Ninja Gaiden has helped me stop drinking.

Don’t want this post to be a sob story, but I come from a long line of alcoholism on my dad’s side. It’s something I’ve struggled with all my life. But getting back into Ninja Gaiden this year has helped no end. I just tried 2 Black on Game Pass, and the flow state is wonderful. After that, I went back to 1 Sigma (first time playing hard mode!). Now I’m playing the 360 version of 2 on Xenia Edge (on warrior). It’s kind of crazy how different it is from Sigma 2/Black.

I find I can’t drink and play this game because it dulls my reaction times. Also, I drink to try and forget my problems. But these games are so intense, you need to be thinking multiple moves ahead, tracking multiple enemies, and considering multiple possibilities all in microseconds. I find that it absorbs so much of your consciousness that you don’t have space to indulge in worry and anxiety. That's a much more healthy way to deal with mental health than drinking!