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The Time Traveling Toxicologist: pilot data from a gamified approach to teaching medical toxicology
Maria Mosley-Colón1, Adam Blumenberg2
1Department of Emergency Medicine, Northwell Health, Huntington, NY, USA.
Introduction:
Toxicology is a critical yet often underemphasized component of medical curricula. We developed The Time Traveling Toxicologist, an interactive computer game designed to teach core toxicology principles.
Methods:
The gameplay consists of a point-and-click murder mystery in which the player sleuths for clues, reads and listens to brief toxicology lessons, and solves puzzles to prevent a fatal poisoning with decision-based branching logic and embedded feedback.
Results:
Between the release date (30 October 2024) and the conclusion of the observation period (21 October 2025), the game was downloaded 525 times. Of those, 449 users (85.5%) launched the game at least once. Among these 449 players, 349 (77.5%) successfully completed the full game by solving all in-game puzzles and reaching the narrative conclusion.
Discussion:
As a free digital educational resource, The Time Traveling Toxicologist is inherently accessible, allowing learners from diverse geographic and institutional backgrounds to engage without financial or logistical barriers. Online distribution enables rapid, wide-scale dissemination compared to traditional educational tools.
Conclusions:
The Time Traveling Toxicologist represents a novel attempt to deliver medical toxicology education through an interactive, story-driven digital game. The high levels of user engagement and completion, combined with positive subjective feedback, support its promise as an educational tool.
