For the past four years, Constable Luke Southgate has patrolled Townsville streets in north Queensland responding to crime and violence.

After work, to relax, he plays the online video game Fortnite.

"I usually only play when my friends are online," Constable Southgate said.

"You squad up with four people and most of the time I'm playing with other police officers from work, so we also use it as a destressing tool."

The Townsville constable never imagined his gaming interests and professional life would one day collide.

"We were detailed to attend a mental health job," Constable Southgate said.

"We were having trouble talking to the young boy. He didn't want to talk much about what he was going through until I found out he was a Fornite player like myself."

Over a number of hours the pair discussed the finer points of the game, allowing the officer to get the boy the assistance he needed.

"I never thought I would use it while on the job, so it was good to see that it came in handy," he said.

Constable Southgate said he recently saw the boy again and he was pleased to see the connection they formed had really made a difference.

"He was pretty happy to see me again. I'm guessing he has a positive relationship with police now," he said.

"Hopefully, fingers crossed, if he does have incidents like that again, hopefully the attending officers can get him the help required on the day and he takes away a positive thing from it."

Managing mental health

After they heard about the incident, the gaming company sent Fortnite merchandise to the young boy via Constable Southgate. ( Supplied: Queensland Police Service )

Queensland police attend more than 54,000 mental health-related call-outs every year.

Townsville police mental health co-ordinator Senior Constable Regina Ernest said officers need skills to manage those situations related to mental illness.

"It's estimated about 897,000 people in Queensland are affected by mental health [issues] … from situation crisis all the way up to suicide and people with chronic conditions," she said.

All officers across the Queensland Police Service (QPS) receive vulnerable person training to better equip them with the skills to manage situations involving a mental health crisis.

"We also have crisis intervention response training for officers who have a vested interest in mental health and they can volunteer to do that course. We run it once a year," she said.

QPS does not have a position on the game Fortnite and advocates gaming in moderation, but Senior Constable Ernest has praised the officer for using lateral thinking to save a life.

"We encourage police to use different ways to deal with people in that situation, not using traditional police methods, and using a bit more compassion and thinking outside the box," she said.

Can a violent game provide healthy socialisation?

A survival computer game, Fortnite has become a worldwide phenomenon with its Hunger Games-style plot.

Dr Joann Lukins said there are dangers to gaming but it can provide a social outlet. ( ABC North Queensland: Nathalie Fernbach )

It is violent and has been criticised as being dangerously addictive.

North Queensland psychologist Dr Joann Lukins said gaming addiction is becoming a serious problem in the mental health space, but it can have some unexpected benefits too — providing a valuable social element.

"It is either a positive for some people or sparks fear into the hearts of parents of young children," Dr Lukins said.

"Obviously there can be some fraught dangers with that, particularly if it's unsupervised children, but certainly it's an opportunity for people to connect."