In this week’s tutorial, I talked about the work I’ve completed so far up until my second intervention from Unit 3, where I developed an online info page. The idea was the equip the support network of shy gamers with information that would help them feel confident in inviting their socially anxious friends to events and offer them support. During the discussion with my new tutor, he highlighted a critical flaw that I had overlooked: while I gathered opinions from people about the page, I didn’t actually test the concept directly. I didn’t directly test to see if people would really go out and invite their friends based on the information I provided. There’s a significant difference in asking for opinions and truly testing an idea in practice.
During this conversation, I also kind of realized that the organizations and therapy groups I’ve been researching on and in contact with, like the Association of Neurodiversity in Video Games and The Goblin’s Chest which are using games as tools for therapy, are working with people who are aware and actively seeking help. These individuals know that they are participating in therapy and want to improve. However, the audience I want to approach is quite different. The gamers I’m targeting aren’t necessarily looking for therapy, they’re looking for fun and engagement, building social confidence is just an added bonus, not the primary goal.
This shift in perspective made me realize that I need to design something that engages gamers through fun and enjoyment, rather than relying on their support networks to do the heavy lifting. I don’t want it to feel like a responsibility, instead I want it to be an experience people are excited about.
I was encouraged to actually test the idea by organizing a game night and inviting people to participate. I understand the value of doing this to get it out of my head, but I feel like I’m already a bit biased, feeling that it may not work. Based on feedback from some of the shy gamers I’ve spoken to (there’s even one directly in my tutorial group!), there doesn’t seem to be much interest in this type of event. I do recognize the importance of giving it a try and seeing what happens though.