For decades now they’ve been demonised as bad for your mental health and wellbeing.

And while going outside and getting some fresh air and exercises is obviously a big part of keeping yourself healthy and well, new research has proven that some video games can actually have a positive impact on your mental health.

That’s according to researchers from Aalto University in Finland, who have been exploring the links between mental health, life skills, and the notoriously difficult video game Dark Souls.

Their research, which was recently presented at the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, uses data derived from Dark Souls pages on Reddit, has suggested that rather than making players’ mental health worse, the game is actually helping their wellbeing and day-to-day lives.

According to researcher Jaakko Väkevä, in an Aalto University statement, it is the challenging nature of the fantasy role-play game that seems to be having a positive impact on players’ lives:

“Players described how the game’s structure had taught them acceptance of failures as an essential part of life’s process. Dark Souls, through its ruthless difficulty and powerful narrative themes, seemed to empower many players to confront their real-life struggles with perseverance and hope.”

In particular, the team found that the game helped players to develop resilience and other life skills, ultimately aiding some in combatting depression.

How? Well, in Dark Souls, the player’s character leads a cyclical life in which combat is challenging and opportunities for healing are limited.

This generally leads to characters dying, before respawning next to a bonfire.

While this could be demoralizing and a little boring, the challenging nature of the game keeps players on their toes and keen to learn and adapt to the game as they chase ultimate success.

As a result, the research suggests that Dark Souls teaches players resilience and self-improvement, often allowing them to develop vital skills to take with them in the real world, as Aalto University’s Janne Lindqvist continued:

“Some players described how they learned to ask for help in the game, which made asking for help in their own lives easier as well.”

Meanwhile, further positive impacts of the game appear to reside in multiplayer levels of the game, with not only gaming but life support found there.

With one of the game’s central themes, ‘hollowing’, often regarded as a metaphor for depression, it’s easy to understand why.

The emotional support that players can offer one another, and derive from the game, are among the many positive aspects of gaming, as Lindqvist continued:

“When considering games and their impact on well-being, there is a tendency to highlight potential negatives like spending too much time in front of screens. Dark Souls is an example of how video games can positively impact gamers’ lives beyond the gaming experience itself.”

So there you have it: permission to game for your mental health.

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