Meet Alex, a humanoid cat in their mid-20s who works full-time. One day, they encounter some trouble at work and fall into a hole of depression and anxiety. As a friend, you will help Alex escape the evil cycle and stand firm on their feet again.
Enter Alex’s world of tangled thoughts while you listen to their story. Can you guide Alex through the situation?
Counter Attack Therapy (CAT) is created with young people with lived experience of depression and anxiety. It is part of MENTAL Jam, a research project conducted at RMIT University about the knowledge translation of lived experiences of depression and anxiety through video game co-creation.
Play the game: https://mentaljam.itch.io/cat
TRIGGER WARNING: The following game deals with the themes of depression and anxiety; therefore, some words or images may trigger an adverse reaction.
Talks and publication:
I also presented about the pilot study which produced Counter Attack Therapy at EAI ArtsIT Conference 2021:
Chen HW., Duckworth J., Kokanovic R. (2022) Mental Jam: A Pilot Study of Video Game Co-creation for Individuals with Lived Experiences of Depression and Anxiety. In: Wölfel M., Bernhardt J., Thiel S. (eds) ArtsIT, Interactivity and Game Creation. ArtsIT 2021. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering, vol 422. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-95531-1_9
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-95531-1_9
Press:
One of my participants also wrote a blog post about her experiences participating in the game jam and developing Counter Attack Therapy:
Mental Health Services and Helplines
| Lifeline | 13 11 14 |
| Suicideline | 1300 651 251 |
| Suicide Call Back Service | 1300 659 467 |
| Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Anxiety Helpline | 1300 269 438 or 9886 9377 |
| Kids Helpline (5 to 25-year-olds) | 1800 551 800 |
Michelle Chen 