Gaming Aspects Description Reward systems Score, Experience points, Item granting, Resources, Achievement system, Feedback messages, Plot animations and pictures, Unlocking mechanism Game settings Science fiction, Historical, Fantasy/ R788 Medieval/ Mythic, Modern Storylines War,

Heroic/ Saving humanity, Spy/ Secret agent, Adventurer, Authentic pharmacy-related plot Viewing perspectives 2D top-down, 2D side-scrolling, 3D first-person, 3D third-person Gaming styles Competitive, Cooperative, Collaborative Scenario for pharmacy- related serious game Scenario A (authentic simulation): This scenario is set in an authentic, modern day pharmacy workplace, with a drama plot. The goal of the game is to experience day-to-day operations of a pharmacy. Students will also manage contemporary, social and realistic issues such as drug addiction, haze and epidemics. In-game tasks will

include activities involving compounding, communication and pharmaceutical care management. Scenario B (post-apocalyptic fantasy): In post-apocalyptic 3050, a pandemic has turned the majority of humans into bloodthirsty vampires. To survive, the remaining humans have learnt to use herbs to produce synthetic blood, which Z-VAD-FMK can save the vampires’ craving for human blood. The goal of the game is to find a remedy to reverse the vampiric mutation and to save mankind. In-game tasks will include activities involving compounding, communication and pharmaceutical care management. Response rate was 72.7% (497/684 pharmacy undergraduates). The majority were females (62.1%). The most popular game reward

systems were unlocking mechanisms (25.7%) and experience points (20.7%); while the most popular storylines were an adventurer storyline (30.6%) and an authentic pharmacy-related plot (24.7%). Most students preferred fantasy/medieval/mythic (52.9%) and modern (24.5%) settings. However, lower year undergraduates preferred modern settings less (19.9% for years 1 and 2 versus 28.9% for years 3 and 4, p = 0.022). There were similar proportions of students who chose the different gaming styles (competitive 30.1%, cooperative 32.7% and collaborative 37.2%). The majority of respondents preferred a two-dimensional top-down viewing perspective (32.2%). Over half preferred a post-apocalyptic fantasy gaming scenario (57.9%). Males preferred aminophylline the post-apocalyptic scenario more than females (69.0% versus 50.7%, p < 0.001). This research has identified differences in gaming preferences of pharmacy undergraduate students based on gender and year of study. In general, pharmacy students prefer a combination of the following gaming aspects for a pharmacy-related serious game – a fantasy/medieval/mythic post-apocalyptic game setting, based on an adventurer storyline with an unlocking mechanism reward system. The game should be viewed from a two-dimensional top-down perspective and played in a collaborative style.