Winning The Game Against Depression: A Systematic Review of Video Games for the Treatment of Depressive Disorders

Abstract

Purpose of review To review the evidence about video game-based therapeutic intervention for people diagnosed with depressive disorders. Recent findings Psychotherapy has been proved to reduce depressive symptoms and is a key element in the treatment of depressive disorders. However, geographical, economical and stigmatized concerns are barriers to access to psychotherapy. New technologies and videos games can overcome some of these barriers by providing teleconferencing evidence-based therapy as time as they may offer an interactive entertainment. Summary Overall, video game-based interventions were useful and effective in reducing symptoms of depressive disorders. Seven of the studies were published in the last 5 years, which reflects the increased research interest in video game-based interventions for depression. Overall, when adherence was reported, rates of acceptability and feasibility were high.

A Review on the Evaluation of Video Game Addiction as a Legitimate Disorder

“…People who have conditions that involve painful pasts need ways to forget that the reality behind them still haunts them every day. These are rare cases, as studies show that casual gaming seems to have assisted people in combating depression (Ruiz et al, 2022). However, the possibility of people coping with severe depression, social anxiety, and childhood PTSD meant that they would spend the majority of their free time dedicated to playing RPG video games (Gateway Foundation, 2021).…”

Psychological aspects of rehabilitation nutrition: A position paper by the Japanese Association of Rehabilitation Nutrition (secondary publication)

“…Lavender was useful for depression and anxiety 103 . A video game intervention was useful for improving depressive symptoms 104 . Acupuncture was useful for depression in older adults with and without antidepressants 105 .…”

Evaluating the Feasibility of a Multiplayer Role-Playing Game as a Behavioral Health Intervention in Adolescent Patients With Chronic Physical or Mental Conditions: Protocol for a Cohort Study

“…Several attempts have been made to develop or study game-based interventions for social isolation. The use of video games as mental health interventions has been well explored in recent years [24][25][26], but, surprisingly, little work has been done to research the use and impact of video games on social isolation. Pearce et al [27], Zhu [28], and Martinez et al [29] explored how individual players as well as entire families leveraged the Animal Crossing: New Horizons game to battle pandemic-related social isolation.…”