Using Video Games to Discuss Mental Illness
Video games are seen by most as a way to pass the time and have fun. However, there are
many video games that use interactivity as a way to discuss more meaningful things. The video
game, OMORI, is a perfect example of this. It uses a complex and elaborate way of representing
how a person can experience and cope with mental trauma and suffering. Video games, like
OMORI, should be recognized not just as a means to pass the time, but as a way to discuss and
portray difficult topics surrounding mental illness.
OMORI is a beautiful depiction of mental health and trauma and how it can be
interpreted by the human mind. Headspace is the colorful fantasy world inside of every
hyperactive child's mind where they run to when they want to revisit the feeling of fun,
excitement, and adventure. But for Omori, this place is fake, a figment of his imagination, used
as an attempt to replicate those feelings of excitement, fun, and happiness. It is the world Omori
created for the purpose of hiding his mind from his trauma that even he cannot yet remember, a
world in which his aspiration for escapism shines through.
Escapism is one of the symptoms of disorders such as dissociative amnesia, dissociative
identity disorder, and PTSD. "(Dissociative amnesia) is precipitated by a severe stress or
emotionally traumatic event that is so painful the mind seems to shut down and erase
everything,” (Brody, 2007, para. 6). Escapism causes a person to seek relief by attempting to
distract their mind from a traumatic memory. “(They are) dark, self-destructive places the mind
can go even If presented in a loving peachy light, and how grief and guilt can metastasize into
something much more haunting," (Farah, 2021, para. 10). OMORI portrays escapism through
three major worlds: White Space, Headspace, and Black Space.
White Space is the world Omori wakes up to as he drifts off to sleep. It is his safe place.
The place where Omori goes to protect himself from the potential danger of remembering. It is a
place of total isolation. Headspace is the world beyond white Space, it is mythical and vibrant.
This is the world where Omori goes to pretend. To pretend that everything is as it used to be. It is
the place where he still has his childhood friends, and goes on adventures with them. Headspace
is the place where Omori goes in an attempt to reconstruct his lost happiness, but in Headspace
there is no real happiness. This is portrayed in the world of Black Space; a terrifying and empty
world, filled with the obscured memories of his long forgotten trauma. It is the final barrier
between Omori and his own mind. It is the place where he goes when he makes the conscious
decision to remember the pain and suffering of his past. However, it is also the place where he
learns to accept himself.
OMORI captures the possible ways a person can cope with and experience their own
trauma. It uses the stark contrast between the beautiful visuals and serene music of Omori's
imagination with the dark, gloomy, and depressing reality of his struggle within his own mind.
However, this game is not so much about grief, as it is about overcoming that grief. OMORI, in
actuality, is a game about learning to accept yourself for who you are. It is about learning to take
ownership for past mistakes and about moving on from them. OMORI taught me that it's okay to
hurt, so long as you don't lose yourself in the process. Whether or not you suffer from a mental
illness or know someone who does. Video games need to be used to shed light on the harsh
realities of mental illness.
Cited Sources
Alba, Nev De. “Psychological Horror Game 'Omori' Is a Vibrantly Twisted Experience.” The
Channels,
https://www.thechannels.org/ae/2021/04/23/psychological-horror-game-omori-is-a-vibran
tly-twisted-experience/.
Brody, Jane E. “A Documentary Explores Dissociative Identity Disorder.” The New York Times,
The New York Times, 22 Mar. 2021,
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/22/well/mind/dissociative-identity-disorder-busy-insid
e.html.
Brody, Jane E. “When a Brain Forgets Where Memory Is.” The New York Times, The New York
Times, 17 Apr. 2007,
https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/17/health/psychology/17brody.html.
Farah, Jon. “Omori Embodies the Quiet Tragedy of Escapism - MGRM.” Merry, 1 Mar. 2021,
https://merrygoroundmagazine.com/omori-embodies-the-quiet-tragedy-of-escapism/.
Show', ‘the Ezra Klein. “This Conversation Will Change How You Think about Trauma.” The
New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Aug. 2021,
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/24/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-van-der-kolk.html.
Zollner, Amelia. “White Space.” Into The Spine, 20 June 2021,
https://intothespine.com/2021/02/26/omori-white-space/.
