The Effect of Prior Gaming Experience in Motor Imagery Training for Brain-Computer Interfaces: A Pilot Study

Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) are communication systems which translate brain activity into control commands in order to be used by computer systems. In recent years, BCIs had been used as an input method for video games and virtual environments mainly as research prototypes. However, BCI training requires long and repetitive trials resulting in user fatigue and low performance. Past research in BCI was mostly oriented around the signal processing layers neglecting the human aspect in the loop. In this paper, we are focusing at the effect that prior gaming experience has at the brain pattern modulation as an attempt to systematically identify all these elements that contribute to high BCI control. Based on current literature, we argue that experienced gamers could have better performance in BCI training due to enhanced sensorimotor learning derived from gaming. To achieve this a pilot study with 12 participants was conducted, undergoing 3 BCI training sessions, resulting in 36 EEG datasets. Results show that a strong gaming profile not only could possibly enhance the performance in BCI training through Motor-Imagery but it can also increase EEG rhythm activity.