It's helped me through 2 really rough weeks because of short play sessions of less than 1 hour and the rewards cycle that keeps me engaged.'Ī good search for Angela could be games with the following:įidget spinners burst into the hands of children a number of years ago. Currently playing Hades, which is hard on my hands but the adaptive difficulty ( God Mode) makes it playable. Lots of games work for me, depending on how bad of a flare! I am often weighing the value of distraction vs effect on symptoms. Things that are important are not having rapid button presses and flow/pacing of the game. One reader, Angela Hickman Newnham, who suffers from chronic pain and fibro, said: 'Video games are an important part of distraction from pain for me. We've also picked out some games that these searches return and provided them in this list below. You can use this as a starting point or create your own search from scratch on the game browser page of the database. We put these requirements together to create a custom search for Andrew, games with the following features: This means that games that let you save where you are without losing progress are another good aspect to consider. The unpredictability of his pain means that Andrew often needs to stop playing unexpectedly. This means that games that offer really clear mission guidance and navigation assistance are helpful to get him on his way. Not being able to think clearly or quickly.

Games like Lonely Mountains Downhill or Rhythm Doctor are good examples of this.Īndrew also described the symptom of 'fibro fog' as he described it. But also, he mentioned that games that offer softer and more continuous vibration can actually offer a welcome massaging experience. Games that use sudden and strong vibrations can cause Andrew pain and make it hard to keep playing. This also means that vibration is an important consideration. Also, games you can play with fewer buttons can be good. This means that games that offer button or keyboard remapping are a good place to start, as the inputs can be configured to suit his varying digit mobility. An increasing number of people with fibro use gaming for enjoyment and as a distraction to cope with and manage their pain.'Īndrew described one of his symptoms as fingers feeling like they were stuck together and being painful to move. As stated on its website, 'people with chronic pain conditions have often used distraction techniques as a diversion from their pain. We've worked with Fibromyalgia UK, and Andrew Hardy ([link andyhard圓60) who lives with Fibromyalgia, to identify some searches that return useful games for Fibromyalgia sufferers. We have been working with experts in many fields to help individuals identify games they can enjoy, and potentially even benefit from. Not only do you find yourself moving your body in time with the beat to get the right timing, but some of these games offer a fully active dance experience where motion and gestures are detected by controllers.įinding games to support and ease the challenges of illness, disorders and disabilities can be a time-consuming task. The Rhythm nature of these video games can also add an Active aspect to play. In these instances, hitting buttons in time with the beat offers additional effects or powered-up attacks. This adds another later to Platform, Adventure or Shooting games. The Rhythm interaction can be combined with all manner of other genres. Along with gamepads, specialised input devices (plastic instruments, dance mats and the like) enable a more creative interaction. Many rhythm games include multiplayer modes in which players compete for the highest score or cooperate as a simulated musical ensemble. Sometimes this is simply to make music in its own right, while at others it's to interact in others ways, often called Rhythm Action. To progress well you have to press buttons and interact in time with the music. Rhythm video games are played while listening to music or a drum beat of some kind. In this entry we are looking at Rhythm games. This is designed for people new to gaming, and aims to identify games with the least barriers. In this series, we are learning how different aspects of video games work by playing games that offer an easy introduction to this one concept.

Rhythm doctor custom level