Gaming's favorite villain is mental illness, and this needs to stop

The discussion surrounding mental health can be invisible. It’s one of the least-understood public health concerns, despite how common mental health problems can be in the population. This lack of open conversation creates an atmosphere in which mental health issues and the people who live with them are stigmatized and made to feel like outsiders, unable to address their concerns with family, friends and coworkers for fear of being ostracized or misunderstood.

Representation is the key to kickstarting discussion, and video games have taken a woefully one-dimensional approach in the mental health conversation. While there’s no shortage of mental health-related content in today’s games, it falls into one of two specific camps, neither of which confront the complex and nuanced issues with the empathy and consideration they deserve.

[crusf]

Games aren't the only medium that uses mental illness as a blue print for a villian. Villains in movies and books have depicted villains as egotistical psychopaths who crave power or destruction. This has been seen many times in the past since the early days of cinema and literature.

[traumadisaster]

Not only is media full of MH characters both good and bad, history is too. Incidentally I was playing empire total war and ac3 which both reference the Hellfire clubs and some of that debauchery is certifiable.

[GribbleGrunger]

In real life, mental illness is OFTEN the blue-print for a villain. Unless the writer of this article is suggesting most mass murderers or sadists are sane, in which case ... *peaks through curtains*

[Blacklash93]

Are people seriously going to think that murderers and sadists are common, and we should be cautious of mentally ill people because of that? Because of videogames? OCD, Depression, Bipolar, Schizophrenia, etc. aren't even remotely the same thing as a violent psychopath. Many of the people struggling with those illness are perfectly sociable, too. I'd like to think that's common knowledge.

If someone is diagnosed with a mental illness and is allowed to be among the public, they are safe to be around and no one needs to be afraid or aversive of anything. People don't need videogames to tell them this.

[Prime157]

I think he's talking more about the total stigma of people diagnosed. We think that these tropes exist upon everyone suffering from these disorders, when, in reality, it's a much smaller percentage.

So we hide or vilify instead of trying to understand and help.

[Subaruwrx]

You sir are ignorant. The vast majority of people with mental illness are not murderers or sadists.
Edit@GribbleGrunger - Sorry, this is a subject that effects me personally and profoundly. Your use of the word 'OFTEN,' ticked me off. As I'm sure you know, the term 'Mental Illness' covers many different disorders, the majority of which do not result in violent behavior towards others. I don't have a problem with works of fiction portraying villains as mentally ill but; I do have a problem with people who believe that fiction extends to mental illness in general as it exists in the real world.

[GribbleGrunger]

@Subaruwrx: Did I say the majority of people with mental illness are murderers or sadists? I'm merely pointing out that HISTORICALLY, most murderers or sadists have a mental illness of some kind. I know that most mentally ill people aren't murderers or sadists because I work with them.

[Paprika]

I think gribblegrunger made it clear people with mental illnesses are sociable people, certainly not bad people! But, murderers or generally nasty people all likely have something not quite right mentally. Nobody is truly evil, your brain will function in ways others perceive as evil when said person doesn't, that is an illness.

[GribbleGrunger]

@Subaruwrx: Although the comment I made could definitely be described as flippant, and we could argue whether it should have been approached with more subtlety, the underlying truth is as I've stated.

The majority of people with mental illness are absolutely lovely people and I thoroughly enjoy their company. Having had depression since I was 16, I empathise with those that feel disenfranchised for one reason or another.

I won't patronise you by saying 'I'm sorry to hear you have a mental problem of your own' (or perhaps a close friend/relative), but what I will say is I'm sorry if my approach upset you. I'm sure you'd have to agree 'objectively' that anyone who is willing to kill and torture innocent people, must have some mental 'issues'. Don't confuse that with a generalisation.

'All mentally ill people are potential mass murderers' = False

'Most mass murderers are likely to have a mental illness' = True

These are two completely different propositions, but again, I'm sorry if my first rather curt post failed to convey that.

