0:00:01.358,0:00:03.587
Have you ever felt lonely?

0:00:04.842,0:00:07.557
The urge of wanting[br]to connect with people,

0:00:07.581,0:00:10.662
but you seem to have no one[br]you really would want to contact?

0:00:11.877,0:00:14.689
Or, it's a Friday night[br]and you want to be with others,

0:00:14.713,0:00:20.266
but you have no energy to go out,[br]so instead you sit at home all evening,

0:00:20.290,0:00:21.796
watch Netflix

0:00:21.820,0:00:24.977
and feel more alone than ever?

0:00:25.001,0:00:26.624
You feel like a monster

0:00:26.648,0:00:29.145
between humans that know how to function.

0:00:30.193,0:00:34.252
This is what loneliness felt like to me.

0:00:35.856,0:00:37.241
So I'm an artist,

0:00:37.265,0:00:41.843
and I process my emotional world[br]by sharing my feelings through my art.

0:00:42.846,0:00:45.776
If you share your feelings with someone,

0:00:45.800,0:00:49.355
and they understand[br]and share those feelings too,

0:00:49.379,0:00:52.866
you create an emotional[br]and deep connection.

0:00:53.456,0:00:57.687
This is why you can be surrounded[br]by hundreds of people,

0:00:57.711,0:01:00.567
jump from one candidate to the next,

0:01:00.591,0:01:02.895
but still feel lonely.

0:01:02.919,0:01:07.507
It's because these deeper connections[br]haven't been made.

0:01:09.258,0:01:12.070
I was an always-happy child.

0:01:12.094,0:01:14.751
I think we nearly have[br]no single photo of me

0:01:14.775,0:01:17.752
where I don't smile broadly[br]or laugh or joke around.

0:01:17.776,0:01:20.246
And this went on until ...

0:01:20.270,0:01:22.193
well, it's still the case.

0:01:22.217,0:01:26.477
But I had many friend groups

0:01:26.501,0:01:30.102
up until, as a young adult,[br]I moved to another city

0:01:30.126,0:01:32.947
for my first job as a comic artist.

0:01:33.857,0:01:38.670
And like so many young,[br]thriving people all over the planet,

0:01:38.694,0:01:42.698
I concentrated all my energy[br]into my work life.

0:01:43.816,0:01:49.486
But, if you spend, like, 90 percent[br]of your daily capacity

0:01:49.510,0:01:51.608
trying to succeed at work,

0:01:51.632,0:01:53.228
of course there is nothing left

0:01:53.252,0:01:56.189
to take care of all the other[br]important aspects in your life,

0:01:56.213,0:01:58.228
like your human relationships.

0:01:59.665,0:02:04.353
Nourishing friendships[br]as an adult is work.

0:02:05.520,0:02:09.071
You need to be consistent with connecting.

0:02:09.095,0:02:11.668
You need to be open,[br]you need to be honest.

0:02:11.692,0:02:13.811
And this is all I struggled with,

0:02:13.835,0:02:16.848
because I tend to camouflage[br]my real feelings

0:02:16.872,0:02:19.096
by trying to appear always happy

0:02:19.120,0:02:21.488
and trying to make[br]everyone else happy, too,

0:02:21.512,0:02:23.803
by trying to fix their problems.

0:02:24.843,0:02:28.207
And I know a lot of us are guilty of this,

0:02:28.231,0:02:32.082
because it's an easy way to not[br]think about your own issues.

0:02:32.106,0:02:33.384
Isn't it?

0:02:33.408,0:02:34.888
Hmm? Hmm? Hmm?

0:02:34.912,0:02:37.174
(Laughter)

0:02:37.198,0:02:38.348
OK.

0:02:39.428,0:02:42.213
The turning point came

0:02:42.237,0:02:47.343
when I fell into an emotionally[br]abusive relationship

0:02:47.367,0:02:48.891
just a few years ago.

0:02:49.492,0:02:51.713
He isolated me

0:02:51.737,0:02:55.370
and left me feeling more alone than ever.

