Trophies for Mental Health III

[GuitaristZag]

I'll have it done by midnight tomorrow! That gives me 24 hours to pop one trophy and make a post for my main game (Sifu) and extra (Before the Storm)

[reaperveteran86]

For the bonus game:

I have only completed one game this month that would fit the requirements (and I`m not even 100% sure if it counts)

The game is

Succubus

The game in it`s core, is all gore and edginess but there is a free climbing "minigame" (you push the buttons that are shown on screen to climb) to traverse the levels which could count as an outdoor activity and in the main hub area is an outdoor pool (of blood) for the succubus to relax (not much of an activity, but when I learned one thing from japanese media, then that bathing outdoors is one of the most relaxing things, that one could do).

I`m totally fine, if this doesn`t count for the bonus game, but I at least wanted to suggest it.

[SpaceCoresDad]

It's the end of the month, so time to finally make this post! I tried to play as many games focused on mental health as I could throughout this month, but I get that we have to pick just a couple, so, here we go! My first game to focus on mental health specifically, is without a doubt...

 

Celeste

 

All I can say is wow. I had been MAJORLY sleeping on this game. I don't know why, but I always assumed it was a pure platformer, sorta like Pizza Tower, without any real story. The difficulty of it put me off as well, but I can say the climb was absolutely worth the journey. I did (almost) everything without assist mode, and my god, 7-B was KILLER. Both on my fingers and almost on my psyche. But honestly? That was the point. Overcoming adversity is really the name of the game with Celeste. Both in Madeline's struggles with her own mental health, and with the player overcoming a really difficult game. Speaking of, I loved how not just Madeline's struggles were portrayed, but little bits and pieces of other characters too. You see just a little bit of Theo's mental health issues, but it's not his story, and his aren't nearly as bad as Madeline's, so the game breezes by it to let him deal with it. Just excellently done. And, to add, the assist mode is a much needed break from all those struggles. After I finished 7-B, I figured I "got" what the game was going for, and just turned it on to breeze through the final stage and the C levels. It was nice to have a break from it all! This has been my top game I've played this year, and I have this event to thank for finally getting me to go through it. Which leads to my bonus game, and also related to mental health...

 

Bugsnax

 

This is a great "go outside" game. Almost no fighting at all here! You run around a whole island, catch bugs, play basketball with your grumpus friends, eat tasty food, whatever you can think of. This game was a really fun, chill experience, and I can't believe I put off playing it for so long. I would heavily recommend it to others- it has not just great mental health story telling, but some of the best LGBT representation out there. I won't get into too much because of spoilers, but it is top notchl.

 

So, these are the games that'll count towards the badge, but with the month ending, just in case anyone wants to continue the theme further on into the year, I'll offer up some other recommendations from stuff I played throughout the month.

 

 What Remains of Edith Finch - Probably been posted a lot in this thread already, but this game is great. Talks about generational trauma and how that impacts people for a long time.

 

 The Last Campfire - Cute little puzzle game about searching for hope when you need it most. Each puzzle represents different issues with mental health, but none of them are all that hard to solve. Took me an afternoon to finish it, and I'm pretty sure it's on sale right now for cheap.

 

 Forspoken - Yeah. Really. I played this game without knowing anything about it, but it actually somehow fit this challenge shockingly well. The protagonist has a serious mental health struggle at the beginning of the game, when she has literally nothing left to her name, but the story helps her realize that she is loved and deserves to be happy. I'm not going to say it's super deep or anything, but this one surprised me.

 

 Adventures With Anxiety - This one isn't on Playstation, but if you want to pick any game of this list to try out, pick this one. It's a 30 minute long browser game in which you play as a person's anxiety trying to "protect" them from the outside world. It provides a really nuanced and interesting take on anxiety and how it affects people's lives, and how to live with it without letting it conquer you. Even if there's no trophies for it, this was easily my favorite of the entire month.