[SINISTERGENESIS]

But really let's be honest... The mentally ill aspect is down right great!!! The mentally disturbed persona instantly clicks with everyone and then everyone already knows that when someone is disturbed enough that there's literally no limit to how far they will go and which way they will go. Many cases of mental illness around are usually involved with deep,rooted,and complex back stories that make said character far,far more engrossing than even the hero because it causes everyone to ask the same question time and time again... Why are they so F'd up?!

For example; my all time favorite villain the Joker ( & yes before Heath Ledger) is one of the most convoluted, mysterious , sickening, twisted, and crazy characters in the world.... And guess what? That's one of the main reasons people like myself love him!

So in short, it can't stop, won't stop, Roca... Errrr ummm ... Sorry that song just popped in my head.

[GribbleGrunger]

I think the main problem with this article is the use of the words 'mental illness.' It suggests ANY mental illness in order to sound more provocative. But this is Polygon, which is why I'm not going to read any further than what is printed here.

[AntsPai]

Polygon... Please keep sjw issues out of fiction video games.

[SpiralTear]

This isn't even social justice. This claim that a villain is mentally ill is completely unsupported once you dive into the actual biological features of undergoing that kind of condition. It's actually more like judging a character by their outside behavior, aka stereotyping. Also:

"There is no obvious physical indication that someone is struggling with a mental health concern."

Exactly. So how do we know these characters are even mentally ill at all? A comment on this article made a good point, saying that struggling with hallucinations and dementia isn't necessarily "mentally ill", but just a biological reaction to experiencing large amounts of stress. Game designers aren't singling out the mentally ill at all.

[JohnathanACE]

I thought Vaas acted crazy because he was a drug addict not just because he was mentally ill.

[Summons75]

Enough drugs could make you mental alone, place that with being trapped on a tropical island and things get worse. Hell even the non addicted go a bit insane when they are trapped, look at Castaway...he goes insane and makes friends with a basketball.

[spicelicka]

Volleyball!! and his name was Wilson! Wilsooooooonnn..

[Vantage]

"As long as we keep employing the same harmful tropes, and refuse to exercise our empathy and actually reach out to those affected with mental illness and instead mystify, or worse, demonize them, so many of us will continue to remain invisible."

look at this pretentious Liberal try to sell us his moral superiority. Trying to fit in with the social justice warriors and PC crusaders, Lindsey?

Look at that profile picture, I mean really.

[Spotie]

Don't go blaming it on liberals.

Blame it on polygon and their need for hits under the guise of being intelligent or sensitive.

They're just being sensational.

[DanielGearSolid]

Everytime I'm thinking "what a dumb headline"

I look down and see polygon.com

[Blacklash93]

There's a big difference between the psychosis we see in fiction, and what mental illness really is.

Anyway, it's not the job of a videogame to inform people what mental illness really is. If someone thinks that many people who are mentally ill have anything common with Vaas, they're an idiot. Compulsively violent and amoral psychopaths are very rare individuals, with a very specific range of psych profiles.

Anyone with a brain should know that any diagnosed mentally ill person that is allowed to freely interact with people is probably safe to be around. They're not going to let a serial killer go grocery shopping.

[Peloun]

Can we enjoy our video games without having people telling us how bad it is.

[SolidDuck]

Polygon gets worse everyday. Can't wait till they go out of business so we don't have to read there garbage anymore.

[Soldierone]

I guess we should just stop making video games since everything is so wrong about them lol..... not enough females, too sexy females, villains are lunatics (who would have thought?), and a countless list of "offensive" things....

Ugh, just let me play video games stop changing them! I miss the PS2 era when us gamers were nerds and not the spotlight of hipsters.....

[redknight80]

I miss being a nerd, too :( now I am just a psycho who likes to play games to fuel my hatred and violent behavior and to show my prejudice to ALL who are different from me.

