Rhythmic serious games as an inclusive tool for music-based interventions

Technologies, such as mobile devices or sets of connected sensors, provide new and engaging opportunities to devise music-based interventions. Among the different technological options, serious games offer a valuable alternative. Serious games can engage multisensory processes, creating a rich, rewarding, and motivating rehabilitation setting. Moreover, they can be targeted to specific musical features, such as pitch production or synchronization to a beat. Because serious games are typically low cost and enjoy wide access, they are inclusive tools perfectly suited for remote at-home interventions using music in various patient populations and environments. The focus of this article is in particular on the use of rhythmic serious games for training auditory-motor synchronization. After reviewing the existing rhythmic games, initial evidence from a recent proof-of-concept study in Parkinson's disease is provided. It is shown that rhythmic video games using finger tapping can be used with success as an at-home protocol, and bring about beneficial effects on motor performance in patients. The use and benefits of rhythmic serious games can extend beyond the rehabilitation of patients with movement disorders, such as to neurodevelopmental disorders, including dyslexia and autism spectrum disorder.