Designing a Narrative-Based Game for Suicide Prevention Education

Abstract

In recent years, mental health-related subject matter has become mainstream through inclusion in mainstream news media, books, movies, television, and video games. While this has led to success in humanizing specific diagnoses or experiences such as depression, there is a gap in depicting suicidal ideation and suicidality as pervasive, systemic phenomena that individuals struggle with chronically, as opposed to just crises at a breaking point. This disparity becomes even more apparent when examining what is available to members of the lay public, who often want to help those struggling with suicidality, but are unsure how to proceed. In an effort to bridge gaps between best practices, public discomfort around suicide, and diverse potential audiences, I built an interactive, choose-your-own-adventure narrative game in the Twine game engine. The game’s themes, structure, and tone were informed by expert interviews, with participants from academia, healthcare, advocacy groups, writers, game designers, and members of the general public with lived experience. The final product, titled Don’t Quit, is a reactive narrative that aims to educate players on introductory theory and best practices for suicide prevention in an emotionally engaging but low-stakes simulation. Players navigate work, relationships, and stress while learning that suicidality can be more complex than they may have initially believed, but that hope for the future is always an option. It is intended that by building this narrative game in collaboration with such diverse viewpoints, Don’t Quit could grow into a valuable tool both for mental healthcare providers and members of the general, compassionate public.