The Saltomachy War – A Metaverse Escape Room on the War Against Salt

Abstract

Excessive salt intake is a risk factor that leads to cardiovascular diseases. Public education on healthy eating habits and maintaining a healthy lifestyle can enable consumers to make better informed choices. This study developed a Metaverse Escape Room to increase public awareness on the “War Against Salt”. Known as “The Saltomachy War” (TSW), 29 participants played the game in teams to solve puzzles across five “worlds” (rooms) to “escape” the game. Median post-game knowledge quiz scores were significantly higher than the pre-game quiz scores (12/15 versus 9/15, p<0.001). All players agreed that the content in TSW was useful in daily life (100%). TSW was easy to navigate (93.1%) and majority were engaged and actively participated in gameplay (96.6%). The storyline was creative and interesting (93.1%). Almost all players liked TSW to be in their curriculum and would recommend TSW to friends and family (96.6% each).