Overcoming the Barriers to Uptake

Abstract

Serious gaming for health benefits is moving out of the realm of being potentially interesting, and the authors are starting to see a growing maturity in the field. This study of six serious gaming projects based either wholly or partly in Denmark investigates the changes taking place in the healthcare area based on experiences with serious gaming projects, the likely development of the field, and the lessons which have been learned in the area of designing to overcome barriers which exist at various levels and throughout the delivery chain. This is done from the perspective of developers and service providers, primarily using interview and game analysis techniques. The results indicate a growing maturity amongst service providers in a number of key areas, such as understanding of the most appropriate uses of games, designing for usability, and a better understanding of the process of making a successful game for health. There is a clear expectation that games will continue to diversify and penetrate the health space, while at the same time many are looking to developments in the United States as a primary driver for uptake in Europe. There are high hopes for the mobile/app area, and a number of interesting cross-disciplinary initiatives are identified.