Burnt Out

A student-made video game designed to promote mental wellness through player curation. In this game, players take on the role of a character navigating a virtual world filled with various stressors and challenges. However, players have the ability to curate their gameplay experience by selecting coping mechanisms and mental wellness strategies to help them overcome obstacles and manage their stress. As players progress through the game, they unlock new coping mechanisms and strategies to add to their toolkit, such as breathing exercises, mindfulness practices, and positive self-talk. By using these tools in gameplay, players learn to apply them in their real-life situations, building resilience and improving their overall mental health. Burnt Out emphasizes player agency and choice, empowering players to take control of their mental wellness and providing them with practical skills they can use outside of the game. With its focus on player curation and mental health, Burnt Out is a unique and valuable addition to the gaming landscape.

Play the game here
Game Proposal
How can the design of a digital video game be used to support players’ mental wellness? Can depression and anxiety coping mechanisms be used within video games? Can mini-games be curated to the player based on mental wellness?
Video games are often used as coping mechanisms for depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, etc., but what if it went beyond that? Using aggregation and curation, a player may experience a game meant to reflect their mood and provide more coping mechanisms based on their mental wellbeing at any given time. This would allow players to cope in a fun and engaging way, encouraging them to do so as needed. It would also prompt players to use problem-solving skills when dealing with mental wellness.
Characters and Assets
All of the Non Playable Characters (NPCs) are meant to reflect a friendly atmosphere and offer help to the player through dialogue. The assets utilize a pixel art style and aid in movement throughout the game.
Player
Player
NPC
NPC
NPC
NPC
NPC
NPC
NPC
NPC
Stardust
Stardust
Table Platform
Table Platform
Grassy Wall
Grassy Wall
Snowy Grass Platform
Snowy Grass Platform
Dead Grass Platform
Dead Grass Platform
UI Elements
The ui elements are used to give the player direction and provide information relevant to the player's goal.
Interaction Indicator
Interaction Indicator
Brightness Counter
Brightness Counter
Title Screen
Title Screen
Control Screen
Control Screen
Narration
Narration
Win Screen
Win Screen
Coding with C# in Unity
The scripts in the game mainly control three different elements: player movement, Environment, and ui.
player movement: jumping, dashing, and teleporting.
Environment: falling platforms, changing scenes, parallaxing the background, and restarting upon death.
UI: dialogue, npc interactions, collecting the stardust, and changing the brightness counter.
Shown here are the Player controller, Teleport Indicator, and the brightness manager scripts. 
Video Walkthrough - Level One
Video Walkthrough - Levels 2 & 3
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