 

Had a great time with this month! Felt like I really learned a lot and got to do some introspection of my own. Hope everyone enjoyed the event!

[Beyondthegrave07]

2 hours ago, reaperveteran86 said:

For the bonus game:

I have only completed one game this month that would fit the requirements (and I`m not even 100% sure if it counts)

The game is

Succubus

The game in it`s core, is all gore and edginess but there is a free climbing "minigame" (you push the buttons that are shown on screen to climb) to traverse the levels which could count as an outdoor activity and in the main hub area is an outdoor pool (of blood) for the succubus to relax (not much of an activity, but when I learned one thing from japanese media, then that bathing outdoors is one of the most relaxing things, that one could do).

I`m totally fine, if this doesn`t count for the bonus game, but I at least wanted to suggest it.

The free climbing is fine. I'll count it. The bonus is not meant to be hard or difficult to accomplish anyways.

[Beyondthegrave07]

10 hours ago, Jeanoltt said:

I know there isn't any character in Lake with mental health related problems, but that isn't important. Mental Health is not always a chronical problem. Sometimes it's in our lifestyle, the people, our decisions, being tired of our lifes, feeling we can do better. Discovering the bases of life itself. Don't you ever are stuck behind a screen and think, is that it? 

 

Lake it's life itself, the sad, the good, the joy in it.

 

 

 

......

Grave: that's not a mental health related problem.

Jean: You sure? I ALREADY DONATED THE MONEY YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOU- (Banned)

I actually think this is a good point (no ban for you). A lot of people usually choose games that are very upfront with mental health, but there's plenty of games that deal exactly what you're talking about.  Where it's more of the internal struggles in life and trying to find your place in the world. There's definitely a mental aspect to it.

 

I think Catherine is a perfect example of this. Where a man is at a crossroads in his life and struggling to find his footing for his next steps in life (pun intended). And honestly, if someone submitted the game to me like that and explained that struggle, I'd 100% accept it counting for the event. It's not always a chronic issue, and I think that's important to point out too because it can be like that in games too.

[Fenrirfeather]

I have arrived fashionably late to announce that my game for the event is A Space for the Unbound. 

 

(The screenshots should be resized and they do show as such in the preview, but if not I’ll have to edit it spoiler tags. Edit: they look fine to me, hope they do to everyone else too.)

 

Let’s start this post with a content warning about the more difficult topics in the game that goes as follows:

 

 

Some further elaboration: there's the depiction of loss, character death by both natural and unnatural causes, explicit animal death in traffic, severe bullying (with death threats), expressions of self-hate, verbal and mentions of physical familial abuse and more. Contrary to what the ingame warning may suggest, suicice is never explicitly mentioned or clearly hinted at but an attempt can be deduced to possibly be what set the stage to the game. I’ll be touching on the topics of a suicide attempt further down in this text. 

 

What's the game about?

 

The game starts with the telling of a cute but sad story of parting between the South Star Princess and her one dear friend, a cat, which in turn is revealed to be the creative piece of a story that the girl in the prologue engagingly tells our very enchanted protagonist, Atma. When shortly after Atma is surprised to hear the girl intends to write a fitting resolution to her story but suddenly cannot think of anything at all to put down on the paper, bountiful, magical, mystical co-writer Atma is quick to suggest that she's been befallen by a case of writer's block that he desires to help her through. When the younger girl suggests to use the Magic Red Book, a wonderful item to touch and dive into troubled peoples’ hearts to find a way to aid them, Atma is nonplussed and again displays his eagerness to find and use it. 

 

In just half a day, that tranquil beginning of a story ends in tragedy as brave Atma falls into a rapid stream when he tries to save the girl and... goes under. When next Atma is teasingly awoken by his girlfriend, sitting by his desk in school, the game invites you on a journey. 

 

And it’s a journey long and arduous, of loss and denial and striving towards recognising and accepting life. 

 

What's the game like? 

