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At the end of 2019 it was estimated that there were more than 2.5 billion active gamers around the world, yet still, there is a lot of confusion and debate around the effect video games have on our mental health and wellbeing.
Can they make us addicted? Are they a conduit to violent behaviour? Are these even the right questions to ask?
With a pandemic in full swing, and more people than ever spending their lives online, we believe there is a better question to be asked: How do video games make us feel?
While some still warn of their risks, some argue video games can, and have been, helpful for people’s wellbeing.
We meet Abi, from Weston-Super-Mare, a gamer and cosplayer whose love for a particular game, ‘The Last of Us’, helped her become more in-tune with her own emotions, feelings and identity.
Joe, an old school gamer from Glasgow, told us about how gaming helped him in coming to terms with his depression; and Elissa, from London, details how ‘Animal Crossing’ made the lockdown much easier for her and her friends at uni, providing the connection and sense of community they were missing.
Video games are still under the scrutiny, and while the science is still not there in terms of understanding how they can affect us, many argue that the positive sides of it outdo the negative.  
Agency, connection, self-awareness… can video games help us feel better?