The role of serious games in the iManageCancer project

Within the iManageCancer project, two serious games were developed, one for adults and one for children and adolescents. The adult’s game was developed by the University of Bedfordshire (UK), the kid’s game by Promotion Software GmbH (Germany). The aim was to support adult and young cancer patients with serious games to manage the impact of the disease on their psychological status, such as negative emotions, anxiety or depression, and motivate them to stay positive and to participate in social life [Patterson and Garwick (1994) Ann Behav Med 16 131–142; Brennan et al. (2002) J Consul Clin Psychol 70 1075–1085; Robinson et al. (2007) J Pediatr Psychol 32 400–410]. Early demonstrators showed how important it is that players understand the meaning behind the game design. Improvements in the design of the games addressed that issue. Also, technical and use case issues were found that had a significant impact on the outcome. Both games interact with the iManageCancer platform, record game results and make them available for research. Two pilots are on the way and another evaluation cycle will follow.