 

If you're playing this in a heavily explorative and attentive manner, the very thoughtful storytelling allows it so that you might notice certain peculiarities hinting at there being something more, something behind the scenes as early as during the prologue that I just described. And to me, that immediately made the game's world and narrative feel engaging and, given the very unrealistic art and storybook atmosphere strangely so, more realistic. I say strangely so, because that spirited vibrancy is, in fact, further enriched by the gorgeous visual. The pixel art itself is extremely detailed and colourful, although the colour palette is kept entirely in pastels and related shades while bright neon colours are absent. There's shadows and shading on near everything including characters and animals, clouds move, little pixel birbs pass through high in the sky, rain falls visibly onto the ground and running through a wet area creates little puddles and splashes. Passbyers roam the streets to give the environments a vivid sense of liveliness. The sheer attention to detail in this game is absolutely incredible. 

 

What about mental health topics?

 

Our protagonist, Atma, for the most part, truly appears to the player as the personifiction confidence, rationality and tranquility. Much of what he conveys to us in the game focuses heavily on self-care and mental hygiene. 

 

In one scene between Atma and the little girl, he advices her to write down her many ideas for drawings and stories as well as what she feels to help channel not only her creativity but also to help manage negatively connoted emotions such as anxiety and stress. 

 

 

Atma encourages the girl to value that she can excel in areas other than academics and not to stress grades too much, and put a little less emphasis on expectations of other people. 
 

 

By the way, as a cute and potentially therapeutic bonus, this game lets you pet a ton of streetcats, a dog, some birbs and other animals, as well as the fluffiest animal known to men. 

 

Atma is a steadfast and reliable protagonist that carries us through the game and he is, certainly, needed to be everything that he is presented as because as colourful, lively and warm A Space for the Unbound comes around at first glance, it is blatantly showing off the anguish that life can also be.

 

In order to forgo the spoiler tag and keep spoilers to a minimum I'll be separating the protagonist, Atma, from the main character of the game who I will avoid naming so that you can discover more about them for yourself. 
 

To start off with one of the most societal taboo of topics of our time, please know that the suicide (attempt) warning is never explicitly explored in the game but it's strongly hinted at that the game itself is the result of such an attempt. 

 

It takes the events of the entire game for the main character to remember something that had been lost and buried all throughout the journey of our protagonist Atma: what it means to be alive. That feeling sorrow so deeply and strongly that you feel that you cannot cope with it is only possible while you are alive, and that as long as you're alive, "there's still time to find happiness". 

 

And that, after all what has taken place in their life, they have found the will to stick around for another journey. 

 

That positive resolve at the end of the game is depicted in a far more down to earth approach than my words can convey it, as the end of the game and the end of the long and arduous journey with Atma through the events of it, is simply presented as the start of yet another journey into the uncertainty that life often is - but as lingering effects of the events of the game, it's a start into future uncertainties with newfound resolve and certainty about one's own identity. 

 

 

Overall, the presence and depiction of death and loss is, indeed, generally melancholic and saddening but the game seems to also try to drive the message home that life is precious, that those who are have passed on are not gone but remain with us and stay a part of us, of our past that shapes the person we have become and of our important memories. Memories, painful and raw as they may be over many years, "linger" to form us and the game puts forth that whatever kind of person they make us into, it's never wrong. 

 

What other mental heath topics are there?

 

The side cast of this game is very enigmatic and through the the journey you're on, you're getting to know a number of them rather well, even if at first it may seem as if they're the type of personalities that you would rather not know too closely. 

 

There's a character who believes that in order to be "seen" and socially recognised as a tough nut and in order to get along in society, he needs to bottle down and smoulder his own feelings. And while at first he is pictured as an unlikely character to ever better himself, he is shown to take first steps towards bravely changing his thoughts and actions after he is forced to recognise that continuing down the lone road of destruction that pushes away other people, he won't be able to connect and form bonds with the people he holds dear and wants so bad to be cherished by. 

