Moonray Studios

Debris: Exploring Video Game Messages and Values Through Gameplay

"Debris" is a single-player and co-op adventure game developed by Moonray Studios that uses experiential learning to portray psychosis, placing players inside the perceptual distortions of a character who gradually loses contact with reality.

• Debris, developed by Moonray Studios, is a single-player and co-op adventure game that uses experiential learning to place players inside the perceptual distortions of psychosis, including hallucinations, disorganized speech, and delusions that respond to player choices.
• The game was co-designed over eight months with five youths aged 17 to 19 with lived experience of mental illness, working alongside developers and clinicians, with their discussions recorded, transcribed, and analyzed to build a model linking gamer values (autonomy, connectedness) to mental health values (empathy, dignity, compassion).
• The authors argue the game can reduce stereotypes and fear of mental illness and encourage willingness to help someone in crisis, and they frame psychosis as a collective experience affecting family, friends, and colleagues, not just the individual.