A recent study revealed that almost a third of gamers (34%) would lie and say that they are sick to play an upcoming new video game if their annual leave were denied.

Currys surveyed more than 1000 gamers around the country to find out more about their gaming habits and work relationships. The tech retailer also teamed up with Dr. Daniel Wheatley, Reader in Business and Labour Economics based in the Department of Management at the University of Birmingham, to give his expert insights.

Pulling a sickie to play a game isn’t a novelty to gamers as almost 3 in 10 (28%) confessed that they have done so in the past solely to play video games.

However, 44% of gamers that have bluffed about being too sick to work on false pretences to play a video game got discovered by their boss. For 23% of those gamers getting caught hasn’t ended well as they had to face disciplinary actions.

Pulling a sickie may be a final resort for hardcore gamers to play those most anticipated releases, as 4 in 10 gamers (41%) say that they book annual leave to play games and more than a half (51%) of the study participants said they would opt for this kind of a time off in the near future.

The majority (55%) of those that take annual leave for a new release will take 1-2 days, but 31% will take up to five days off to play a new game!

Adults booking valuable annual leave days to stay at home and playing games may be seen as a “waste of time” for some, but indulging in a hobby on an annual leave comes with benefits.

Dr. Daniel Wheatley explains, “Engaging in hobbies can often allow the employee to achieve a desired level of mental and physical separation from the demands of their job and this has the potential to provide the employee with more effective recovery enabling greater productivity during working time.”

“Everyone requires breaks from work reflecting the need for recovery time to avoid negative outcomes including burnout and work-related stress.”

These are the 2024 releases gamers are most likely to take time off to play

1. Assassin's Creed Codename Red

2. Star Wars Outlaws

3. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

4. Mario Vs Donkey Kong

5. Tekken 8

6. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League

7. Silent Hill 2 remake

8. South Park: Snow Day

You can find more about the study, additional data and sources here