Six weeks of a specialized video game modestly reduced depressive symptoms in adolescents at 12 months
Monday Papers · Friday, 11 September 2026
Why it matters
Schools, youth programs, or clinicians could consider a roughly five-hour PlaySmart program as a prevention adjunct for adolescents with these risk characteristics, but the evidence is currently one randomized trial and the individual effect was modest. It should not substitute for clinical treatment when an adolescent has depression requiring care, and its effectiveness in routine implementation remains untested.
What happened
In a randomized trial of 532 adolescents aged 16 to 19, 269 played PlaySmart for about five hours total over six weeks, while 263 played commercial games for a similar amount of time. At 12 months, mean PHQ-8 depression scores were 5.3 with PlaySmart versus 6.42 with the control games—about a one-point difference—while anxiety symptoms did not differ significantly. The participants had recent substance use or elevated depression or anxiety screening results but no previous opioid misuse; the trial was a prevention study, not treatment for diagnosed depression. PlaySmart also produced more positive attitudes toward psychological services at six weeks, with two mild adverse events reported.
Players & places
- PlaySmart
- play2PREVENT
- Dartmouth Geisel School of Medicine
- JAMA Network Open