Dr. Sara: Disease Detective is a visual novel mobile game for both iOS and Android in which players step into the role of the world’s leading epidemiologist. Tasked with investigating and solving perplexing disease outbreaks in global hotspots, players experience a character-driven simulation of Epidemic Intelligence Service detective work.
In the game, players guide the brilliant Dr. Sara as she searches for the index case, connects disparate clues, confronts societal fear, and races against time. Combining elements of investigation, puzzle-solving, and narrative, the game offers a window into the high-stakes world of public health and disease control. Dr. Sara will be facing an entirely new global challenge in a new version of the game that will launch this summer.
Dr. Sara: Disease Detective was developed by Spencer Striker, PhD, Professor of Digital Media Design at Northwestern University | Qatar. His innovations span history, STEM, and media literacy—leveraging VR, mobile apps, web applications, and generative AI.
Among Professor Striker’s other projects are Chaos Crop: Troll Farm Simulator, a game-based exploration of digital literacy, disinformation campaigns, and civic engagement (Android phone, 2025), and Plague of Athens VR, an immersive historical learning experience in which players confront ethical dilemmas and uncertain outcomes that real people faced during a moment of crisis in ancient Athens (Meta Quest, 2024; Pico VR, STEAM VR, 2024).