0:02:56.565,0:02:58.347
It was the lowest point in my life,

0:02:58.371,0:03:01.451
but it was also my wake-up call,

0:03:01.475,0:03:03.463
because it was the first time

0:03:03.487,0:03:06.552
that I really felt loneliness.

0:03:08.354,0:03:11.136
Many others put[br]their feelings into their art.

0:03:11.747,0:03:16.246
There are endless books,[br]movies, paintings, music,

0:03:16.270,0:03:19.130
all filled with the real[br]emotion of an artist.

0:03:19.154,0:03:21.966
So, as an artist myself, I did the same.

0:03:21.990,0:03:24.228
I shared my feelings.

0:03:25.199,0:03:29.606
I wanted to help people[br]cope with loneliness.

0:03:29.630,0:03:32.253
I wanted, yeah, to make them[br]understand it,

0:03:32.277,0:03:36.241
to really experience it through my art

0:03:36.265,0:03:39.758
in the form of an interactive story,

0:03:39.782,0:03:41.111
a video game.

0:03:42.825,0:03:45.062
So, in our game --

0:03:45.086,0:03:48.431
we called it "Sea of Solitude" --

0:03:48.455,0:03:50.956
you are a person named Kay,

0:03:50.980,0:03:54.358
who is suffering from[br]such strong loneliness

0:03:54.382,0:03:56.696
that her inner feelings --

0:03:56.720,0:03:57.958
the anger,

0:03:57.982,0:04:01.771
the feeling of hopelessness,[br]worthlessness --

0:04:01.795,0:04:03.774
turn to the outside,

0:04:03.798,0:04:05.334
and she becomes a monster.

0:04:05.869,0:04:08.086
The game -- well, Kay --

0:04:08.110,0:04:11.093
is actually a representation of me

0:04:11.117,0:04:15.222
and the path I went through[br]to overcome my struggles.

0:04:16.309,0:04:18.421
The game plays, actually, in Kay's mind,

0:04:18.445,0:04:23.268
so you walk through a world[br]that is flooded by her tears,

0:04:23.292,0:04:27.494
and the weather is changing by her mood,

0:04:27.518,0:04:29.461
how her mood is changing.

0:04:30.301,0:04:35.620
And, well, the only thing Kay wears,

0:04:35.644,0:04:37.497
the only thing,

0:04:37.521,0:04:39.130
is her backpack.

0:04:40.272,0:04:44.973
It's the baggage we all carry[br]throughout our life.

0:04:44.997,0:04:48.252
And Kay doesn't know how to cope[br]with her emotions in the right way,

0:04:48.276,0:04:51.024
so her backpack becomes bigger and bigger

0:04:51.048,0:04:52.492
until it bursts,

0:04:52.516,0:04:56.794
and she finally is forced[br]to overcome her own struggles.

0:04:58.135,0:05:03.221
In our story, we present many different[br]manifestations of loneliness.

0:05:04.443,0:05:08.428
Loneliness through[br]social exclusion is very common.

0:05:09.041,0:05:12.983
In our game, the brother of Kay[br]got bullied in his school,

0:05:13.007,0:05:15.655
and he just wants to hide and fly away.

0:05:15.679,0:05:19.923
And we portray him as a huge bird monster[br]surrounded by thick fog.

0:05:21.317,0:05:23.816
The player has to actually[br]walk through his school

0:05:23.840,0:05:27.592
and experience, really feel the harm,

0:05:27.616,0:05:29.437
that the brother had been through,

0:05:30.488,0:05:33.442
because for a long time,[br]nobody really listens to him.

0:05:34.081,0:05:39.513
But the very moment[br]friends and family start to listen,

0:05:39.537,0:05:44.350
the first step towards overcoming[br]this form of loneliness had been made.

0:05:44.374,0:05:48.343
We also show loneliness in relationships,

0:05:48.367,0:05:53.139
like when parents just stay together[br]for the sake of their kids

0:05:53.163,0:05:56.022
but end up hurting the entire family.

0:05:57.182,0:06:03.279
We put the player literally in between[br]the two parents while they are fighting,

0:06:03.303,0:06:05.154
and you get hurt in the middle.

0:06:05.545,0:06:10.146
They don't even see that their daughter,[br]Kay, is right there

0:06:10.170,0:06:11.891
until she breaks down.

