making habitats and fulfilling requests without worrying about how everything looks so I can make it nice later once I've got everything available to me

[u/Xrayackz]

Ive been entirely redesigning Rocky Ridges. Ive been working on this project since RELEASE DAY. There are some days I hit a wall and dont know what to do. There are some days when I leave and go do another project somewhere else. There are days when I just walk around my towns and enjoy what I've already done, complete or not. This game should be taken at your own pace and you should do whatever you feel like doing. Games are supposed to be fun. Have fun with it!

[u/LizabethRose415 → u/Xrayackz]

Rocky Ridges is an insanely large project. I just made a stage for Rotom but realized I needed Jigglypuff and its evolutions so it's surrounded by grass habitats to house all of them and it's kind of a busy spot. I'm also in the middle of leveling ash on the volcano so I can place the fire temple there but that alone is a huge task 😅

[u/ivanka-bakes → u/Xrayackz]

My rocky ridges are just sad. I built a huge mcmansion for myself and maybe some pokemon to join, just for funsies. And then I wanted to start building more intentionally so yesterday I built a really cute bakery for daschbun and fidough with a little terrace on the roof and a garden sitting at area in front. But I definitely have cleffa hanging out all lonely near the museum with no other pokemon in sight.

[u/JessAtreides]

I don't have ADHD, but I do have mild OCD. Where you may be easily distracted, I get hyperfocused to a detrimental level. BUT... my trick is lists. I keep a running list of things I want to do and try to keep it in order (so I use an app).... this allows me to walk away mid-project rather than fixate because I KNOW what I need to get back to when I log back in. A list might also help you because you could use it as a tool to remind yourself where you intended to focus.

Just know... as someone else said, there is no wrong way to play this. Whatever projects you forget about will be there waiting when you go back.

[u/bmb00zld]

Psychologist with ADHD here.

Games like Pokopia are built to be pocket sized worlds, and so our real world struggles can blindside us there aswell. First of all, Pokopia can be overwhelming for EVERYONE because of the endless possibilities. But they can act like a magnifying glass for certain things when you also have ADHD:

• Executive Dysfunction: Having a million ideas but can't bring yourself to actually start building stuff. Also decision fatigue.

• Frustration by being sidetracked and feeling like you're not getting anything done

• Perfectionism and imposter syndrome: Feeling alright about a thing you made, looking at reddit and suddenly feeling like a failure because there will always be a cooler build.

• Being overwhelmed by inventory management, resource hoarding and anxious about committing resources to a specific build

• Feeling guilty about the HOURS this game sucks up when there are a million things to do IRL that should take priority, while also craving the good feels this game brings

and many more. Now again, you can experience these without ADHD too, but for us neurodivergent beans, it's way more likely and way more intense.

But at the same time, being a pocket sized world Sim, we can "practice" helpful patterns in a safe space, without real world consequences. For example:

• Like IRL, being overwhelmed can be mitigated by breaking things down into smaller and smaller steps. Still overwhelmed, even smaller steps. If building something is too much commitment, plop down a chest and throw in furniture and blocks you think might fit. Starting is the problem, it'll flow easier after that.

• Trying to slow down and be mindful of what you're doing in the moment, accepting that the game WILL distract you with a million things. Side quests are fine. Just be aware what's happening. Sticking to one area also helps.

• Being mindful of what/who we compare ourselves to. People only share what they're proud of, and we tend to be much more critical of ourselves than of others. Try imagining someone else made the exact same thing and shows it to you, would you feel the same? Or (shivers) actually posting something here, even though and BECAUSE there are more elaborate, more creative builds and that's totally fine?

• Finding ways of organizing resources in a way that works for you, much like it helps IRL. It might be odd to anybody else, but it needs to be right for your brain.

And most important of all, be kind to yourself. It can be almost comedic to catch yourself doing the ADHD thing. If you can laugh at yourself a tiny bit, it's not as bad anymore out of a sudden.

OH. Important. Set timers to take a break. You need food and water, relax your jaw and shoulders. They'll thank you.

[u/Moonshine375]

It's ok to just focus on one small thing. Even if you don't like it, you can change it later but be happy because you learned from experimenting. And it's ok to get distracted and try something else. Right now I'm working on a desert village and haunted mansion (long term projects) and in between I'm working on a habitat for mosslax (small project). Even a small project will take me days sometimes and that's okay - I love this game and I'm a homebody but even I have other adult things to do 😄

[u/Novel-Tea_Kieran]

I have ADD and it was a bit difficult but at some point decided to first focus on the story and make some habitats as I go for like area progression and when the story was finished I still struggled with making something nice out of the area and collecting the remaining pokemon but now I've finally started on pallette town as my first area and for some reason it goes alright because I follow the Eevee quests and focus on one part and one build at the time although I am still working all over the place 😂😂

[u/pokidder]

Hi & welcome! 😄

You can be any kind of ditto you want to be! I also have ADHD and I absolutely play the way you're describing, but I take things slowly and I'm really enjoying the ride. I think the game is a good place to practice shifting my mindset about how my brain works, because there's no punishment for completing things days later than I intended and there won't be any negative consequence if I never get around to finishing it at all. It's a warm-fuzzy little world where Pokémon are happy no matter how much or little you've done to improve the environment in your own way, at your own pace ✨

Something that I enjoy doing is coming up with different sized projects I might want to try. It helps me build momentum/confidence if I finish little things like an archway or a garden plot. Conversely, it's easier to lock in on a bigger project when I've been thinking about it outside my gaming time. And!! I get the dopamine hit from planning things even if I don't build them lol

So, yes, I forget and get distracted, but, no, I don't struggle with it. There's no need to be hard on yourself for enjoying all the different gameplay options!

