Safe Space: The Video Games Mental Health Podcast

Join Rosie and Sky as they chat to Danielle Udogaranya (aka Ebonix), and learn about the ways Dani has worked directly and indirectly with The Sims to create more authentic representation in character design. To learn more about Safe In Our World, check out the website at https://safeinourworld.org !

On this episode, Rosie chats with Magic: The Gathering enthusiast, games researcher and Class of 2024 Ambassador - Sahar Mirhadi. We discuss iGGi , (The EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Intelligent Games and Game Intelligence), which is a leading PhD research programme aimed at the Games and Creative Industries. Links: https://www.zjayres.com/ https://linktr.ee/saharmirhadi

Rosie chats with Dr Raffael Boccomazzo, or Doctor B, who is a clinical psychologist and clinical director at video games mental health non-profit Take This . We talk about Dr B's long history in psychology, therapy and diagnosis, why he's got to where he is today, and his own experiences in diagnosis. Raffael discusses the intricacies of intersectionality within diagnosis and marginalised...

Content Warning: In this episode there are non-graphic mentions of self-harm, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, drug abuse, overdose, emotional abuse and violence. Please proceed with care and remember you can pause the episode and step away at any time. Charlie Mullins from Companion Group joins Rosie on the podcast to discuss Borderline Personality Disorder, better known as BPD. Whilst uncove...

Rosie is joined by two guests; Charlotte McBurney, BAFTA-nominated actress known for her role as Amicia in the Plague Tale Series, and Hannah Rutherford, content creator and SIOW patron. We deep dive into both A Plague Tale Innocence and Requiem to uncover what goes into emotionally preparing for a character such as Amicia's. Charlotte talks about her experiences in bringing a heart wrenching,...

In this episode, Rosie chats to Demi Fortson, Co-Founder at Mendu and Doctoral Student Researcher at Columbia University in the City of New York. We talk about the origins of Mendu, and it's purpose. Mendu is a self-care app built with a culturally competent AI to talk through your problems with you. It promotes the premise of prompted audio journaling, whilst educating users on topics and fee...

In this episode of the Safe Space Podcast, Rosie and Harry chat to Adam J. Harrington , the wonderful voice of Sindri, from God of War. Now, before we go any further, this is an official spoiler warning. SPOILER WARNING In this episode we will be discussing heavy spoilers from God of War Ragnarok. If you'd like to avoid spoilers, please don't listen to this episode! We were delighted to invite Ada...

In this episode, Rosie is joined by Dr Emma Reay, Senior Lecturer at the University of Southampton, who researches Games Studies and Game Design.  Emma has previously looked at exploring the therapeutic effects of games for mood repair, building resilience and community, and joins us to discuss games and grief.  We chat about how death is interpreted in gaming, as a fail-state, and how w...

In this episode of Safe Space, Rosie talks to JJ Fox about neurodiversity - specifically, JJ's experiences being an autistic game dev and how it links to mental health. JJ is an indie game developer currently working on Hymble Ventures, as well as a Safe In Our World Class of 2023 Ambassador. They are also a fan of cosplaying, kung-fu and heavy metal.  We discuss the common stigmas and misund...

On the first episode of 2023, Rosie talks to Ladell Smith, the Associate Social and Community Manager at Auroch Digital, Safe In Our World Ambassador in our Class of 2023, and owner of They Play Podcast - which is a space for gender non conforming people to share their stories and love of games! We kick off the episode discussing their history of most treasured games, how they started streaming an...

We welcome Sajam to the Safe Space Podcast, to talk about his experiences in mental health within his content. Sajam is a Twitch Partner and fighting games commentator/analyst, segue specialist, with a passion for DnD. He was also one of the commentators in Intel Gaming World Relay 2022 , which supported Safe In Our World alongside 3 other charities in the games space. One of Sajam's most popular...

On this episode of the Safe Space podcast Rosie chats with Ambassador Renji, who talks about his journey into mental health advocacy in content creation amongst a myriad of other topics. Renji dives into his mental health experiences including relating to relationships, ADHD, depression and anxiety, as well as his recent coaching with HealthyGamerGG.  How do creators start to talk to their co...

