Analyzing the Potential of a Roguelike Deckbuilder Serious Game to Improve Brazilian Sign Language Vocabulary

Abstract

Beyond 400 million people in the world have moderate or complete hearing loss and typically communicate with sign language. Learning sign language can be challenging due to the lack of easily accessible learning materials and only a few people know their country's sign language. We present Roguelibras, a Roguelike Deckbuilder serious game that uses the genre's mechanics and gameplay as a mean to learn sign language and can be played even on low-end computers, aiding its use in developing countries. We tested the game with 29 hearing participants, using pre- and post-test questionnaires asking about the meaning of 9 different signs. According to a 5-point Likert scale question, the majority stated they enjoyed the game, while their score significantly improved when comparing knowledge of the signs before and after playing. This shows the potential of the game as an entertaining alternative to help learn sign language.