"Do you know chronic illness?" - The game Creating a Computer Game to Raise Awareness for Ehlers- Danlos Syndrome

Sammanfattning

In this thesis, we investigate how games can be used to raise awareness about livingwith a chronic illness, specifically Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS). We conducted aliterature review, followed by a survey and interview with people with EDS. Withthe gathered information, we developed a visual novel where the player controlsthe main character, who has EDS. In the game, the player has to make choiceswhile being careful with their health. Multiple rounds of user testing were donethroughout the development, and the feedback was analysed. After the final usertests, we found several game elements that seemed to contribute to the effectivenessof raising awareness for EDS. Among these were the accuracy of the portrayal ofEDS, the game asset quality, game mechanics and controls, variation in gameplay,and emotional experiences.