The Warrior in You: A Game Design for Coping with Academic Stress

A Safe Space for Students to Explore Healthy Coping Mechanisms

The motivation for the game stemmed from seeing personal experiences with academic stress being amplified and reflected among young students, leading to mental health struggles and loss of self-identity. Akshata Chtinis, the designer behind The Warrior in You, recognized the need for a solution that would introduce healthy coping mechanisms to children at an early age.

The game design is primarily based on Play & Talk therapy, aiming to introduce and accept healthy coping mechanisms, initiate conversations in households, and encourage self-expression. By playing out life experiences through the game, kids learn to cope without feeling judged. It also enables them to immerse themselves in warrior characters, normalizing their well-being struggles and instilling empathy for themselves and others. This unique approach actively inculcates coping mechanisms, helping players build stronger relationships with themselves, people, and their environment.

The Warrior in You is made using a combination of different materials and technologies. The base board and palace backdrop are printed on 3mm thick sunboard for sufficient strength to hold pawns and islands, as well as to keep the palace upright. The islands are printed on card paper, providing a lightweight stable box to hold cards within. The warrior boards use sunboard to place all cards, coins, and elements collected by players throughout the game. All the graphics and characterizations for the game were first illustrated on paper and then recreated using Adobe Illustrator to create unique designs.

The game's gameplay interactions are simple and engaging. Players begin by setting up the base board, palace backdrop, and placing the island boxes on their designated spots. Each player selects a warrior character, picking out their pawn, warrior board, and challenge cards. The warrior boards provide information about the character's strengths and weaknesses. Players take turns rolling the dice and navigate through the board, encountering blank steps, power-ups, power-downs, challenge steps, and islands. The win conditions are designed to build anticipation through a stroke of luck and healthy choices in the game. The first player to reach the palace gains 5 points, followed by 4, 3, and 2. These palace points are added to the total well-being coins collected in the game to determine the winner.

The Warrior in You is designed for the age group of 10 and above, making it a perfect family game that encourages communication, empathy, and the development of essential life skills. By addressing academic stress and providing a platform for healthy coping mechanisms, this game aims to empower children and set them on a path to better mental well-being.

The Warrior in You project started in October 2021 in Mumbai, India, and completed development in April 2022. It is a result of extensive research on academic stress and its impact on students' mental health. By targeting the preconditioning aspect and introducing primary grade students to healthy coping means, the game provides a future pathway for expanding the intervention into other avenues such as schools and psychologists' clinics for optimum child development.

The Warrior in You has been recognized for its innovative and practical design. It was awarded the Iron A' Design Award in the Toys, Games, and Hobby Products Design category in 2023. This award acknowledges the game's well-designed, practical, and innovative nature, meeting professional and industrial requirements. The game is respected for integrating industry best practices and competent technical characteristics, providing fulfillment and positive feelings, and contributing to a better world.