About the Process of Making this Game

This game was created through a research-based writing fellowship at my university that has been in the works for about a year now. While not all of this game has been drawn from research, the foundation of this idea did. I created this idea while the pandemic was starting to affect our lives in so many ways. Due to the fear of catching this disease, most of us isolated ourselves for much longer than anyone wanted to. To keep in touch with friends and family, we have been using our phones more and more to get that connection that we are missing in isolation. However, the connection that we share through our phones is not the same as the connection we have when we see people face to face so we often increase the amount of connection in hopes that it will make up the difference.  The tricky part about this situation is that social media is one of the easiest ways to keep in contact with friends and family. 

Scientifically, social media apps are made to be addictive so that you will spend more time on them. The more time you spend on these apps, the more money that is being made for the CEOs and creators of these apps. It has been said that the act of pulling your screen down to reload and get new content on social media gives you a similar boost of serotonin as pulling the handle on a slot machine. Unconsciously, we are making these decisions that give us that extra bit of happiness, however, sooner or later that amount won't be enough and you will need more and more to feel satisfied. 

In addition to the addiction that forms when using our phones to this degree, social media apps are not good for our mental health in the slightest. We often only put our best selves online for others to see which causes this illusion that everyone is always happy, traveling to new places, laughing with friends, and enjoying life to its fullest. This isn't the case though, especially not during the pandemic. Many of us are left alone with our thoughts for far too long which sends us on trips of self-doubt, fear, and general loneliness. We are looking at our phones seeing all the things that others are accomplishing or doing while we are here sitting alone with just a phone in hand. It's the FOMO, or Fear Of Missing Out, that causes a lot of these thoughts to arise because we are only seeing others' positives but most likely, they are also dealing with these same negative thoughts. 

While doing my research for this game, I realized just how badly phone addictions can harm our brains and mental health overall. The shocking part about my research was most of it was coming from science-based studies and not from first-hand accounts. Mental health is still such a taboo topic in our society so it's hard to find people who are willing to speak up about their struggles. This game is based on the research that I collected, however, it is also based on my own struggles and first-hand experiences with phone addiction. It was hard to write how I felt and the bad habits that I had with my phone. Shockingly enough, I found myself gravitating towards my phone to escape having to write from my own experiences. 

Eventually, I got the script written and it was then time to code, draw, and hire a composer and voice actor to help bring this game to life. It was harder than I thought and throughout this entire process I kept asking myself "why?" Why should I finish this game? Why am I even creating this? I had a hard time wanting to finish this game because I connected my self-worth to this game in a similar way that we connect our self-worth to the number of likes or follows we receive on social media. It was a toxic mindset but my mentor reminded me during one of our meetings that I need to remember that this is a project first, game second. I started this project to help spread the knowledge of mental health and phone addictions in a way that would not be too daunting to the readers. The format just so happens to be a game where you have to make your own choices and see how it affects you. So I let this thought power me and here we are, with a game made for you to play.

I hope that this game helps you to understand just how impactful your choices are not just with what you do on your phone but also in life. Many of these choices we make seem to be unconscious efforts that we simply experience, however, as you see in this game, you actively have to make these decisions. So I thank you for actively deciding to read this post about my game and maybe even actively deciding to play it too. It means a lot.

I also want to thank all of the people who have supported me through the making of this game. When times got rough and I felt like giving up, you were there to cheer me on or help me get some confidence again. I even managed to make some new friends along the way because of this. This game has been a blessing and a curse to my own mental health but, it was worth it because I know that while it may not necessarily help people with their mental health, it creates a talking point. I want mental health to be less taboo than it is right now so that no one has to feel as alone and afraid anymore. If you would like to continue this conversation, do feel free to create a discussion post or comment on one.