Gaming is more than a hobby for many people. It’s a sanctuary, a place for community and sometimes even a career. Recent research around mental health and gaming found that 71% of respondents consider video games as a stress reliever — an “ally” that helps them combat isolation and face everyday challenges.
On the other hand, behind the wins, cool features and advances in technology, players are also encountering real-time mental health challenges shaped by community dynamics, systemic gaps and even gaming design. For example, Pew Research Center found out that 80% of teens are bullied in video games. Entertaining users isn’t enough anymore — companies must actively support and protect them. It’s their responsibility. Here’s what the industry can do to tackle these issues using neuroscience, trauma-informed design and clinical expertise.
1. Chronic stress and burnout from high-stakes game playing
Playing for rank, working to beat the clock in timed events or navigating unpredictable systems can result in persistent physiological stress. Spending time in high-stakes environments raises cortisol and leaves limited time for emotional recovery.
Being in this prolonged state of startle or elevated stress often places the brain into fight or flight mode, impairing the prefrontal cortex (often referred to as the “smart brain”) that plays a key role in decision making, impulse control and empathy for others. Over time, this environment can lead to chronic stress, burnout and poor emotion regulation.
- Incorporate prompts for rest, breaks or calming areas within games
- Provide relevant information and education on risks and the importance of recovery
- Gamify self-care options baked into high-stress gaming environments
2. Harassment and relational trauma exposure
In our previous blog, we explained how gamers from marginalized groups and communities are disproportionately targeted. Unfortunately, the current systems moderating this behavior are insufficient and reactive. Toxicity in voice chat, multiplayer games as well as slurs in usernames, goes beyond just community problems. They are direct mental health risks to gamers.
Repeated exposure to harassment, even online, triggers the amygdala (the part of the brain involved in processing emotions, detecting threats and forming memories). When the brain is on high alert, it amplifies feelings of fear and reinforces negative recollections. For gamers with past experiences of harm, this can mirror the effects of complex trauma.
- Deploy trauma-informed moderation tools: rapid escalation channels, anonymous reporting systems and clear user terms and conditions with actionable consequences
- Train human moderators in trauma-informed crisis response, de-escalation skills and empathic communication techniques
- Create accessible restorative practices, such as education or channels for community repair or relationship building
3. Gaming is a coping strategy, until it’s not
When dealing with anxiety, depression or even trauma, gaming can be a powerful coping strategy. But when it becomes the only source of coping, it may inadvertently reinforce isolation and avoidance behaviors. While disconnecting from thoughts, emotions or identity can be a short-term survival response, it may hinder emotional processing and long-term resilience — especially for gamers already managing PTSD, ADHD or other mental health conditions.
- Normalize help-seeking behaviors by embedding mental health messaging through in-game characters, character stories or campaigns with influencers and streamers
- Build systems that encourage real-world therapeutic action or self-reflection, such as journaling, movement and relationships with supportive people
- Partner with mental health organizations and non-profits for referral resources and on-platform check-ins
4. Neurodivergent players need more than accessibility
Gaming can offer a sense of regulation for players with ADHD, autism or sensory sensitivities. But many digital environments remain dysregulating — filled with overstimulating visuals and sounds, inflexible interfaces and fast-paced interactions.
When design isn’t inclusive, it can lead to sensory overload, heightened anxiety and exclusion. Because neurodivergent players experience games differently, thoughtful, inclusive design is essential to creating a space where all gamers can thrive.
- Provide comprehensive customization options for audio and visual effects as well as allowing for predictability and structure where appropriate
- Design games to avoid penalizing players for things like lack of social engagement
- Elevate neurodivergent voices in player research and quality testing
5. The blurred line between dependency and escapism
Gaming is a main source of entertainment, connection and habit for many players. But too much gaming often leads to fatigue and dopamine desensitization.
When reward systems are overstimulated, the brain reduces its sensitivity to dopamine — a chemical that makes us feel good. This neural adaptation can cause agitation when not gaming and a loss of interest in other activities — key indicators of behavioral addiction.
- Shifting away from reward systems that make people feel like they have to keep checking or playing just to avoid missing out or losing something
- Create a feedback loop for players where they can see data related to healthy play in a non-judgmental way
- Prioritize player choice to empower, ensure autonomy and create opportunities for expression
Create safer gaming experiences
Gaming and well-being are closely linked. Gaming companies can ensure platform and player safety by adopting a brain-based and trauma-informed approach to:
Considering player well-being considers the sustainability of a platform and the spaces in which gamers gather. See our Trust & Safety solutions.
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