GAMES:Life & Death

Now here's an original game called life and death where you play as a doctor working in a hospital who's specialized in abdominal problems. You'll have to check out patients who come into the hospital with problems and try to figure out what's wrong with them by looking at the simptons and examining them. If you diagnose it correctly you're ok but get it wrong and the patient might nog survive because of you!

You start the game by entering your name and going to the classroom where you will get some basic intructions and then you are directed by the nurse to your first patient. The first thing to do is check his or her medical chart to see what problems the patient has suffered which might give you some clues. You'll also have to check the patient's abdominal area and see where it hurts to get some information about the patient's condition. Based on both of these you will have to recommend a treatment ranging from simply keeping the patient for observation to a fullblown operation. Make the wrong choice and the patient might have to pay with their lives after which you are given instructions on what you did wrong and what you should have done. Apparently there's no penalty involved for you but remember this is this a game. You'll have to memorize the kind of simptons to look for in other patients to become better at diagnosing patients.

At the time of release this game was unique in it's kind as far as I know and I give credit to the developers for making such a game instead of the usual platformers or other standard games. I have never seen the manual so I don't know if it helps you identify simptons but without it you have to learn by trial and error. The ultimate goal is to complete the operating sequence which requires that you follow correct procedures like giving anesthetics BEFORE you start operating and stitching up after you are done. There was also a sequel made that focussed on the brain and that gave you the option of operating on someone who only had a simple headache, that's nasty! I doubt you'll be able to learn much from the game and it should not be viewed as realistic but if you play it I bet you'll think twice before going to a hospital so be warned before playing it. :)