Swiss company Helvetiq has launched Save Patient Zero, game’s project related to Covid 19, on Kickstarter. Hadi Barkat, CEO of the company, has answered our questions to explain this brand new concept.
The European Scientist : What is Save Patient Zero?
Hadi Barkat : Save Patient Zero is a team deduction game about 2 rival research labs racing to find the antidote. It focuses on the drug discovery part of pharma. Players will be researchers of competing labs, and they will have 10 lab tools at their disposal to assist them in finding the solution consisting of 3 molecules. The team who finds the antidote first wins.
T.ES. : What was the inspiration of / back story behind Save Patient Zero? Was it inspired because of Covid?
H.B. : Even though Save Patient Zero has become public rather recently, the game inventor Cédric Martinez started working on it since early 2019. Cédric’s idea was to create a game that will allow the players to save someone or something. He thought of a global pandemic without knowing about Covid-19’s arrival in the near future. We liked the game instantly when Save Patient Zero’s first prototype arrived at the HELVETIQ office in September 2019. When Covid actually hit Europe in early 2020, everyone in the team was surprised by the collision between reality and Cédric’s creativity.
T.E.S : What are people saying about Save Patient Zero?
H.B. : People have been supportive of the game. They have been liking different aspects like the interaction, the theme and the ease of play. In general, the feedback we received has been positive. During development, we invited people from pharma companies to play the game. They liked the idea of Save Patient Zero bringing science to everyone and making it accessible, but they also said lab researchers do not necessarily wear “space suits” in labs while doing research as illustrated on the game box — we agree!
T.E.S : What do you want to achieve with Save Patient Zero?
H.B. : Save Patient Zero is a fun and interactive game with a science-related theme. We want to bring it to the public for people to have fun while learning about something new and to spark their curiosity for something that is seemingly more complicated (science). At HELVETIQ, we are passionate about playing intelligently and learning in a fun and accessible way, and that has been exactly the goal of Save Patient Zero since the very beginning. Save Patient Zero is now on Kickstarter for the curious to discover. People can support the project by crowdfunding it and also by suggesting new lab tools for example! We will use the extra resources to develop an app that would make the game even more diverse.
T.E.S : Is the game based on scientific concepts ? Is it open to all or do you need to be medical student to play it ?
H.B. : The story of the game evolved from diagnostics to drug development in order to be scientifically realistic and correct. It’s still a game. It gives you the feeling of being a scientist but it’s not a serious game that teaches you science. It is open to all from the age of 8. No PhD required.
T.E.S : Do you think people want to play a game that related to the Covid pandemic ?
H.B. : This game was invented before Covid. During the pandemic, one of the most popular tabletop games has been Pandemic. We can well imagine that some might stay away from it, but a lot of people engage with it without hesitation. That’s what game testing has showed us.
T.E.S : You focused on treatment while everyone has been talking about a vaccine. Wouldn’t it been better to search for a vaccine in your game ?
H.B. : We wanted the game to work with molecules and that the players search for a solution of 3 molecules out of 25. This approach was validated by people working in pharma and so we went with it.
T.E.S : Between HCQ and Redemsivir, who wins?
H.B. : In our game, neither of them
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