Zen cat: A meditation-based brain-computer interface game

Abstract

Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) are specialized systems that allow any person, including patients suffering from physical paralysis, to control applications using only their brain waves. Recently, BCI started to find applications outside of the medical field, as the development of consumer-grade BCI technology allowed the implementation of entertainment systems, which are more accessible for the general public, although there are still many challenges regarding the design and development of this kind of game. This work presents the development process and the evaluation of the Zen Cat software, a computer game application based on BCI interaction which incentives players to relax using neurofeedback. The game was developed using an iterative process, and evaluated for two weeks by sixteen volunteer subjects. The results of the evaluation may be of guidance for the development of future BCI-based games.