0:06:13.016,0:06:18.047
We also show loneliness[br]through mental health issues,

0:06:18.071,0:06:22.150
with the boyfriend of Kay,[br]who suffers from depression

0:06:22.174,0:06:24.692
and shows that sometimes

0:06:24.716,0:06:29.926
it is most important to focus[br]on your own well-being first.

0:06:31.770,0:06:35.233
The boyfriend also tends[br]to camouflage his feelings,

0:06:35.257,0:06:39.352
so he appears like a lone,[br]shiny white wolf.

0:06:39.376,0:06:43.828
But the moment he starts[br]to interact with his girlfriend, Kay,

0:06:43.852,0:06:45.439
the mask falls off,

0:06:45.463,0:06:48.829
and we see the black dog beneath it:

0:06:48.853,0:06:50.152
depression.

0:06:51.355,0:06:54.623
Sometimes we put on a smile

0:06:54.647,0:06:58.304
instead of dealing[br]with the issues at hand,

0:06:58.328,0:07:01.006
and that can ultimately make it worse,

0:07:01.030,0:07:03.138
affect the people around us

0:07:03.162,0:07:05.220
and damage our relationships.

0:07:07.561,0:07:08.827
So Kay herself

0:07:08.851,0:07:13.281
we portray as ripped apart[br]into her basic emotions.

0:07:14.457,0:07:15.732
Some help you,

0:07:15.756,0:07:17.880
some are trying to stop you.

0:07:18.994,0:07:22.165
Self-Doubt is a huge creature,

0:07:22.189,0:07:25.408
always telling Kay how worthless she is

0:07:25.432,0:07:27.690
and that she should just give up.

0:07:28.167,0:07:29.646
Like in real life,

0:07:30.531,0:07:32.869
Self-Doubt is blocking the path,

0:07:32.893,0:07:35.128
and it seems impossible to overcome it.

0:07:36.271,0:07:40.705
Destroying the omnipresence[br]of Self-Doubt is a slow process.

0:07:40.729,0:07:44.501
But in the game,[br]you can slowly, like, shrink her,

0:07:44.525,0:07:46.981
so she turns from self-doubt

0:07:47.005,0:07:48.791
to actually healthy doubt,

0:07:48.815,0:07:51.045
and you can finally trust her advice.

0:07:52.544,0:07:55.251
We also show Self-Destruction.

0:07:55.769,0:07:57.391
It's a huge monster

0:07:57.415,0:08:00.722
always lurking nearby[br]under the water's surface.

0:08:01.627,0:08:04.635
Self-Destruction is actually[br]the main antagonist of the game,

0:08:04.659,0:08:08.673
and she is always trying to drown you[br]in the ocean of tears.

0:08:09.432,0:08:11.857
But, when she actually drowns you,

0:08:11.881,0:08:13.878
you wake up just a few moments [before],

0:08:13.902,0:08:16.732
and you have a chance to progress again.

0:08:17.432,0:08:19.913
We wanted to show

0:08:19.937,0:08:23.737
that we all go through hardships[br]in our life, we all do.

0:08:23.761,0:08:29.458
But if you at least, like, stand up[br]and try to move forward,

0:08:29.482,0:08:34.079
you are very likely to make it[br]through your struggle,

0:08:34.103,0:08:35.599
step by step.

0:08:37.742,0:08:43.897
Joy is something that Kay[br]cannot really embrace or touch.

0:08:43.921,0:08:46.675
It's always something in the distance.

0:08:46.699,0:08:49.198
We portrayed Joy[br]as a child version of Kay,

0:08:49.222,0:08:50.590
with a yellow raincoat,

0:08:50.614,0:08:53.834
so she is invulnerable[br]to the ocean of tears.

0:08:53.858,0:08:57.101
But Joy can also turn into obsession

0:08:57.125,0:08:59.188
and start to be actually harmful for Kay,

0:08:59.212,0:09:02.284
like when she starts obsessing[br]over her boyfriend.

0:09:02.974,0:09:08.656
Joy will not turn back to normal[br]until Kay realizes

0:09:08.680,0:09:13.502
that her happiness[br]should not depend on anybody else

0:09:13.526,0:09:15.700
but herself.

