The Project Brief
For my senior studio thesis I wanted to address the stigmatization of discussing mental health in POC communities with a focus on Alzheimers and Dementia. Despite Hispanic and African-American individuals being at a significantly higher risk of developing Alzheimers and other forms of Dementia, they are both less likely to be diagnosed. I feel that one aspect of this issue is brought on by the reluctance to talk about mental health and caring for mental illness in POC communities, with the stigmatization of the topic making it harder for individuals to realize they should seek diagnosis or help for either themselves or a loved one
Drawing inspiration from works such as Fran Bow and Neverending Nightmare, I created a 2D point-and-click adventure game demo with mechanics and story beats that draw inspiration from the symptoms and struggles faced by those with Dementia. The demo has players interact with the environment as a means of gathering information on symptoms, statistics, early signs of Dementia, etc.
The demo is available to play in browser and download on itch.io
Have you played it already? Please consider filling out this post-game survey: https://forms.gle/doB4GsMxhtX5eFZN8