After stay-at-home orders were introduced, weekly downloads of the app doubled, and session time was up 60%. They all award badges or points-incentives for your progress and participation.Īnd in a year like 2020, gamified apps like SuperBetter could be more important than ever. Think of your language learning app, your calorie tracking app, even loyalty programs. Gamification has become pervasive across so many industries. And each of us hopes to find little boosts of energy and encouragement along our quest. We’re all trying to overcome something, be it anxiety and depression or bad credit. These archetypes make a game great because they are central to the human experience. When we think of any great game, several elements are almost always present: allies, quests, power-ups and epic wins, all of which Jane incorporated into SuperBetter. With SuperBetter, Jane McGonigal turns a user’s personal obstacles-like an afternoon smoke break for someone trying to quit, or the long drive to the gym for someone trying to exercise-into “bad guys” to be battled.

SuperBetter, her mobile and desktop app, now has more than 1 million users and is helping people all over the world beat depression, overcome anxiety, heal from physical injury and create new habits, all with the power-and structure-of gaming. So she made a game out of her healing process, and SuperBetter was born.

Plus, we have an easier time asking others for help. Jane knew from her 10 years of research that humans tackle challenges in video games with comparatively more creativity, determination and optimism than we do in real life. Until one day she decided, “I’m either going to kill myself or turn this into a game.” As with so many others who experience thoughts of suicide as a result of brain trauma, Jane’s mind started to tell her, “You will never get better.” And she feared for her life. No running, no phone, no video games, just rest. Vertigo, nausea, memory loss, headaches and mental fog plagued her daily, so doctors told her to rest.

and world-renowned game designer, knows the benefits of video games from personal experience.Īfter a severe concussion in 2009, Jane couldn’t get out of bed for months. The answer might be found in video games. Climate change, a global pandemic, racial injustice … in the face of a society in turmoil, how can we as individuals take better control of our lives and the future?

Ted talk jane mcgonigal superbetter