In this episode, Rosie chats to Blizzb3ar, Producer and Content Creator at Rooster Teeth , Twitch Partner and Bisexual Villain (Icon) . We discuss his path into content creation, as well as his motivations for getting into Twitch and the relationship he has with his community. Blizz talks about how his mental health has been affected by content creation, both positively and negatively, as well as...

In this episode, Rosie chats to The Witcher voice actor, Geralt himself. Though we know him as one of our wonderful Patrons, Doug Cockle.  We delve into mental health in acting as Rosie quizzes Doug on his journey to becoming Geralt, the paths he's chosen, and the obstacles he's faced. Doug talks about how he first became involved with Safe In Our World, right at the beginning of the charity'...

In this episode, Rosie chats to Posy Brewer (Founder, Game Creator and Designer at MYU Creations) about her upcoming game ROBIN, and its role in exploring emotional resilience in video games.  We talk about Posy's experience in creating her first ever game, and the challenges she has faced in the development process so far. Posy explains how the inspiration began behind ROBIN, and how her son...

In this episode of Safe Space, Rosie chats with Dr Emilia Molimpakis, CEO and Founder at Thymia, and Neuroscientist working within the games industry.  We discuss how games can be used as a tool to assess and monitor mental health using theory from neuroscience, and how cognitive neuroscience and linguistics can be gamified to support clinicians. Emilia takes us through Thymia, which is a pla...

In this episode of Safe Space, Rosie and Sky talk to Dr Matthew White, CEO of Whitethorn Games about the culture around easy and casual games.  We chat about Matthew's path into the games industry, and going through the teaching aspect as an assistant teaching professor at Penn State University, having been in the industry for several years and now as CEO for Whitethorn. Matthew discusses the...

In this episode of Safe Space, Rosie chats with Ellen Rose from Outside Xtra about her experiences being an immunocompromised creator throughout Covid-19. We also discuss the anxieties that accompany us from events, travelling and day-to-day life.  We discuss the ins and outs of 'Stray', a third-person cat adventure game set amidst the detailed, neon-lit alleys of a decaying cybercity, before...

In this episode, Rosie is joined by Dr Kimberly Voll, Head of Studio for Brace Yourself Games, Co-Founder of the Fair Play Alliance and is on the Advisory Council at GDC. We discuss the previous work that Kim has been involved in, including focusing on player interactions and reducing harassment and hate within her role at Riot. Kim talks about how games companies can actively work towards putting...

In this episode, Rosie talks to Paul Fletcher, Professor of Psychiatry and a neuroscientist, known for advising Ninja Theory in the depiction of mental health within video games, specifically for Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice and their depiction of psychosis. Paul is also on our Clinical Advisory Board here at Safe In Our World. Paul goes into depth on he was involved within the development of the...

In this episode, Rosie is joined by Rami Ismail, an independent game dev and influence within the games industry. Rami was a part of Vlambeer, and is a part of The Habibis Podcast. Rami has created Meditations, developed presskit(), and is a big voice within the game dev space in advocating for change.  Rami talks about his new passion in flying, and why having something completely separate f...

In this episode, Rosie and Mikayla (Safe In Our World Patron) talk to Katy Bentz, aka the voice of Steph Gingrich from Life is Strange! Katy talks about her experiences as a voice actor, touching on the distinction between the games industry and the film industry, and how to handle audition rejection.  We discuss the impact of characters like Steph for the LGBTQIA+ community, and Katy's...

In this episode, Rosie and Sky chat to Momo Misfortune. Momo is a Twitch partner who is known for streaming The Sims, as well as campaigning for pronouns in the Sims, and a founder of YOUphoriaTV which is stream team focused on uplifting the voices of Nonbinary and Gender Non Conforming creators on Twitch. We discuss the incredible causes such as Able Gamers, Trans Women of Colour Collective that...

In this special episode, Rosie is joined by Sky, who has recently joined our team as our Partnerships and Training Officer.  We talk about loneliness, and how Minecraft was a big part of helping combat it during a time where Sky and their partner were living far away from each other. We also delve into Eating Disorders, Self Harm and Medications and how conversation around such topics is fund...

In the first episode of Season 2 of the Safe Space Podcast, Rosie talks to Paula Angela Escuadra (she/her) about her vast experience within the game development space where she has broadened the conversation around inclusivity, representation, sustainability and climate consciousness.  We talk about the importance of using games to portray important messages, and how it differs from messages...