[Soldierone]

Well we have always been "violent" that story came out every time a new GTA or Mortal Kombat released. :P

[Gh05t]

@Sildierone

I remember an article from 1993 about mortal kombat being too violent (Pictured with sub zero or scorpion I cant remember) holding a head that he had ripped from his opponent with the spine still attached during a fatality move.

Just like back in the day when almost every church was telling parents that if their child is playing dungeons and dragons they are playing the devils game... same stories different generations.

The war on games never changes just like it was bad for rock and roll, and comic books, there has to be some societal enemy that people can gang up on since there has to be blame and no one is willing to take or hold anyone accountable for personal responsibility.

[Sketchy_Galore]

Exactly, we need more games about being trapped on a desert island by a perfectly well adjusted, mentally healthy fellow with no issues with violence or power or any other such thing. Sounds thrilling.

[redknight80]

Mission One: Meet the island leader and enjoy a sip of tea.

Mission Two: Discuss each other's wants and needs and what each is willing to give up to live peacefully on the island together.

Mission Three: Become a part of society, farming the land and helping others.

Mission Four: Survive the island's harsh weather until you hit an old age and die of heart failure.

[traumadisaster]

Actually yes, I want the status quo but there is 1000s of other possibilities. I have been enlightened so many times by movies I would like to also have a similar experience in vg. I want to play all kinds depending on my mood, I have a wii game called Mad World but im also interested in a revolutionary game experience that pulls me in emotionally. Tlos and heavy rain did that a lil for me and I read ac3 liberation had a component of something more.

[Ninjamonkey82]

Lets just pretend that some off the best criminals in cinematic history weren't looney's :/ Every other day theirs a new topic on something equally as stupid as this -_-.

[redknight80]

"The fact is that mental illness is horrifying for those who suffer, and it can drastically affect one’s perception of the world." Isn't that what game developers often try to do...try and find a different perception of the universe to play a factor in their games?

I highly doubt these developers are just all sitting back in the board rooms saying how their new games must include a character with mental illness or something...it is just their interpretation of a character in the game that should be very different from the player's character.

In Far Cry 3's case, I never once thought of mental illness and thought only a villain that was power hungry, desperate and a full-on drug addict. The character was a pirate leader for christ sakes, the character wouldn't have made it to the rank of a pirate leader if he was a calm and relaxed nice guy. Just because he acts crazy, doesn't mean he necessarily is...if I was a leader of a pirate/rebel/terrorist group, I would try hard to strike fear in my enemies...and acting crazy and unpredictable is one key way to do that, doesn't make all those pirate/rebel/terrorist leaders mentally ill or something.

[OrangePowerz]

They are games give it a rest. If you want everything realistic and true to life you will end up with a boring game. As example military shooters would be boring if they where true to life, not only would you need to deal with the rules of warfare, you would also see little shooting amd a lot of staying behind cover for a very long time when shooting starts, or you wouldn't be allowed to pick up a weapon from the ground because soldiers don't pick up weapons of enemies and use them and so on and so on.

If you want to complain start with Batman and other super hero comics because most of the villains there have mental issues compared to only a few characters in games.

The only games I can see going to tackle this properly are games like Heavy Rain, that already did cover a bit of mental issue the
father was dealing with depression and a panic disorder, that try to be serious.

[HonestDragon]

Another article condemning a topic explored in video games. Apparently writers aren't allowed to delve into anything when it comes to this medium of entertainment. The more we limit ourselves, the less variety there is.

[Blacklash93]

It's not even a topic being explored. It's fictional characters doing fictional things, for fictional reasons that have nothing substantial to do with real-life groups and psychology.

[HonestDragon]

Exactly! And yet these journalists (notably from Polygon) want to make something out of nothing. Namely, they want to make it seem like something from fiction is impacting reality. Movies, novels, anime, and comics have touched on so many ideas and subjects long before video games have. They make it seem like gaming shouldn't tackle some of those same ideas and subjects.

