Adventure and fighting games are not just a form of escapism. For some people suffering from social anxiety or depression, they're a vital outlet.
Most days, Zoey wanders through vibrant landscapes and engages in intense street fights, not in real life, of course, but inon PS4. Among the sparks of electricity that fly with every hit, before a triumphant KO fills the screen, the 22-year-old Californian caregiver gets a reprieve from the anxiety disorder that she was diagnosed with in her early teens.
“At some point after I began receiving therapy, one of my good friends told me that I needed to work on getting distracted, and something clicked. I very quickly gained a new perspective: my feelings were distracting me. My feelings of anxiety and fear over a threat that didn’t exist were getting in the way of me learning, having fun and enjoying myself.
Dr Kelli Dunlap, a clinical psychologist and game designer, says that gaming can offer an important social outlet for people with conditions such as anxiety and agoraphobia, and it can also serve as a motivator for them to better manage their conditions, whether through therapeutic intervention or self-help.
“I feel very small in the real world. I feel like I need to hide myself, but when I’m in the game – maybe because it’s something that I’m actually very good at – it makes me feel like I can stand tall and I don’t have to hunch over, hang my head and try to make myself blend into the background.”
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