Blue Marble’s Neurogames Seek to Aid Rehabilitation Through Play

One of E3’s most interesting, surprising, and generally feel-good booth was tucked away deep in South Hall. Away from all the hustle and bustle of the industry’s big-names and heavy-hitters was Blue Marble Games, a company specializing in using games as rehabilitation tools by tracking one’s cognitive health through play. They call them “NeuroGames.”

One of the games on the show floor, Hanger Hustle, tasks players with assembling aircrafts, testing one’s memory and identification abilities.

It works like this: The games are connected to a server that analyses data gathered through play, their mechanics built to test cerebral functions like memory, focus, or multitasking. In one of the games, for instance, during a berry collection mini-game, butterflies appear on-screen. Someone with brain damage may be more easily distracted by the fluttering insects, the game tracking the number of times the player touches them, using that data to help measure the extent of one’s health.

Blue Marble’s work has been funded through grants from government organizations, such as the National Institutes of Aging and even the US military, their games being used across the country for rehabilitation. Up until now, the company’s projects have remained exclusively in the hands of medical practitioners, as they’re made specifically with healthcare use in mind. But the company plans to release its games commercially now, showing off a few of their wares at the show.

An example of data collection through the company’s DeepOcean application.

The two I saw – Crystal Chompers and Hanger Hustle – were mini-games part of a bigger package named Reset. Both were played via touch screen, though Reset is available for home computers, according to Blue Marble’s Website. The former dealt with reflexes, the latter memorization.

Crystal Chompers sees players collecting crystal shards whilst fighting off large, serpent-like foes. The future-esque miner moves about the screen by tapping on crystals, fending off adversaries by tapping them, as well. The game tested players’ multitasking abilities, forcing them to move with lightning fast reflexes the further the game progressed.

Hanger Hustle tasks players with assembling as many airplanesas possible before time expires. Parts are delivered via truck, which when tapped, spills an assortment of components across the hanger’s floor. An outline shows which parts go on which plane, assigned by simply tapping the specified partand then touching the corresponding emplacement. Then it’s just a matter of giving the completed vehicles the proper paint job.

Zoezi Park hopes to help seniors prevent falls, a common injury for people around the age of 65.

Bothare fully featured and play like any other skill-based game, which is the reason Blue Marble uses games for medical rehabilitation: engagement. Any test could easily provide results on cognitive health. But games allow the patient to be entertained while being evaluated, making the process fun as opposed to dull. A win-win for everybody, so to speak.

Blue Marble has other projects in the works now – namely a fall prevention program for seniors called Zoezi Park – seeking crowd-funding. The game has received almost $4,000 to date, the company hoping to raise $500,000 to create a fully-fledged game for public release. Do consider donating if you have the cash. It’s a worthy cause, for certain.

Callum Rakestraw, NoobFeed (@Twitter)