Abstract

Since the outbreak of the highly infectious coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), a lot ofemphasis has been put on preventing the spread of the virus. Citizens were informedabout how the virus spreads and how they should behave to prevent a further increaseof infections. But, not everyone paid enough attention or was interested in followingthe guidelines, as the infection numbers are still not decreasing as of May 2021. Thegame "Germ Piano" was developed to raise the awareness of touch-based infectionsand playfully emphasize the importance of handwashing. The game uses a Kinectcamera to augment the player’s environment and lets them experience how easilygerms can spread in their everyday life. The goal of the player is to replicate tunesby touching specific areas of the table in front of them and scoring as many pointsas possible. The system recognizes the player’s hands and tracks when and wherethey come into contact with the surface below them. The educational aspect of thegame lies in the fact that the table is contaminated with invisible germs, and theplayer needs to avoid spreading them while doing the task, or they will receive apoint penalty at the end. By playing this game, a person should learn about howgerms can spread without their notice, and what crucial role proper handwashingplays in counteracting the spread. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, an online surveywas conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of "Germ Piano" in improving the germawareness of the player. The participants could experience the game by watchingvarious clips, answer questions on when the player in the video gets infected, andgive their feedback on the game. The results showed that the game has only a minoreducational effect and entertainment factor, but the used evaluation method does notwell with the developed game, and further in-person playtesting sessions should beconducted for evaluation.

Results/Implementation/Project Description

Conclusion

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