More and more often, when a new game is coming up for release, I try to avoid reading too much about it. I try to avoid the hype train. This can be difficult while still trying to remain on top of game news, but it’s doable.

For years now, No Man’s Sky has been on the high speed hype train, whether they wanted to be or not. People have been fanatical about the game, and when I read that one person spent a large sum of money to get the game early, I thought that was a bit excessive. I’d read that some people who had managed to get early copies of the game went online and basically spoiled it ahead of release.

That’s a peevish thing to do.

I may not have been among those most fervently anticipating No Man’s Sky, but I’ve been looking forward to it. I can’t imagine having the game spoiled for me before I even got a chance to play it.

Fortunately, I haven’t seen any spoilers for it, and I’m grateful. When I eventually find my way to the center of the universe, I want it to be a surprise moment.

I’ve also been avoiding reading too much about Inside. It’s a game that looks fascinating to me. I’ve heard it referred to as a playable nightmare, and I find that premise intriguing. I’ve heard the ending is one heck of a humdinger, and I can’t wait to experience it for myself.

But I think about times where a game, or a moment from a game, has been spoiled for me, and it makes me wonder: how do spoilers affect us?

I’m not sure I was ever as excited for a release as I was for Borderlands 2. I was all over midnight release. I was watching any and everything I could about the game. I had the shortest route planned from the video game store to where we lived so I could play it as soon as humanly possible.

But one thing was sort of spoiled for me ahead of time (don’t worry; I won’t spoil it here!). I somehow unwillingly saw a list of the trophies for the game; one stuck out to me and I had an idea of a major plot point far before I had my hands on the game. Because of that knowledge, I dreaded that event, and when it happened, it was just as upsetting as if I’d not known.

Occasionally I will watch preview videos of certain games. I try to steer clear of spoilers, but occasionally I see minor ones. I can’t recall a time I had something so spoiled for me that I didn’t bother playing the game, but I could see how that might happen for some people. So my question is this: have you ever encountered major spoilers for a game you were really looking forward to? If so, did you end up playing the game anyway, or did you pass entirely? If so, how did you weigh that decision? I’d be really curious to hear about your experiences, as all this spoiler talk lately has me keen to learn more.