You are not alone
Beyond the Final Boss is a new site dedicated to sharing stories of bullying from videogame developers. The site was created by Shahid Ahmad (the designer for Chimera back in the Atari days), and told Indie Games that the site’s ongoing mission is to “show these young people examples of successful, happy lives achievable beyond the bullying. A fulfilled, happy and cool life is within their reach. We focus on the hope and show that it’s not a pipe dream.”
One featured story comes from Vlambeer’s Rami Ismail, where he talks about a vivid memory he has where a friend decided to no longer be friends with Rami as the “other kids would find him lame” otherwise.
It takes a ton of courage to open up like this, and it’s so important that these stories are out there. Hearing that others went through similar situations goes such a long way, and gives hope to those that see people able to succeed and overcome bullying and depression. I speak from experience when I say this.
While we’re on the subject, I encourage you to check out How Games Saved My Life too. The site is maintained by Ashly Burch and features stories from anyone that cares to share how gaming saved their lives.
Super Crate Box, Thomas Was Alone devs share on new site stories of being bullied [IndieGames]
