Exploring the Impact of Serious Games for Cognitive Functions through the Humphrey Fellowship Programme

The use of serious games as digital medicine started in recent years as the United States Food and Drug Administration granted Class 1 or 2 device clearance to serious games or game-like technologies. This encouraging trend motivates interdisciplinary cooperation between experts in the medical sciences and the game industry because the Northern American pharmaceutical revenues have exceeded USD1 trillion globally since 2014. The potential of this lucrative business opportunity may attract fund providers and venture capitalists to support game-related research and development projects. The author elaborates his activities and experiences in the United States in FY2017/2018 as a Humphrey fellow from Malaysia. Specifically, the research and development trend of serious games for cognitive function in the academic and the game industry has positive impact on how medical doctors and practitioners in low- and middle-income countries may use or develop games as digital medicine.