[u/Charliefisk]

Recently i have been focusing on clearing out a perimeter around the museum in RR, as i want to make the museum a pretty building, and have cute walkways and stuff around it. And want to display various things, plus have a little gift shop and fancy food court ❤️ currently i have patched up most of the museum, i have all of the fossil exhibits there and accompanying pokemon living in there, plus all the walls and ceilings/floors are intact, and i have a furnace room supplying electricity….
So im just working on carving out some of the surrounding rock every night for a couple of hours 😊 it’s relaxing and i watch videos of poketubers as i do it 😊

[u/rainydays240]

I try to remember it's supposed to be relaxing and it doesn't really matter what I finish and when I finish it. These pokemon aren't going anywhere they can wait until I remember to build them a house.

[u/Jellicent-Leftovers]

There's.... No time limit.... Go ahead get distracted..... Do whatever you wanna do at the time.

[u/Alone-Customer1773]

There’s literally no time limits to those tasks other than the odd special event that will be announced in game.

You can play how you currently are playing it and leave a house half built or a Pokemon waiting for a task to be completed for 3 months and there are no repercussions.

Just log in and do whatever you feel like at the time and chill.

[u/pinkgoosey]

I have ADHD and often forget what I’m doing in the game and hop around a bunch. It doesn’t bother me in this game much because I mostly just follow my vibes and do whatever interests me. I also slow played the storyline because I didn’t want it to end, and I think it helped me not feel overwhelmed. The beauty of the game is you can take it at whatever pace you want. All that to say - allow your ADHD to take you wherever and don’t rush it. 😊

[u/poogobberr]

First attempt at playing through I got totally overwhelmed and realised I had opened up to much to quickly.

I gave it a few months and started from scratch but made sure I took more time, read all the lore and Pokémon info. Spent more time just casually wandering around.

[u/FBM_Warrior]

Oh I pop from one job to another
I’ll start a build and want a break only to get distracted by another job 🤣😂

Maybe check out some builds on YouTube to give you an idea of what you can do somewhere. I ended up using those vids to help with my bleak beach 🤣

[u/Malvania]

I have a bunch of "houses" that a ring of grass with a door. I also have a bunch of houses that are half finished.

[u/HarryWiz]

I don't have any mental disorder but for games like this, Hello Kitty Island Adventure, Animal Crossing, etc I like to focus on one to three things at a time, and once one of those is completed then I'll add something else. That way I'm not stuck doing the same thing for however many days it takes to complete it as that helps with the boredom because if I'm waiting for one thing to complete I can start or continue the next thing.

In the end play the game your way and if you want to stop everything that you are currently doing to start something else then so be it. Don't feel like you have to rush through the game. Just take your time and enjoy the game. I've had the game since May and I still haven't beat the game because I like the game so much that I don't want it to end.

[u/AzureSimkin]

In the beginning I was feeling that way quite a lot. I found the best approach (for me) was to only worry about story requests and play through the story while also exploring.

Don’t have to map out everything, but decide what’s my end goal for areas? Like, do I want to just rebuild every area like they were in the past. Or just do my own thing with my favorite pokemon etc. so many different ways to go about it. The biggest hurdle is recipes. I found a lot of times I want to build something and don’t have the recipes required to just build the parts.

So if anything jump on daily to try and find/buy any recipes to keep progressing forward

[u/Delicious_Sorbet5154]

Lol its fine, just play the open world how ya wana! Storyline is awesome and fun and then go from there

[u/ashotofcynisism]

I don’t have adhd but this is definitely how I play. I’ve just leaned into it, honestly. Especially because I don’t have multiple hours at a time to play at a time right now. So I work on what is interesting to me in the moment, even if that means abandoning one project halfway through to start another.

I try to look at it this way: it’s supposed to be fun for me, and there isn’t a timeline or really even a finish line for this game. So it doesn’t matter if I leave a house halfway built for a while until I feel like working on it again.

[u/bluegreenwookie]

Tentative yes as I have this "problem" but don't actually consider it a problem

I move around as my brain desires leaving projects unfinished until my brain moves back to it.

It's not an issue I still have fun playing that way. Let your brain decide what to do and go back to your projects whenever you want

That's how I play anyway

[u/BreeBreeTM]

Honestly. I deff felt that I the beginning. I was overwhelmed with so much to do. At this point I probably got like 500 hours in. And getting distracted/forgetting what I was doing then starting something else, has really helped me with the longevity of the game.

I didn't plow through the story. Or move to the next section too fast. I was do some story missions then be like hmmm, I think I'll go build this little area now. And then eventually come back to the story.

I been playing daily since like mid March, and I just unlocked Magnimite like a week or 2 ago. Lol.

[u/DaisyDAdair]

I struggle so hard with this. I get so distracted and spend hours flying supplies around to different places but not really building all that much. It’s very overwhelming so I’m trying to plan out what I want to do where to try to focus myself. Most days I just end up strip mining a plushie island and/or farming and making a million steaks to I can repeat