Maybe you’ve gotten a few games over the holidays. Maybe these games, specifically Fallout 4, are taking over your life. If so, this handy, 5-step guide is for you, extracted from my 10+ years of gaming experience — and current Fallout 4 addiction. Also, though it’s written specifically for Fallout, this guide can apply to pretty much any game, ever.

1. Do all your homework before playing and be a responsible student

Hahaha! Okay, we all know this isn’t going to happen. Moving on...

2. Utilize time at school

Over the years, I’ve learned that procrastination is my #1 enemy, and one of the most miserable places to waste time is at school. This is because the school environment is custom-built for learning, not fun. We can’t access our favorite social media sites, much less prowl the Wasteland, and socializing is delegated to (1) the headache-inducingly loud cafeteria or (2) stiflingly quiet study spaces. Trying to slack off in school is so counterintuitive it’s unreal, so it’s best to spend hours there doing work instead. Then, there’s more time for fun later.

This advice is not limited to open mods, either: it applies to any time you are at school. Instead of playing another mindless round of 2048 in the last ten minutes of class, for example, pull up Quizlet and brush up on Physiology terms or Spanish vocab. Try to get something done why you socialize. A little effort each day goes a long way, and you’ll be thankful six hours later.

3. Set a timer

Perhaps you’ve experienced the gaming time warp. “I’ll just play for a little while” is the most heinous lie in the world. When I play an immersive game like Fallout, I know full well that I’ll totally lose track of the minutes rolling by. There are so many time sucks in the game. You can spend literal hours customizing weapons. I’ve spent more time decorating my in-game settlements than my bedroom.

A timer is a good way to set a realistic limit for a play session. I use the Clock app on my phone and can set it for around 45 minutes on school nights. This pushes me to find a place to save and quit.

4. Sleep

The human mind is a acrobatic thing. It can rationalize almost any action. “Oh, it’s okay to only get three hours of sleep tonight… I’ll just drink plenty of coffee in the morning and I’ll be fine.”

This is the path of regret.

5. Realize the game, and its world, can wait

One of the biggest additions to Fallout 4 was the companions. With the elimination of Fallout’s old dichotomized morality system, these companions serve as subjective judges of your behavior — each has specific likes and dislikes, their own moral code. They’re also complex characters. By gaining their trust, you can form friendships with them, and eventually find out their backstories. For me they are, far and away, one of the most engaging parts of Fallout. They make its world seem authentic.

OK, now let’s talk about Tamagotchis.

I swear I’m going somewhere with this. Tamagotchis were popular handheld virtual pets in the early 2000s. They’re plastic and egg-shaped — the size of a bulky keychain — and make a lot of beeping noises. When I was but a small child, I carried three of them. On a lanyard. That I wore in public. (As you can see, I am very cool.)

Obviously, I loved my Tama pets. Sometime during this period, however, I vividly remember seeing an ad on TV for Tamagotchis. It featured a little girl and a listless-looking dog. Suddenly, she gets the newest Tamagotchi and her face lights up. The message was clear: real pets are boring! Get virtual ones instead!

The ad really bothered me, even at such a young age. See, I had a dog, too. Her name was Daisy, and she was definitely more interesting than my Tama pets, even if I did seem to spent more time with the latter. To this day, I regret not taking Daisy on more walks.

Video games can provide awesome moments of escapism, and are definitely great for entertainment, problem-solving, stress relief, and many other things. However, I’ve realized it’s important to remember during a marathon session that my game world can be saved for later and stored on a hard drive, then thawed out again. Preston Garvey can wait. The same cannot be said for the real stuff.

Even though Fallout’s Dogmeat is a perfect companion, in the end he’s just bits of code, and sometimes it’s time for a reality check. I will always enjoy my time in the Wasteland. Now and again, though, it’s time to step back and grab the leash for our new rescue pup, Banjo. By being mindful, it’s possible to strike a balance between plenty of time in the Commonwealth and real-life responsibility.

In other words… it’s possible to be a Fallout fan without fallout.