 

There's a pastry chef who is suffering heavily as she is torn between her loyalty and love for her grandpa, who she believes wants her to continue the family tradition of baking and her own lofty ambitions to pursue an entirely different cooking career. Heads up! Slight spoiler incoming, skip to the next paragraph if you want to: in the end, Atma helps to resolve the crisis that she is clearly suffering under emotionally to the point of it rendering her unable to do anything at all, besides withdrawing from her job and family and spending her time hidden away in a net cafe doing… nothing much in a state of depression and avoidance. But when her grandpa's final will outright states that the most important thing to him is her happiness, it's just what she needs to get started on pursuing her dreams of preparing Chinese dishes.

 

There's a musician who, after you help him to solve the puzzle in his heart, points out that the emotional pain of his past fuels his creativity and enables him to write song to express himself and inspire others.

 

All of these side characters, you, as protagonist Atma, help along the way to find themselves again and find the resolve once more to face tomorrow.

 

Unlike these side characters, the main character is a far more complicated case to help and one that seems to ask too much of Atma, as he is eventually forced to realise that all he has ever done and can do is that he can only aid someone willing to help themself along their way. 
 

The main character battles with strong self-hate, a part of it clearly adopted as they have been ignored, abused, bullied, shamed and have endured multiple accounts of loss over their short life that they blame themself for as well. Given that suicide attempts do not equal or are necessarily the result of depression, I struggle to find clear and concise depressive symptoms shown beyond the clear display of low self worth as a result of traumatic self-blame that was sowed after a truly horrific and sad event that the character was to live through and the aimlessness with which the character faces their future. The main character as shown in memories is indeed facing hopelessness, yes, but tries time and again to forge new bonds with others, still enjoys their hobbies and focuses their efforts on making time for them. 

 

To me, the main character is, until the very end of the game, primarily displaying their self-destructive behaviours stemming from a deep-seated self-blame from which much misery is born. In this fictional representation of the severity and tragedy of being over w powered by intrusive, self-destructive thoughts, the main character literally tears themself down to forget the memories that, while lingering to make them who they are, also hurt them too much to handle and live on. Instead of continuing their life and for the longest time right before their assumed suicide attempt, they try to remodel themself into the person that others seem to want them to be, the model student for their parents, the student fitting in with their peers for their classmates. They say that they tried to be the perfect person that (in their perception) their friends and family wanted them to be. And the results of that attempt are absolutely devastating. 

 

I do believe that another player going through the game may be able to see and understand different aspect of the game and thereby also interpret the underlying topics that the developers seems to have wanted to convey differently and - that's absolutely cool. It is, actually, a point that brings me to the most beautiful aspect of this small, ambitious game.

 

What is A Space for the Unbound trying to say to us?

 

 

Prior to starting A Space for the Unbound myself, I've read multiple accounts that stated how sad of a game it is but I believe that Unbound may be a case of a plot presented in a manner that its interpretation reflects your state of mind. I found the game, albeit clearly "sad" in that it deals with the topic of loss, painful bullying and being the target of repeated and continuous shaming, to also be a bundle of encouraging and positive messages and little reminders about life being short and coming with the potential to harbour many precious moments. It's a bit like that well known song from the film Interstellar, that for some people, at times, invokes feelings of sadness, sorrow, mourning and serves as a reminder of the dread of finality but it can also be taken to sound energising, encouraging and reminiscent of something wild and alive and that life is precious.
 

I think A Space for the Unbound is a bit like that too, open to interpretation with incredible and to-the point messages about both the sheer sorrow and the precious beauty of the one life we all have and to notice them it relies on what feelings you carry with yourself when you hit New Game. 

 

 

____

So I’m not having any time to start and finish my bonus game in May which would have been Alba: a wildlife adventure which promises to be as cheerful and chill as a game can be but I’ll probs just hop on anyway and have fun some time later. A chill photo safari? Sounds good!
 

Edited May 31, 2023 by Fenrirfeather

[GT__Jedi]

Bonus Game: Lake

 

 

You play as the prodigal son (actually a girl) returning to your hometown to help out at the Post Office.  After being gone for quite a few years, you find reconnecting with people from your past to be happy or some people are a bit more cynical.  But being out in the fresh air, walking around delivering the mail, meeting people (and cats) is quite a nice, relaxing change from your high-power job in the city.  I almost felt the fresh air as I walked around the lake.

 

There was also the photography contest, where you can drive and walk around to take photos of the scenery, buildings or people.  Hiked up to the watchtower, where the view was fantastic, and I was able to take a photo of an eagle in flight.  Sitting at the campfire with two RVers, listening to one playing the guitar, and just enjoying the evening (and got my own RV for a road trip). Learned about metal detecting with a detectorist scanning the field for treasures.  Using the local DJ/radio personality to reach out and to try to delay the development of a new apartment project.  And of course the open-mic night at Mo's Diner.  Glad I didn't have to get up there and sing. 

 

Nice relaxing game set at a lake surrounded by a forest, with plenty of activities to do outside.  No gore, violence or weapons!

[Redblaziken8]

Last Day of June

 

 

There's a lot of spoilers in this one since it's quite hard to talk about it without including them, if anyone is interested, give it a read ?.

 

Spoiler

Last Day of June gives you an insight into how depression can affect you when you lose a loved one. It's a game that goes into the despair that the main character Carl feels as he tries to change the course of events that lead to the death of his wife. You can see the increasing frustration of Carl throughout the game as the course of the story pans out, and how Carl was dreaming of what a future with his wife would have been like. You can see that hope that he sometimes has when he thinks he's finally got it right this time and then instead he wakes up, alone as usual, in a dark and gloomy house that feels empty and lifeless without his wife there. His life becomes more of a struggle as he can't do the same things he can do since he's now in a wheelchair after the car accident, that constant reminder everyday on top of everything else of how his life has fallen apart since the car accident. You can start to see the resentment he has for other people that could have potentially had an impact on the death of his wife. I think it's a game that shows how the butterfly effect comes into play as well - small seemingly inconsequential choices from you and others can actually lead to some drastic changes in your life. 

 

There's not much hope to be had in this game, I think it probably gives an accurate representation to a point of how it would feel to lose someone so close to you, but how they portray it is a bit too in your face really. It could have been told in a more subtle way and had a lot more impact. I think the game just makes you feel hollow really, it's not a game that actually made me upset really, just a bit numb. It's definitely not meant to be a game that you enjoy, and it's nice to see a game try to tackle an issue like this. 

 

Would I recommend it? Not really if you don't already have it, but if you do or you find it cheap I think it's worth a try at that point.

 

Bonus Game: Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order

 

 

So the outside aspect of this game is there's a lot of platforming outside with swinging between ropes, running around certain planets with nice sceneries and solving puzzles that can be pretty relaxing. This game is good, and it got me through a brief period of burnout I had with games for a while, so it was probably what I needed at that time really. 

 

Thanks to @Beyondthegrave07 for hosting this event, and I hope you continue to in the future as well. It's nice that someone on the site is willing to raise awareness on mental health issues and get people talking about these things, which is definitely one of the most important things in tackling a sensitive topic. I've enjoyed reading everyone's thoughts on the games they've played that have tackled mental health issues, and it's given me an interest in playing these games in the future too.

Edited May 31, 2023 by Redblaziken8

[GuitaristZag]

Aaaannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnddd- Here Goes:

So, since my last post a lot has honestly changed. I did continue the ADHD medication- I then realized it was making me irritable yet again, and more worryingly, actively suicidal. There were other factors, more on that in a sec- however, I later on experimented with briefly taking the medication, and can confirm it was a definite factor in both irritability and suicidal thoughts, thus, I completely discontinued it, and am, for now at least, leaving my ADHD untreated. Long story short, though better than after the rough breakup, I was still in a very dark place. In the fall, however, I took an Honors Seminar on wellness- a seminar I admittedly didn't buy into much at first, but figured it was worth a shot, as I had nothing to lose, and, I mean, probably an easy A. 

 

Wow- was I glad to be wrong (Also, the teacher is/was an absolute angel, and I love her to death.) Most notably, the class got me into meditation and keeping a gratitude journal, two things I now do daily (The former as my new years resolution- 5 minutes a day, only missed a couple days, though I plan to increase the time at some point, the latter since mid November- I recently passed a full 100 pages in my notes app for it.) It also helped me change my mindset, and get much better at discussing my feelings and emotions. Case in point, my final computer music project that fall was a 5 movement piece encapsulating the 5 stages of grief following my very rough breakup (the one discussed in the last post.) 

 

I was doing better, that class was a life saver (perhaps literally), but still in a bad place- then, in January, I was officially diagnosed with depression, and put on Prozac.

 

Holy crap, that stuff helps. A lot. And coupled with the meditation and gratitude, yeah, I still have awful days, and occasional issues, perhaps daily, but it's a process, and for the first time in years, I am actively happy to be alive. I truly am.

 

This semester, as in this spring, my piece dealt with said mental journey outlined in this post. I may be willing to (Temporarily) link to files of both pieces if there seems to be interest, I just have no desire to take away from the greater post or theme by forcing my work on anyone.

 

So, on to the games.

 

First, Sifu. The mental health connection is pretty clear- 

Spoiler

The achievement of Wude, and the true ending, which you get by letting go of your anger and sparing the five who killed your mentor. (And brutally slaughtering their henchmen with no remorse, but shhhh, don't go anti-TLOU 2 narrative on me now. I liked that game too.) This rings true for me, as not only have I learned to better control my anger and irritability, but to forgive, not only others, but myself, and am finally starting to learn to let go. So, though it may not tie to depression directly, guess who found another semi-loophole, Beyondthegrave07. Jokes aside- this just made sense, once I understood the plot and Wude. This was, in a small way, my own journey, a journey of letting go.

 

For the bonus badge, I did Before the Storm, for several reasons:

• It counts, no questions asked, there's no combat, at least physical combat, and you're outside for a ton of it.
• I only had one trophy left due to a glitch in my initial playthru.
• That initial playthru was done with my roommate, the one from my previous post who helped me so immensely mentally.
• I truly identify with Chloe, even sampling her in the Spring project. Not always in the best way, but a lot of her character really rings true to me, especially the destructive ways she deals with her mental trauma, and her lashing out at others, while in reality, it coming at least partially from a place of hurt and fear. Also we both have dyed our hair blue, but that's besides the point. Probably.
• The single chapter I had to do opens with her attending a DIY punk show- something I have recently really enjoyed doing, and I think I've found a new hobby, so it fits in yet another way.

[Dav9834]

3 hours ago, GuitaristZag said:

Aaaannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnddd- Here Goes:

So, since my last post a lot has honestly changed. I did continue the ADHD medication- I then realized it was making me irritable yet again, and more worryingly, actively suicidal. There were other factors, more on that in a sec- however, I later on experimented with briefly taking the medication, and can confirm it was a definite factor in both irritability and suicidal thoughts, thus, I completely discontinued it, and am, for now at least, leaving my ADHD untreated. Long story short, though better than after the rough breakup, I was still in a very dark place. In the fall, however, I took an Honors Seminar on wellness- a seminar I admittedly didn't buy into much at first, but figured it was worth a shot, as I had nothing to lose, and, I mean, probably an easy A. 

 

Wow- was I glad to be wrong (Also, the teacher is/was an absolute angel, and I love her to death.) Most notably, the class got me into meditation and keeping a gratitude journal, two things I now do daily (The former as my new years resolution- 5 minutes a day, only missed a couple days, though I plan to increase the time at some point, the latter since mid November- I recently passed a full 100 pages in my notes app for it.) It also helped me change my mindset, and get much better at discussing my feelings and emotions. Case in point, my final computer music project that fall was a 5 movement piece encapsulating the 5 stages of grief following my very rough breakup (the one discussed in the last post.) 

 

I was doing better, that class was a life saver (perhaps literally), but still in a bad place- then, in January, I was officially diagnosed with depression, and put on Prozac.

 

Holy crap, that stuff helps. A lot. And coupled with the meditation and gratitude, yeah, I still have awful days, and occasional issues, perhaps daily, but it's a process, and for the first time in years, I am actively happy to be alive. I truly am.

 

This semester, as in this spring, my piece dealt with said mental journey outlined in this post. I may be willing to (Temporarily) link to files of both pieces if there seems to be interest, I just have no desire to take away from the greater post or theme by forcing my work on anyone.

 

So, on to the games.

 

First, Sifu. The mental health connection is pretty clear- 

  Reveal hidden contents

The achievement of Wude, and the true ending, which you get by letting go of your anger and sparing the five who killed your mentor. (And brutally slaughtering their henchmen with no remorse, but shhhh, don't go anti-TLOU 2 narrative on me now. I liked that game too.) This rings true for me, as not only have I learned to better control my anger and irritability, but to forgive, not only others, but myself, and am finally starting to learn to let go. So, though it may not tie to depression directly, guess who found another semi-loophole, Beyondthegrave07. Jokes aside- this just made sense, once I understood the plot and Wude. This was, in a small way, my own journey, a journey of letting go.

 

For the bonus badge, I did Before the Storm, for several reasons:

• It counts, no questions asked, there's no combat, at least physical combat, and you're outside for a ton of it.
• I only had one trophy left due to a glitch in my initial playthru.
• That initial playthru was done with my roommate, the one from my previous post who helped me so immensely mentally.
• I truly identify with Chloe, even sampling her in the Spring project. Not always in the best way, but a lot of her character really rings true to me, especially the destructive ways she deals with her mental trauma, and her lashing out at others, while in reality, it coming at least partially from a place of hurt and fear. Also we both have dyed our hair blue, but that's besides the point. Probably.
• The single chapter I had to do opens with her attending a DIY punk show- something I have recently really enjoyed doing, and I think I've found a new hobby, so it fits in yet another way.

I was on prozac for a long time, and coupled with other meds it's a life saver

 

I'm so happy for you! I know very well what it's like, and you're doing great! And I'll pray you will only get better and better! Life is beautiful, if we take the time to look ❤️❤️❤️

[Violino]

I completely forgot to write up about the games I played with everything going on and I did them all lol.

 

Is it too late?

[Beyondthegrave07]

1 hour ago, Violino said:

I completely forgot to write up about the games I played with everything going on and I did them all lol.

 

Is it too late?

Nope, you can still submit it as long as it was finished in May. I'll give everyone until the end of the weekend.

 

Speaking of which... @Briste, you finish that bonus game?

[Briste]

2 hours ago, Beyondthegrave07 said:

Speaking of which... @Briste, you finish that bonus game?

lol sorry, been a busy couple of days. For my bonus game I played Final Fantasy V. The game is your typical old school Final Fantasy style game with a world map and dungeons. In this game, there is an item that you get (Mirage Vest) by riding your Chocobo all the way around the world without getting off. To get the item, you must hop on Boku and traverse around the map, running through forest, plains, desert and rivers to make the loop. In addition to the Chocobo riding, you also sail on a boat, ride a dragon, go for an underwater adventure in a submarine and fly the skies in an airship. The main character Bartz is kind of a wanderer at heart and is out exploring the world when you take him over so it's a pretty outdoorsy type game in general. On a personal note, it was the first time I played this game and I enjoyed the experience quite a bit. I have now played and beaten all of the numbered Final Fantasy games. I have a couple offshoots left to do, but I'll chip away at my outstanding FF games over time.

 

With regards to popping the plat for Final Fantasy VI, I got all but one trophy in Life is Strange 2, I'll be starting Life is Strange: True Colors tonight and the remaining 50 trophies or so will be made up from the games FAR: Lone Sails and Far: Changing Tides. I'm hoping to be able to pop that trophy relatively soon. Thank you for giving me the latitude to save it for my milestone.

[pelagia14]

Event Badges

This was my first year participating in the Trophies for Mental Health Awareness Event, and I'm so happy that I did. It was great to see everyone's game suggestions at the beginning of the event (some of which are now in my backlog), and even greater to read people's experiences with their chosen Mental Health Awareness games. 

 

I decided to showcase Journey for the badge designs since it is one of my favorite games as well as one of the more frequent recommendations by others for the event. Thank you @Beyondthegrave07 for helping me to workshop the different ideas I had into a more cohesive final design!

 

If I misspelled someone's name, please let me know so that I can fix it for you!

 

Mental Health Awareness Game + Outdoor Bonus Game + Donation Badge:

@Beyondthegrave07 @Briste @Starrk_01 

 

Mental Health Awareness Game + Outdoor Bonus Game Badge:

@breakingthegreen @DrBloodmoney @GT__Jedi @GuitaristZag @Han_the_Dragon @Im2Fast_4U @Landertjuuh @MattbluePT @MissShake @pelagia14 @Platinum_Vice @reaperveteran86 @Redblaziken8 @rjkclarke @SpaceCoresDad @Sylvanticore 

 

Mental Health Awareness Game Badge:

@Cassylvania @gruffiiti @Fenrirfeather @lady-reze 

 

Donor Badge:

@Jeanoltt @Kristen Danielle

 

Edited June 9, 2023 by pelagia14

[MattbluePT]

Loved how the badges turned out!

And like the idea of the different colors for the Journey character, as in the game.

Also adding an "upgraded" version for the donors is a kind way to show an extra "appreciation".

 

@Beyondthegrave07 thanks for hosting the event, and thanks @pelagia14 for the wonderful badges!

 

 

 

[Beyondthegrave07]

I still need to add up how much I need to donate (and round up), but maybe I'll leave that to @Starrk_01 . Plan to take care of it this weekend or early next week. 

 

Thanks again for everyone who participated or even commented in the thread. The positive support from you all is what makes this event great. Don't forget that. 

[Kristen Danielle]

What was the donation total?

[SpaceCoresDad]

@pelagia14 The badges are beautiful, thank you so much! How did you get it in that size though? Every time I try to paste it in my signature it uses the full size, which is way too big:

[Sylvanticore]

The love the badge so much! Thank you and thank you for the event!

[MattbluePT]

35 minutes ago, SpaceCoresDad said:

@pelagia14 The badges are beautiful, thank you so much! How did you get it in that size though? Every time I try to paste it in my signature it uses the full size, which is way too big:

 

Double-click on the image on your signature. You can edit size there. I use 165 px.

[SpaceCoresDad]

1 minute ago, MattbluePT said:

Double-click on the image on your signature. You can edit size there. I use 165 px.

You're a genius. Thank you!

[Platinum_Vice]

Hot damn those badges look good. Thanks Pelagia, thanks Grave and the donors, and thanks to the participants. ✌️

[pelagia14]

Thanks so much, everyone! ?

 

The community in this corner of the site is absolutely incredible, and I'm happy to be able to contribute back to it. 

 

And yes, I deliberately uploaded the artwork at a larger size (500x500 pixels) so that it would have a nice resolution at whatever size people set it to. There's nothing worse to me than blurry rasterized images. ? They're set to 150x150 in my post, for those who are curious. 

[Taruta13]

Sorry I didn't participate in the event, but I didn't have any great themed games at the time.

 

Maybe next year?

[GuitaristZag]

Way to go everyone, and the badges look amazing! @pelagia14 See you guys next year, take care of yourselves!