Abraham O, Thakur T, Brown R. (2020). Developing a theory-driven serious game to promote prescription opioid safety among adolescents: Mixed methods study. JMIR Serious Games 2020;8(3):e18207 https://games.jmir.org/2020/3/e18207 DOI: 10.2196/18207

This study aimed to develop a conceptual framework and design a serious game prototype to educate teenagers about prescription opioid safety. Serious games offer engagement activities through a narrative to educate users through role-play and practicing skills in real-life situations. First, researchers created an integrated conceptual framework that included health behavior and game development models. Then, the researchers went through the formal process of serious game development and created a game prototype: MEDSMART: Adventures in PharmaCity. The game prototype was assessed through group discussions, individual interviews, and questionnaires with adolescents after completing gameplay. The researchers analyzed the responses and identified themes. The game was tested with 319 adolescents and emerging young adults (ages 11 to 26 years old) in middle schools, high schools, and colleges in Wisconsin. Results suggested that the teens found the game objectives, outcomes, and design appealing. The participants also gave suggestions to add direction on gameplay, to provide clearer instructions and concise dialogue, and to resolve technical issues in the game. The preliminary feedback will be used to fine-tune the game and integrate learning analytics to track players’ in-game behaviors.