Cody Hall Posted June 16, 2013 Posted June 16, 2013 I stumbled across the following online java-based hypertext "game", which focuses on exploring unresolved conflict with another person via various choices through hypertext. It could be described as "browser-based therapy" and I could see it being of great value to individuals in need of such therapeutic engagement. "Player 2" by Lydia Neon - http://www.freeindiegam.es/2013/06/player-2-lydia-neon/ Per gaming news website "Rock, Paper, Shotgun": Player 2 is a game with a therapeutic purpose, and to that end it is conscientious. With a content warning, suicide resources, and references to self-help, it introduces something seldom seen in games: an awareness of trauma. The purpose is to explore unresolved conflict with another person, the second player, invisible and present only in your own mind (in the way we’re always carrying other people with us, and when those people are the wrong people, it’s like poison). I found this surprisingly personal and thought-provoking from the start. Being forced to actually consider all the slights and injuries and abuse done to me instead of repressing them (as we often do in order to go about our daily lives without shutting down) was uncomfortable, and so was the act of connecting those pains to another person. Once you begin, the choices are nuanced (I count more than 20 variables) enough to describe lots of conflicts, ranging from petty arguments to abuse. You can also type your feelings out in response to prompts. I knew I was typing into the void where no one would ever see, but making my thoughts visible was still hard. So what we have is browser-based therapy. The idea of automated therapy might seem dystopian at first, but when it’s lovingly designed by a human being, I call it a mature experiment that utilizes the private, often powerful connection we have with games.
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