Antidote, a mobile game developed in Jyväskylä, Finland by Psyon Games has been integrated to the content of Rokote.fi – the pharmaceutical company GSK’s vaccine awareness website. In Antidote, the player defends against attacking bacteria and viruses using the cells of the human immune system.
According to Olli Rundgren, CEO of Psyon Games, Antidote’s easy-to-understand game mechanics describe how adaptive immunity and vaccines work and may so prevent prejudices about vaccines. The game, which has been published for Android and iOS, has already received the approval of the World Health Organization WHO and the vaccine board of the Finnish parliament.
– If easily understandable information reached people, it would help to raise awareness among wider and more difficult target groups, such as young men, Rundgren says.
Vaccine awareness is necessary for public health
The unique co-operation between the small Finnish startup and the international pharmaceutical company to improve vaccine awareness is now more topical than ever. According to the World Health Organization WHO, this year over 41,000 European children and adults have been infected with measles.
– In Psyon Games we are concerned about the belittlement of science in society. Even the craziest unscientific ideas have received unprecedented support, Rundgren says.
The results are measured with data
During and with the co-operation, GSK and Psyon Games explore how to use the mobile game in raising vaccine awareness. At the same time, the companies have agreed on the goals set for the pilot project. The success can be objectively evaluated through the data collected during the project.
One of the investors of Psyon Games is the former Rovio (Angry Birds) marketing chief Peter Vesterbacka. Psyon Games’ game Trump Vs. Science was noted in Washington Post and Forbes. The company was selected this year on the list of the ten most interesting marketing technology startups in the Finnish marketing and communications magazine MarMai.
GSK is one of the world’s leading science-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies.