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Comment by AlecSchueler | Hacker News Reader

Is it ableist to role play as someone with mental health issues? I haven't played the game. Was interested by the positive reviews here but then the central theme jumped out and I felt a bit uncomfortable.

Can anyone who played the game say if it comes across sympathetically to John's issues or are they othering in their effect? Does it feed at all into negative perceptions of mental disorder?

I know social issues are a bit frowned on here so apologies if this question is inappropriate.

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It made me uncomfortable too, and it is ableist to talk about someone as if they are "totally insane", and to trivialise serious mental health issues.

Fortunately, it is easy to reframe EiJ as an android controlled by a bunch of aliens. That's much more lighthearted, and means you can extend John with useful or amusing augmentations! :)

DID (multiple personality disorder) is far, far more common in media than real life. This game gave me a greater sense of empathy for someone experiencing (a cartoon version of) DID. I don't have DID but I have a comparable condition, and I think I would appreciate it if more people could experience something like my daily experience through a game, to better understand what I'm going through, and so I wouldn't have to explain it. Sadly my condition has far less entertainment potential.

I also see the value of the humor added to a game played with a group of friends and don't see it as a negative towards someone with a comparable or even exact condition. I believe that a person can play a game which exaggerates some aspects for gameplay/comedic value and still empathize with serious mental health issues.

As someone that is always curious and worried about mental health would you mind explaining what a typical days experience is like for yourself?

I've always chosen to just introduce the game as you're a bunch of evil spirits possessing this poor fellow - sidesteps any of those issues and just gets to the fun.

Yeah it is ableist, it's hard to imagine a game making fun of any other illness or disorder these days.

Thank you, I think that's a good way of framing it and you're quite right.

Though you've also sparked an idea in me. I think a game focused sympathetically on an issue could do well to help in people's empathy. The vision that came to me was a Wheelchair Simulator where one would have to play to overcome the actual access restrictions wheelchair users face every day.

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