Yuqi Xu

Afterlight is a 2D serious game focusing on grief counselling, developed for postgraduate research in Serious Games and Virtual Reality. Created in collaboration with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, this interactive experience explores how abstract psychological metaphors of grief can be transformed into visual, colour-based in-game symbols.

Players navigate a monochrome world alongside a shadow companion, managing light energy and interacting with the environment through natural language input. Dynamic visual systems respond to players’ emotional tone, constructing a non-judgmental, safe space to process bereavement. This project investigates immersive, AI-assisted therapeutic game design, avoiding the ethical risks of digital human reconstruction while fostering a sense of companionship and social presence.