[Tctczach]

Mental illness sadly is one of the biggest factors so I see this article is invalid. It's a factor in most recent massacres. Antidepressants are a giant factor also but no one is saying anything on that.

[AceofStaves]

The concept of mental illness being associated with villainy far predates video games. It's an archetype that has appeared repeatedly throughout stories for as long as humans have been telling stories. Mental illness marks someone as 'other,' and we, as a species, tend to fear the 'other.' It's not the only archetypal marker of villainy, of course. Sexual deviance from a particular society's norms is another example of a common trope associated with villains in storytelling.

It's very difficult to change these archetypal elements. Why is it that so many games feature male protagonists? Because the 'Hero's Journey' - the Monomyth - is strongly associated with masculinity. We've certainly taken great strides in changing this, but it's going to take longer than a few decades to finally set aside the storytelling conventions humans have worked with for thousands of years.

I'm not saying we shouldn't tell stories that break from traditional patterns, just that it's more difficult to break such longstanding cultural motifs.

I thought gaming's favourite villains were Nazis? ;-)

[theshredded]

Joker's the best villain so no

[ajax17]

Wow, what a lame opinion piece. God, I hate Polygon.

[DanielGearSolid]

Luckily for us, wannabe journalists don't have any influence in the industry.

Play games. Have fun. Stop over analyzing

[Subaruwrx]

@GribbleGrunger Thank you for your respectful and empathetic response. I apologize for my overly emotional response to your initial comment.

[Revengeance]

Polygon, still stuggling to come up with remotely good articles

[rextraordinaire]

Seriously, Polygon...

If devs listened to that website, we'd be playing games that feature no sex, no violence, no disturbed minds, no drugs, no nothing. A totally bleached world full of harmless blandness to make sure nobody ever gets offended.

According to them, games shouldn't even feature gendered characters because 'omg cis-gendering is sexism'.

The more I read of that website, the more I hate it.

And I'm all for the respectful treatment of any human. Deep at heart, I'm a hardcore humanist. But Polygon is going waaaaayy overboard.

[Gh05t]

Be sure to vote the website too, just click on the website under the intro and vote how you feel the article and website are.

[rextraordinaire]

Well technically the story is well written and all and the website is well put together.

I may disagree with their views, but I've seen websites that need to be reported more than this one, like those that use google translate or steal stories from other websites.

Still, I can honestly say that this time, story quality is "WTF" and do you like this website is "No".

;)

[SinisterKieran]

is this for real?
who gives a shit if its due to drugs or mental illness? its how the character was made and what made him so great. just like it would make him great in a movie, tv show or book.
people need to grow the fuck up and learn to stop slowing down character development in games.

[GenericNameHere]

The Joker is a household villain with a mental illness. A lot of villains in media have mental illness.

[Gh05t]

Agreed, a lot of villains throughout history have mental illnesses that's WHY they are VILLAINOUS.

[contradictory]

mental illness is a wide category you know
and most people with psychological problems
won't go killing people for fun

[Gh05t]

@contradictory

No one said that "most people" with mental illness will kill people.

All I was pointing out is most of histories villains had a mental illness, no one said most people with mental illness are histories villains.

Its called reading and comprehension.

[L6RD7BLU3]

I never in life heard of a villain/bad guy without some sort of disorder in reality or in fictional.

[dboyman]

Lets not forget many heroes/antiheroes also seem to suffer or maybe be suffering from mental illness.

Even someone like Batman:

http://www.toplessrobot.com...

[rextraordinaire]

Why would sane persons be villains anyway?

Two things that I believe are basic common sense :

Most villains have a mental illness.
Most persons suffering form a mental illness are not villains.

Basic. Common. Sense.

[contradictory]

well said.

[rextraordinaire]

One last thing I would like to say :

I believe art is anarchy. I believe video games are art. I believe thought polices have nothing to do in arts.

Please, by all means, offend me. That's part of what art's for.