The Joy and Stress of Gaming With Autism - Tony Attwood | grokludo 19

Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of depression and suicidal ideation.

For those with autism, gaming can be a great boon. Where others see social barriers, the autistic mind sees the removal of those barriers. Symptoms disappear. In the words of this week's guest, "often when you play the game, you're not autistic."

Tony Attwood is an expert in Autism, and an adjunct professor at Griffith University in Queensland. He ran a private practice for decades, specialising in Level 1 autism, formerly known as Asperger's Syndrome. Among other books, Attwood is the author of The Complete Guide to Asperger's Syndrome.

This week, Attwood joins us to talk about how those with autism experience games, the positives of gaming as well as the dangers, and how we can better design habits and games around it.

There's some good value here for:

• Parents who want to better understand the gaming habits of their autistic child
• Anyone autistic or borderline who wants to understand themselves better
• Game makers who want to learn about designing for those with autism, as well as improving general accessibility
• Schoolteachers, friends, and anyone else with someone autistic in their lives

While the official prevalence for people with autism in the general population is 1 in 36, Attwood estimates it's higher within the gaming sphere.

"There's something about autism and computer gaming that go really well together," says Attwood.

Along with insights into how people with autism experience games, this interview also has some advice for managing the hobby. While there are some enormous benefits, there are also things to watch out for, such as emotion regulation.

"Your mind is so focused on the game, it basically suppresses your anxiety or depression," Attwood says. "Now the problem is, for a while, you are detached from your emotional state. But when you switch off the game, pew! It's been suppressed, but not resolved...

"How am I going to cope with my deluge of anxiety which now floods my mind?"

I hope you enjoy this episode, and have a great week!