Skip to main content

Why grown-ups are turning to stories and games made for teens in 2020

The Baby-Sitters Club main characters hugging
The Baby-Sitters Club, whose audiences include grown-ups, is just one of 11 titles that have appeared in Australia's weekly most popular top 10 titles on Netflix since March this year.()

Rachael works a job with a grown-up title by day. But after hours, she has started streaming PG-rated films to unwind.

"I've been watching She's The Man and Legally Blonde since coronavirus restrictions hit Australia," the 30-year-old project manager at an advertising firm in Melbourne says.

"It's like all the movies when you were in your teens that you used to plan to watch with your girlfriends and that was your 'big Friday night'.

"Except now it's trapping anyone you're isolating with to watch them with you."

Liza, a 27-year-old podcaster based in Sydney, has also been revisiting an old favourite — but in her case, it's a video game made for 16 to 24-year-olds.

"I've been playing The Sims non-stop," she says.

"In the game I can create my own happy world where I have endless funds and no virus. I always turn to it when my life is uncertain."

'A revival' for young adult stories

Liza and Rachael are not alone, industry experts say.

Droves of adult Australians have been turning to shows, books and games targeted at younger audiences since the start of the pandemic.

"Things like The Hunger Games have definitely had a revival during lockdown," says Angela Crocombe, manager of Readings Kids, an independent bookseller in Melbourne.

"There is always a proportion of adults who do read and like young adult fiction (YA).

"At the moment, they are looking for something a bit lighter, a little easier to read, and not as draining."

A screenshot showing animated characters from game The Sims having a pool party
“In the game I can create my own happy world where I have endless funds and no virus," one grown-up fan of young adult game The Sims told ABC Life.()

Liza's favourite game has attracted record high active player numbers in the financial quarter since April, according to its publisher — and more than 1.2 million Australians have turned to digital games for entertainment and social connection in recent months.

On our screens, YA stories are similarly booming.

The Baby-Sitters Club, Never Have I Ever, The Letter for The King and Kissing Booth 2 are just some of the 11 titles that have appeared in Australia's weekly most popular top 10 titles on Netflix since March, according to the streaming giant.

"While we don't ask subscribers for demographic info, it's reasonable to assume based on these titles featuring in these lists that adults are also watching," a Netflix spokesperson says.

'Like revisiting old friends'

So what's behind this return to YA stories?

Partly, it's the appeal of reminiscing about simpler times, according to Rhonda Andrews, senior psychologist and managing director at Barrington Centre, a national psychological organisation based in Melbourne.

Being transported back to easier times can feel soothing — particularly now, "when there's so many unknowns and so much daily bad news", she says.

Ally, a 26-year-old YouTuber from Melbourne, has been watching old shows including Glee and One Tree Hill during lockdown.

"It's less of a mental investment when I already know what happens," she says.

"It's like revisiting old friends."

Matthew, 32, has started reading YA fantasy novels and watching Buffy and Angel since Melbourne's restrictions tightened again.

"I just want to know what I'm getting into and not be surprised," he says.

'People are looking for happy endings'

As Liza hinted earlier, there's also appeal in immersing yourself in a pre-coronavirus world with a neat resolution at the end.

"Reading the teen stuff, playing the nostalgic games — people are looking for happy endings," adds Ms Andrews.

Ms Crocombe weighs in: "Most of YA actually does have a happy ending even if there's a lot of sadness in the middle. There's usually a happy resolution to it."

Another drawcard: These stories have a clear beginning and end.

"That is the anthesis of the pandemic at the moment, because it's just all this unknown, and it's got this absolute tail on it. Nobody knows what the future looks like," Ms Andrews says.

Watching a movie or reading a book with a clear end can give us back a sense of control, she suggests.

Nostalgic series pass 'the binge test'

For those adults revisiting the shows they loved as teens, there's more than nostalgia at play. There's an appeal to investing in a show knowing there's six or seven seasons ahead to enjoy.

"These days your favourite shows are seven-episode, one-season affairs that might not have a second season and definitely fail the binge test," explains Matthew.

"If you can binge a show in a single night then it's not a binge."

Buffy and Angel posing for a promotional picture
Teen shows such as Buffy, with seven seasons, appeal to some adult Australians' instinct to binge-watch nostalgic television series as the coronavirus restrictions wear on.()

Which is partly why he relaxes by popping on an episode of Angel — knowing there's a full five seasons to get through as Melbourne's stage coronavirus restrictions drag on.

"I can whack on an episode without having to trawl Netflix and be completely transported," he says.

"You can't put a price on that kind of feeling."

'Time-out for the brain'

The confusion, stress and uncertainty wrought by the pandemic has left many of us seeking easy-to-consume, light-hearted entertainment options.

"I think YA fiction has more of a focus on plot, and is easier to read," says Ms Crocombe.

"And I think everybody's looking for things that are easy to read and not too stressful."

Watching and reading YA stories "can be kind of a mindfulness activity" — because it allows us to be in the present and distracts us from the unknowns of the real world, according to Ms Andrews.

"It's about time-out for the brain, because the brain is getting bombarded with so many things to make decisions about right now," she says.

Getting lost in a good story can also boost the hormone oxytocin, which has long been associated with feelings of love, social connection and wellbeing, Ms Andrew adds.

"So it's no wonder people are seeking out those feelings right now.

"These are some good strategies for people to have. I'd really promote them. It's about being able to take your brain off the hook, so to speak, and just to enjoy the pleasure of it."

Posted