For the Records is an interactive transmedia documentary project about the lived experience of mental illness conceived by game designer Doris C. Rusch and documentary filmmaker Anuradha Rana. It includes short films, interviews, photo romans, animation and games which revolve around four mental health issues – Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Bipolar Disorder and Eating Disorder (anorexia nervosa). The project was produced at DePaul University with students and recent alumni. All pieces complement and provide context to each other and are embedded into the website www.fortherecords.org. This paper discusses the design of the four games, including a description of our collaborations with people who have lived experience with the portrayed disorders, how we identified the metaphors to capture what these disorders “feel like”, as well as an account of our playtesters’ gameplay experiences, particularly in regard to cognitive and emotional game comprehension.
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