How do you avoid spoiling a game?

Alan Wake released early this week. One of the aspects of the game which has major criticism are the collectibles. They are scripts which foreshadow what will happen later in the game.

I listened to CheapyD discuss the game with fellow co-host Shipwreck and heard him explain why he doesn't read the scripts because he doesn't want to have anything spoiled for him.

He made me think how I as a gamer try to keep my games as fresh as I can before I play them. I watch previews and look at news about upcoming games I would like to enjoy. But, I don't look at EVERY bit of news because I believe it can really saturate the game for me.

How do you keep a game from being spoiled? Do you block news about the games from your sight? Do you not talk to friends who are playing the game in fear of hearing a huge spoiler?

I don't read anything that's spoilered in the threads. It works for me most of the time.. I think the only recent games I've had spoiled for me are Heavy Rain and FFXIII.

[quote name='CaptainJoel']I don't read anything that's spoilered in the threads. It works for me most of the time.. I think the only recent games I've had spoiled for me are Heavy Rain and FFXIII.[/QUOTE]How did they get spoiled for you?

I pretty much stay away from all video game related forums when a game I want is coming out. While it was still awesome, Metal Gear Solid 4 was spoiled for me by some tool on GameFAQs; so I kinda learned my lesson the hard way.

There was a similar thread about this topic earlier in the year. My advice there hasn't changed.

That Alan Wake situation sounds very odd. However, I just read the Onion A.V. Club's review of the game last night, and they make it sound like the developer wasn't confident enough in their own story to let it stand without a lot of hand-holding (via the voiceover narration), so maybe the foreshadowing collectibles are a symptom of that.

[quote name='flufflogic']How did they get spoiled for you?[/QUOTE]
A friend of mine that enjoys spoiling games for people posted the endings of both on my Facebook wall. He rarely ever does it, only when it's a game he knows has next to no replayability that I'm planning on playing.

Does it really count as a spoiler if something is revealed to you within the game itself?

I dont read articles in magazines about the game, I dont watch videos about the games, I dont read or watch interviews with the developers, I dont read threads on forums, I will turn my head if a commercial comes on tv and everything else to avoid seeing something.

I had to do this for metal gear solid 3 and 4 and that was the hardest because there was constantly something about them popping up and I did good as I really didnt know anything about them. I did the same thing with heavy rain and alan wake as well.

I only do that on games I really really want to play. Because I want to sit and enjoy the game and take my time and experince it as best I can amd be surprised.

I actually get angry some when something is spoiled for me. Ever since I was a little kid and standing in line for empire strikes back and the showing was letting out for us all to go some asshole walking out is yelling "Oh my god I cant believe vader is lukes dad!" everyone was throwing shit at them and I was upset he spoiled it for me, if I was bigger Id kicked his balls.

Keep it in the Fridge? Put it in a Ziploc bag?

Stay off the internet.

Stay off the internet.. if I come on CAG, I try to avoid the .

Snape killed Dumbledore.

The End.

Trailers are the biggest culprits nowadays. I try to only watch the early ones to get an idea of what the game will be like.

I just avoid reading articles, reviews or forum threads of a game I 100% know I'm going to buy.

I don't get any gaming magazines anymore, nor listen to gaming podcasts etc.

Usually works out fine. I didn't know much of anything about Mass Effect 2 before playing it as I didn't read anything. Loved the first one and it was a must buy for me, so no need to read previews, reviews etc.

I don't recall any games in recent memory that I really cared about the ending(s) as of late. I played GTA IV all the way through and thought both of the endings there sucked(mainly because I didn't really get too close to many characters in the game).

I played Red Faction: Guerrilla and I thought the ending for that kind of sucked too.

I'm playing Red Dead Redemption right now and while I like the open expansive game world I don't like how the game started, so chances are I'm going to hate the ending of it as well.