If DeepWell is emerging from the ground at the start of 2022, it is primarily due to Mike Wilson’s commitment to the theme of mental health – he notably sat for several years on the board of directors of Take This , a charity that provides developers with resources around the subject. But it is also, unsurprisingly, the result of an awareness that arose in particular during the Covid-19 pandemic vis-à-vis the resurgence of mental disorders, starting with depression. All according to Ryan Douglas, with an insufficient number of specialists to treat them, in particular in the United States where the problems of medical coverage are added. Last observation: games for medical purposes often lack the playful know-how to become truly fun and enjoyable experiences.
According to Mike Wilson for IGN, DeepWell will soon offer three types of projects. The former will be in-house developed titles, with the aim of being as fun as therapeutic, and will target a wide audience on as many platforms as possible. The second will be games developed by third parties, in particular independent studios and which could well have therapeutic virtues; DeepWell hopes to be able to join some developments to guide the teams concerned in their approach. The latter will target games that have already been released and whose medical qualities deserve recognition. “These already released, very therapeutic games can be presented explicitly to people who suffer from mental problems in order to help them undergo treatment“, explains Ryan Douglas.
Forty creators, game designersscientists and researchers participate in the project with the aim of defining the main principles of game design therapeutic. Rami Ismail, Lorne Lanning, American McGee and Tom Hall are among the big names in video games involved. All genres of games are considered and DeepWell does not want to launch only in the production of wholesome games – these soft, positive games – and the founders explain themselves: “To connect and thus advance on the therapeutic ground… Maybe it’s not rainbows and rays of sunshine that will allow you to identify with the game. Sometimes following a darker path offers a moment of distraction and self-realization […] which can be very cathartic. And that’s what people say who’ve been playing these dark games for a long, long time“.
The first DeepWell titles are expected to be announced by late spring.