Professors at the University of Central Florida have developed a videogame which they believe may help recovering alcoholics avoid behaviors which might lead them to a relapse. Guardian Angel is a game where players decide how to spend their time in a given day and then play mini-games relating to certain tasks. Examples are things like getting rid of all the bottles in the house or plotting a route that doesn’t pass a liquor store.
The patients the professors are working with seem to enjoy the game and have even offered feedback on how to refine it. The study group is limited to about forty patients from the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Charleston, South Carolina and research is ongoing, having been extended to June. If possible, the group would like to expand their study and possibly release the game to the internet.
Honestly, some of the concepts they have sound pretty cool. Casual game? Maybe, but it sounds a hell of a lot more fun than a lot of the crap that gets shoveled out towards that audience.
Video game helps alcoholics prevent relapse [Orlando Sentinel]