0:09:17.977,0:09:20.904
So our monsters appear huge and scary,

0:09:20.928,0:09:24.203
but if you overcome your reluctance[br]and approach them,

0:09:24.227,0:09:28.278
you soon see that they[br]are no monsters at all,

0:09:28.302,0:09:33.603
but just fragile beings that are simply[br]overwhelmed by what life throws at them.

0:09:36.325,0:09:39.062
All of those emotions,

0:09:39.086,0:09:42.511
be it self-doubt or even self-destruction,

0:09:42.535,0:09:44.838
don't completely vanish in our game.

0:09:46.292,0:09:52.190
The key message is to not only[br]chase for joy or happiness

0:09:52.214,0:09:55.164
but to embrace all your emotions

0:09:55.188,0:09:57.365
and bring them into balance,

0:09:59.138,0:10:02.934
being OK with sometimes not being OK.

0:10:05.468,0:10:09.099
Everyone has their own[br]loneliness story to tell.

0:10:09.123,0:10:12.794
This realization changed[br]everything for me.

0:10:13.910,0:10:16.053
Being much more open with my emotions

0:10:16.077,0:10:19.842
and concentrating much more[br]on my private life,

0:10:19.866,0:10:22.270
my friends, my family.

0:10:23.274,0:10:24.641
When we released the game,

0:10:24.665,0:10:27.985
literally thousands of fans wrote us,

0:10:28.009,0:10:30.606
all sharing their stories with us

0:10:30.630,0:10:35.439
and telling us they felt[br]not so alone anymore

0:10:35.463,0:10:37.796
just because they played our game.

0:10:38.497,0:10:41.419
Many people wrote us that they felt hope

0:10:41.443,0:10:45.102
for a better future for themselves[br]for the first time in decades.

0:10:45.955,0:10:48.625
Many wrote us that they seek therapy now,

0:10:49.584,0:10:54.054
just because they played our game

0:10:54.078,0:10:57.060
and felt hopeful to overcome[br]their own struggles.

0:10:59.155,0:11:00.629
Our game is not a therapy.

0:11:00.653,0:11:02.273
It's not meant to be a therapy.

0:11:02.297,0:11:05.217
It's just my friends and me[br]sharing our stories

0:11:05.241,0:11:07.932
through our art, video games.

0:11:07.956,0:11:12.687
But we are so deeply thankful[br]for every single message

0:11:12.711,0:11:14.447
that people feel better,

0:11:14.471,0:11:17.999
just because we shared[br]our story with them.

0:11:19.456,0:11:20.915
So ...

0:11:20.939,0:11:27.932
I didn't completely overcome[br]my urge to help others.

0:11:27.956,0:11:30.129
But I don't want to overcome it anymore.

0:11:30.740,0:11:32.113
I love it.

0:11:32.137,0:11:36.748
I just needed to bring it[br]to a healthy size,

0:11:36.772,0:11:39.843
so it doesn't stand in the way[br]of deeper relationships anymore,

0:11:39.867,0:11:42.402
but even help me to connect with people.

0:11:44.264,0:11:47.743
So, if you have an inner monster

0:11:47.767,0:11:51.456
that is born out of negative emotions,

0:11:51.480,0:11:54.915
it is not only the goal[br]to kill that monster

0:11:54.939,0:11:58.775
but to understand that we humans[br]are complex beings.

0:11:59.918,0:12:06.173
Look at what part of your life[br]is so big that others fall short.

0:12:06.920,0:12:10.354
Look at what emotions you barely feel

0:12:10.378,0:12:11.928
or maybe feel too much

0:12:11.952,0:12:14.541
and move towards lowering those peaks.

0:12:15.191,0:12:17.772
Most of all, it's about understanding

0:12:17.796,0:12:21.500
that all the wide range[br]of emotions and struggles

0:12:21.524,0:12:23.939
makes us what we are:

0:12:23.963,0:12:25.183
humans.

0:12:26.162,0:12:27.324
Thank you.

0:12:27.348,0:12:29.142
(Applause)