COVID-19 Gaming Platform

Education on infection prevention and control is extremely important during pandemics.

Our group carried out research in March that showed that the majority of young people feel invincible towards coronavirus and have poor understanding on how to treat it. Furthermore, over 10% reported anxieties associated with the pandemic.

To address this need, Game Doctor is developing a free mobile game to educate and reduce anxiety on coronavirus. The game will focus on vaccine and drug development against coronavirus and virus transmission. The game is being designed in collaboration with scientists and young people in the U.K.

In addition, the game will include backend analytics to measure player knowledge and behaviours towards coronavirus and vaccination.

We have received Innovate UK funding to develop the beta version of the game, due for release in September 2020.

Multiple waves of infection transmission are anticipated for COVID-19 before suitable vaccines are developed. To flatten the curve and reduce deaths, governments have released guidance for general public focused on social distancing and hygiene behaviours. However, a standardised strategy to educate young people has not been established.

Our pilot research in March indicated that young people feel invincible against coronavirus, with only 17% of participants believing they will catch coronavirus and 35% believing they would catch it, but it would not make them ill. Furthermore 38% compared coronavirus to catching the common cold or flu, and 51% did not believe a vaccine was necessary to combat the pandemic.

Additionally, over 20% reported concerns over "when it would be over" and "what happens if I spread it to my grandmother" and anxieties over when a cure would be developed.

To this end, there is an urgent need to develop accessible resources for young people to ensure that government guidance is followed, and anxiety is alleviated, minimizing impact to mental health.

This resource is required for when schools return so that educators have an accurate resource to teach students about COVID-19, but also reduce their worries and concerns about the future.

To address this need, we will develop a mobile game on COVID-19. The target audience will be ages 8-16 as age 7 is typically when children own a personal device (Childwise, 2020). 

The game is played in the style of a citizen science game and is focused on vaccine and drug development. Players will research and level up drugs and vaccines to combat coronavirus infection in an abstract lung environment.
The game will be developed by developers and scientists and link to research. Through gamification we aim to empower young people to adhere to guidance; our platform will help fill a gap that exists with the younger population.

To ensure the game suits this wide target audience, the game mechanics will be simple to understand and we will include content that will motivate older students to do further research (Low threshold/high ceiling).

The game will be developed on Unity for iOS and Android devices, and will include backend analytics to measure player usage, demographics, knowledge and game behaviours.

Game will be disseminated via media channels and Times Education Supplement, for use in schools post-lockdown.

This game will be a valuable resource for young people who are experiencing anxiety over current pandemic.

We are working with schools and STEM groups across the UK to design and develop the game. All groups and schools will be accredited in the game.

We carried out user research in June with 300 students across England and Scotland to understand knowledge gaps, experiences and behaviours towards coronavirus. This data informed the design of the basic game concept.

We will be testing game prototypes with students throughout development. The final game will be targeted to our target audience.

To disseminate the game, we are working with the Times Education Supplement and partner schools. We are also in discussions with a game publisher who works in this area.

Other benefits:

This project will provide immediate benefits to society via reduced transmission of COVID-19. Data obtained from application will support work at Public Health Scotland. We can also support NHS's recent initiative to combat fake news and misinformation in healthcare/COVID-19.

By providing an application on the most commonly used platform, the mobile device, we can reach the majority of the population ensuring widespread coverage in areas that may otherwise be difficult to reach.

We are currently experiencing a global pandemic with COVID-19.

There is a significant lack of resources for young people to educate them on the pandemic and reduce anxiety. The mass media is not helpful for young people, as evidenced by our June research.

This resource will help young people understand the COVID-19 pandemic and provide positivity around vaccine and drug research that is on-going.

This resource can be used for future pandemics if required, and also for education on vaccination throughout the pandemic.