26.5.2010 - Playmancer
PlayMancer is a Games for Health research project aiming at implementing an environment for serious games by augmenting existing 3D gaming engines. More specifically, the objectives of PlayMancer are: to construct a fit-to-purpose gaming environment, mainly augmenting the gaming experience with innovative ICT modes of interaction between the player and the game world;
1. to apply the principles of Universally Accessible Games into 3D-based games through the specification of I/O configuration;
2. to evaluate the proposed environment and gaming infrastructure by developing and testing a series of serious games modules as applied to two application domains.
3. to evaluate the proposed environment and gaming infrastructure by developing and testing a series of serious games modules as applied to two application domains.
Two Playmancer games have been developed: one for physical rehabilitation, and one for therapeutic support / lifestyle management programs for behavioral and addictive disorders, each with a different set of input devices.
The goal of the former, based on the Playmancer platform, is to provide a complementary therapy tool for the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for specific mental disorders, through automatic and computerized identification of the emotional state and expected behaviors of the patient when s/he is trying to accomplish the videogame tasks. In order to do so we will thus need to identify and correlate information coming from different sources, like voice, vital signals, face expressions etc, with target to deduct with a high accuracy as possible the emotional state of the patient.
By means of the latter Playmancer game, which makes use of a motion tracking system, bio-feedback and speech recognition for player’s input, we aim to improve the physical functioning of patients and associated maladaptive pain-related cognitions such as fear of movement. The physical functioning of patients with chronic pain is often due to the deconditioning and/or disuse syndrome of the painful muscle(s). According to cognitive-behavioural models, patients with chronic pain often develop a vicious circle of maladaptive pain-related cognitions (i.e. fear of movement) and coping strategies (i.e. avoiding physical activities) and physical disuse. The aim of gaming is to improve the physical condition of the patients on a motivating and attractive manner.
Read more on playmancer.eu
