Disco Elysium Talks Mental Health

Disco Elysium is a top-down role-playing game made by ZA/UM team. It delves into a wide array of themes, from philosophy, politics and socioeconomic conditions, to mental health.

Through the eyes of detective Harrier “Harry” Du Bois, the player explores the city of Revachol and learns stories of its unique inhabitants.

Instead of the usual skill tree, common for RPGs (e.g.

Charisma (persuasiveness) and Strength (how physically strong you are)), Disco Elysium lets the player level up character traits, as most of the gameplay consists of navigating dialogue.

Some skills are more intuitive, such as Empathy (putting yourself in another’s shoes) and Reaction Speed (how fast you react), others are less, such as Conceptualization (reflection about creative ideas) and Volition (determination to continue).

The unique ability tree enables the player to discover new character internal thoughts and dialogue options, making each new gameplay unique.

Another interesting game mechanic allows the player to choose to internalize certain thoughts from situations in order to progress quests.

Unlike the skill tree, new thoughts are gained from quests and character interactions, instead of leveling up.

This mechanic not only allows the character to reflect on quest take-aways and enrich the narrative experience, but also encourages the player to take a break from certain quest lines and heavy themes and return to them later on.

These refreshing RPG game mechanics allow the player to explore mental health in its depth.

With a bag of life struggles, Harry suffers from alcohol use disorder and the game explores his struggle at its roots through unkind internal monologues of cravings and different player choices that may or may not lead the main character in a downward spiral.

Harry being used only as an example, it is worth mentioning that the game is excellent at exploring mental health and life baggage of other seemingly unimportant characters.

The heavy narrative exploration of adult themes such as politics and mental health are made approachable with humor and absurdity.

The game does not shy away from inappropriate language and “making the player look like a fool” through player’s decisions. In fact, odd or unusual decisions are encouraged and can lead to creative solutions and deeper knowledge about characters.

Bridging complex themes that are not easy to digest through humor, Disco Elysium is an unforgettable narrative experience that deserves a big thumbs-up recommendation.