Table 4.
Characteristics of included interventions in studies comparing serious gaming/gamification and traditional learning.
| Study | Intervention type | Intervention duration | Intervention frequency | Intervention intensity | Control |
| Adams et al 2012 [31] | First-person shooter, commercial-off the-shelf intervention | 6 weeks | Weekly | Mean of 5.7 (SD 1.3) hours | Box trainer |
| Boada et al 2015 [27] | Life support–simulation activities | Access for 1 week | —a | All did >50% of the tasks | Usual education |
| Boeker et al 2013 [20] | Electronic adventure game “Uro-Island” | Access for 1 week | — | — | Written script |
| Cook et al 2012 [22] | Platform for undergraduate life support education game | 2 weeks | — | Unlimited access | Usual learning |
| De Araujo et al 2016 [42] | Surgical commercial-off-the shelf intervention (SurgG) | Access for 3 weeks | — | Mean of 647 minutes per week | Usual learning (ContG) |
| Del Blanco et al 2017 [28] | Videogaming intervention | Access for 1 day | Once | Variable | Usual learning |
| Diehl et al 2017 [43] | “InsuOnline” game | Access for 21 days | — | Mean of 4 hours | Onsite learning activity |
| Foss et al 2014 [29] | “The Medication Game” online training | Access for 4.5 weeks | — | — | Standard education |
| Giannotti et al 2013 [30] | Nintendo Wii training | 4 weeks | 5 days per week | 60 minutes | Usual training |
| Graafland et al 2017 [18] | Game enhanced curriculum (Dr Game, Surgeon Trouble) | — | Two sessions | 30 minutes | Usual training |
| Hannig et al 2013 [21] | Skills-O-Mat interactive game | 60 minutes | Once | — | Teacher-catered workshop |
| Katz et al 2017 [35] | “OCT trainer” game where players work through the steps in liver transplant anesthesiology | 30 days | 81% self- reported playing 1-3 times per week | — | Usual training |
| Knight et al 2010 [23] | “Triage Trainer” computer game | 60 minutes | Once | — | Card-sorting exercise |
| Lagro et al 2014 [19] | Geriatrics game in which players must balance patient-oriented goals and preferences, appropriateness of medical care, and costs | 60-90 minutes | Once | — | Standard educational activity |
| LeFlore et al 2012 [37] | “Virtual Patient Trainer” game | 2-3 hours | Once | — | Traditional lecture |
| Li et al 2015 [45] | 3D cardiopulmonary resuscitation game | 3 months (with 2-week extension possible) | — | — | Reminders to refresh their skills sent frequently |
| Plerhoples et al 2011 [38] | Commercial off-the-shelf intervention | 10 minutes | Once | — | Standard educational activity |
| Rondon et al 2013 [44] | Computer game-based learning played as a group on a projector | 9 weeks | Once per week | 1 hour | Short scientific texts |
| Tan et al 2016 [41] | Videogame simulating blood transfusion–administration challenges and minigames | 30 minutes | Once | — | Usual education |
aNot available.