It's a more realistic view of Hasbro's the Game of Life from the perspective of mental illness, majority aimed towards Depression and Suicide.

In my perspective as much as it's a good game to play at the same time it's portrayed as some glorified view of life without leaving out the harsh realities that many face in today's society. Instead of having the aim of the game as reaching retirement I would alter that to aiming to survive until retirement age and the player that is still alive and is the most positive wins, the aim of the game is to look at it for what it is and hope that others could become more aware that they are normal people like you and me they just struggle with some stuff in life more than others.

At the beginning of the game there could be 6 potential outcomes of childhood half good and half bad in which a dice could be rolled to see each player's outcome. At the same time if player rolls a one they start with $10,000 through to a player getting a 6 and $60,000. When it gets to college based on if they have enough money to pursue a career of their choice they can choose that, or they can choose to keep the money and start on a minimum wage job. The third option is they could spend the money they have and borrow from the bank for a loan to choose a career, this starting their debt, funds are paid back over the period of the game at the player's choice the debt could increase or decrease as the game proceeds.

By creating two separate lots of cards for Career and Jobs it gives them the perspective of knowing the difference as the game proceeds towards the end if the player makes it that far.

I would also create 5 colored life tiles.

Blue to represent sadness

Purple to represent loss

Yellow to represent happiness

Red to represent love

Black to represent a permanent problem

These life tiles will affect your overall score at the end as Black tiles are -15 points, Blue tiles equals -5 points, Purple represents –10 points, Yellow is + 5 and Red +10.

The first phase would only had 1 black tile, 4 blue, 3 purple, 6 yellow and 6 red.

As each phase is played through the depression number of tiles would rise and the happy ones would decreasing making the game harder.

Bringing in color tiles on the game board itself and circumstance cards would also show how a simple thing as a person's routine is out of order could be detrimental to the mind frame of someone with an illness of this type. Being overstressed and already having severe depression could also lead to bipolar which the player would be given a black tile as a 'permanent problem'. There would also be two deadly circumstance cards added in to prove that any person could pass at any given time so each day is precious, if the player retrieves one of these cards then they must place there token on top of the card at the end and for each of their turn they must place their loved ones/ children if they had any on top of their token to show the overall affect that it has on the outside people who still love them.

A player could also opt to quit the game at any given time, however they must first admit to all the other players why they are choosing to essentially kill themselves.

As well as this for each pay day the player must pay rent if they are renting or rates if they own their own house, either way it's the reality that even though they are suffering they still have to find a way to survive.

If the player is a female after childbirth there is a 50% chance of the player getting post-natal depression which again would swap the normal happiness tiles they have just received to sadness yet still leaving the love tiles.

There are many mechanics that could be added and taken away where this subject is concerned which I have been debating within my mind all day but as a overall it would be good to make the next generation see that life is no fairy-tale of getting married and having kids then living until retirement and retiring at some village or home.

Life is about choices, you just have to live with the ones that are out of your control and keep moving forward.

Image sourced from :

http://cdn.lipstiq.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/game-of-life-board-game-u6t0ctcc.jpg