Wes Farmer

Date of Award

2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Natural Sciences

First Advisor

Roy, Tania

Area of Concentration

Computer Science

Abstract

Depression is a challenge faced by many people in the modern world, and for those suffering from depression, it can direct the course of their lives. To spread awareness about how depression affects people, a virtual reality game called “Depression Simulator” was created. This game serves to create an abstract representation of the challenges faced by someone with depression, creating visual and interactive tasks to both engage the player and to better help them understand how depression affects people. The player starts by finding themselves in a wide open, greyscale field, with there being little to no color despite the scene taking place during the day. After this, the player will find themselves inside the bedroom of someone suffering from depression. In this room, the player will first learn, and experience an abstracted form of the challenges presented by depression. Each level set inside the bedroom holds one or more interactions wherein the player can learn about the challenges of depression. Starting with the simple difficulty some may find even getting out of bed, and continuing to the way people with depression may lose interest in hobbies that they once loved. Once they complete the tasks, and leave the bedroom, the players will find themselves in a large hallway with a single goal, to reach the end. After spending a long time walking down the hallway, they will reach the end. The game ends when the player finds themselves back in the first level, but this time the world is full of color, and the once dull field is now full of life. Ultimately, the goal of this game is not to create an exact representation of depression, as it is not currently possible to directly induce feelings. However, it serves to highlight and inform people of the many challenges that are faced by those suffering from depression.

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