From exergames to immersive virtual reality systems: serious games for supporting older adults

Interactive gaming systems have the potential to create enjoyable experiences by challenging older adults and transporting them into computer-generated virtual environments. The use of serious games to promote health among older adults has grown significantly over the last decade. There has been a diversity of specialized games for health with growing scientific evidence of its effectiveness in applications such as exercise promotion, physical rehabilitation, cognitive training, and different types of assessment. This chapter covers an overview of considerations regarding the design of serious games for older adults as well as evidence demonstrating their usefulness in both immersive (e.g., virtual reality) and nonimmersive (e.g., Wii, Kinect) contexts. We highlight the importance of designing for the target end-users through systematic multidisciplinary user-centered design methods to create games that are more aligned with older adult’s needs, interests, and capabilities. Several methods for evaluating the impact on players’ physical and cognitive performance as well as usability and game experience are presented. A case for adaptivity to support personalization for the gaming experience is proposed. The chapter concludes with challenges and future directions for this emerging and exciting field.