(2019-03-31) Depressed And Anxious These Video Games Want To Help

Depressed and Anxious? These Video Games Want to Help. Some in the industry said the interactive nature of games made them more effective than film or television at dealing with mental health.

Last year, a game called Celeste explored depression and anxiety.

game Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, a young Celtic warrior deals with psychosis.

Orpheus Self Care Entertainment, a start-up that was founded last year, is publishing virtual reality games in which players practice mindfulness and meditation through activities like dancing.

Other games in recent years, including Night in the Woods and Pry, have delved into self-identity, anger issues and post-traumatic stress disorder. All followed the 2013 interactive fiction game Depression Quest, which asked players to step into the shoes of a character living with depression

After the 2016 simulation role-playing game Stardew Valley — which does not punish players for not completing tasks and creates a slow-paced atmosphere where the objective is to take care of a run-down farm — was released, Eric Barone, the game’s creator, received hundreds of messages, he said. Players wrote to share their stories of how the game helped them cope with difficult periods in their lives.

In the video game Sea of Solitude, the main character, a young woman named Kay, navigates a partly submerged city and fights to overcome loneliness.