Hochschule RheinMain: board game about mental load

In spring 2026, students from the Hochschule RheinMain in the degree programme presented their final projects – an analogue board game was also awarded.

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Kiara Karaj received the top grade for her bachelor’s thesis. The game she presented at the department’s exhibition is called “Mindfull”. She writes on the project homepage:

Mental Load is the never-ending to-do list in your head that keeps you constantly on edge. Often invisible and unequally distributed, it describes the mental and emotional work required to organise daily life, relationships and social interactions. People read as female, as well as other marginalised groups, bear this burden disproportionately.

Through the board game “mindfull” that I designed, this burden becomes visible and can be experienced in a playful way. The game shows where Mental Load arises and how different approaches and communication styles shape, reinforce or alleviate it. It provides a low-threshold access to a topic that is still taboo and invites you to think about responsibility and mental work more consciously and fairly.

Kiara Karaj

The Stadtmagazin Sensor reported on the game in April. The article states, among other things: “Kiara can well imagine using Mindfull in therapeutic groups. The playful approach might make it easier to talk about personal overload.” Interested parties can reach Karaj, among other places, on Instagram.