In a new cumulative study, researchers at Johns Hopkins’ Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences found that video games that have therapy-informed concepts baked into their gameplay can be an effective tool for patients with ADHD and depression.
But the study comes with an important distinction: it focused on clinically designed games that have therapy-informed concepts baked into their gameplay, not commercial games like Fortnite or Minecraft.
Some therapy-informed games are even prescribed or FDA-reviewed in certain contexts (like EndeavorRx, an alien-themed computer game designed to improve attention function).
To reach their conclusion, resident physician Barry Bryant and adolescent psychologist Joseph McGuire analyzed 27 trials from around the world, which included 2,911 participants between the ages of 6 and 17 years old.
Overall, their study, published in the American Medical Association’s pediatric journal, found that video games designed specifically for young adults with ADHD and depression provided a “modest reduction” in symptoms.
Post-trial, participants and their family members both reported more sustained attention and decreased sadness.
By contrast, video games designed for patients with anxiety did not show “meaningful benefits.”
“While the benefits are still modest, our research shows that we have some novel tools to help improve children’s mental health, particularly for ADHD and depression, that can be relatively accessible to families,” McGuire explained.
McGuire added that these game-based interventions can be delivered at home, making them a potentially scalable solution for families facing long wait times or limited access to care.
“So if you are a pediatrician and you’re having trouble getting your pediatric patient into individual mental health care, there could be some gamified mental health interventions that could be nice first steps for children while waiting to start individual therapy.”
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A version of this article originally appeared in the 2026 Mental Health Edition of the Goodnewspaper.
Header image via Alena Darmel
