“Abysssense” : The Impact of Serious Games on Awareness of Thalassophobia

Thalassophobia, an intense fear of deep or open water, often triggers severe anxiety but remains largely overlooked. This study explores the impact of Abysssense , a serious game developed to raise awareness about thalassophobia through immersive gameplay. Built using the Game Development Life Cycle (GDLC), the game places players in an underwater setting where they act as divers collecting keycards to unlock chests that reveal informative content on the phobia. Thirty university students (aged 19–22) participated in the evaluation, which utilized the Learning Outcome Questionnaire (LOQ), Game Experience Questionnaire (GEQ), and System Usability Scale (SUS). Findings showed an improvement in knowledge, with LOQ post-test scores (M = 26.43, SD = 4.08) exceeding pre-test scores (M = 24.14, SD = 2.54), especially in areas of symptom recognition (100% accuracy) and coping strategies (96.66% accuracy). SUS results indicated high usability (average satisfaction between 3.66 and 4.06), while GEQ responses reflected strong engagement (Competence = 3.59, Immersion = 3.77) and low levels of negative emotions (2.32). Although the paired t-test revealed no statistically significant difference (p = 0.094), the effect size (Cohen’s d = 0.69) indicates meaningful practical outcomes. These results suggest that Abysssense successfully blends horror-based simulations with educational elements to promote awareness in a safe, interactive setting. The study highlights the promise of serious games as accessible tools for psychological learning and encourages future research on their long- term and therapeutic effectiveness in phobia treatment.