Likely Normal

I’ve often had that one more turn moment in gaming—whether it’s Civilization, an RPG, or just about any strategy game that demands my full attention. One more turn is the three-word phrase that has ruined more sleep schedules than caffeine and bad life choices combined. You start Civilization at a reasonable hour, fully intending to quit after just this next research upgrade, and suddenly it’s dawn, your eyes are redder than a barbarian’s health bar, and you’re still negotiating peace treaties with Gandhi (who, by the way, is weirdly aggressive in this game).

Strategy games don’t just pull you in—they kidnap your sense of time, stash it in a dungeon, and demand 200 gold for its safe return. Before you know it, you’re mainlining Mountain Dew like it’s a healing potion, your pizza has fossilized into a historical artifact, and your family’s concerned texts go unanswered because “Sorry, busy preventing the fall of Rome (again).” The only thing more relentless than your in-game enemies? Your own stubborn refusal to admit that “one more turn” is a myth—a sweet, delicious lie we all happily swallow, right before we accidentally play until the birds start singing. Worth it. Brazil will be yours. Sleep is for the weak.