Video Game Lets Players Be Heart Surgeons for a Day
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Bossa(SAN FRANCISCO) — If you ever wanted to be a surgeon but were put off by the annoying requirement of medical school, a new video game lets you try your hand at heart surgery. No degree is required.
Developed by Bossa Studios Ltd., Surgeon Simulator 2013 lets players perform a heart transplant — normally a delicate and meticulous operation. In the game, though, players are not very likely to worry about their patient, named “Bob,” as much as they are to use a big saw to get his pesky heart out of his chest. (While the operation is a game, there is quite a bit of pixelated blood that might bother the squeamish.)
“We had a lot of fun just playing with the hand and making gestures,” said Tom Jackson, one of the game’s developers, in an email to ABC News. “We were pretty sure we had something fun. Although the online response in the last week has been completely overwhelming!”
The game was created as part of the San Francisco Global Game Jam, where teams had 48 hours to create and develop a game inspired by human heartbeats. The Bossa programmers got positive reviews. They are now talking about a full version of Surgeon Simulator next year, in which let players will be able to do brain surgery and dentistry. The developers are asking players to send back comments and reviews of the game.
“Golden rule is if it makes us giggle, we’ll put it in the game. And it’s worked out so far,” said game designer Luke Williams in a commentary.
Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio