On November 29th we launch our brand new update for Remedy Quest - a mobile game on virus infection and prevention.
This quirky strategy game has one goal - knockout virus variants to cure patients.
The Project
At Game Doctor we believe in the power of games and gamification to promote positive behaviours in players. Games provide unique environments where players can overcome challenges in a safe way, with outcomes based on their individual skillsets and goals.
There is one key distinction between games and gamification; Gamification is the application of game elements to non-game experiences (e.g badges, score, feedback loops), and games are fully interactive story driven environments with goals, levels and challenges.
To fully engage players with COVID-19 prevention, we aimed to develop an innovative game environment that would effectively visualize the public health information.
To achieve this, we secured Innovate UK funding to develop a mobile game for young people - Remedy Quest was designed as a casual strategy game where players prevent virus infection using immune system, vaccines and medicines.
In 2020 a prototype was piloted with 6000+ players in UK and US. This year we used the findings from the pilot to update and improve the game.
What's new?
For the update, we focused on the evolving nature of the pandemic. We were very interested in the research on variant evolution and on the importance of vaccines for virus prevention.
In the original prototype, we used one infinite level and one type of virus to test the game mechanics and learning materials.
To ensure that the update accurately represented the pandemic, we created 12 unique levels to represent different patients; each patient is experiencing a unique virus infection and is infected with different variants.
To show how variants act differently, we gave each variant a different infectious profile. Our most infectious variants move faster, infect faster and produce more 'children virus' when they multiply.
The vaccine remedy was also updated to better represent the impact on virus prevention.
The game experience and design has been updated to address feedback from players on usability, game balance and fun factor.
What's the goal for the update?
As a science driven company, the goal for the update is three fold: 1) Reach more players; 2) Collect more data; 3) Evidence impact of game on players' learning.
We will also continuously monitor player feedback to constantly improve the experience.
How to download the game?
You can download the Remedy Quest update from November 29th 2021 on Apple and Google Play.
Download from Apple here
Download from Google Play here
Game Doctor is a Glasgow-based company that develops meaningful games for education and behaviour change. Remedy Quest development was funded by Innovate UK as part of their emergency COVID-19 funding scheme.