Game design in virtual reality systems for stroke rehabilitation

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Game Design

Background:

• Post-stroke recovery often involves repetitive and tedious exercises.
• Engaging patients in rehabilitation is crucial for effective recovery.
• Home-based rehabilitation requires accessible and motivating tools.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a structured model for designing games for post-stroke rehabilitation.
• To leverage game design principles to enhance patient engagement and therapeutic outcomes.
• To facilitate the development of games for home-based, immersive rehabilitation settings.

Main Methods:

• Developed a game design model based on practical experience with developing games for a haptic and stereo vision immersive workbench.
• Focused on creating a library of games tailored for specific rehabilitation training tasks.
• Integrated entertainment and therapeutic benefits into the game design process.

Main Results:

• The proposed model facilitates the creation of rehabilitation games.
• Games designed using the model are both entertaining and therapeutically beneficial.
• The model supports the development of games for specific training tasks.

Conclusions:

• A structured game design model can improve the effectiveness of post-stroke rehabilitation.
• Immersive technologies combined with game design can offer engaging home-based therapy solutions.
• Further development and testing of games designed with this model are warranted.