JMIR Serious Games reporting checklist and multimedia appendix: a final package check

A manuscript for *JMIR Serious Games* can be ready to read while its submission package is still scattered across several folders. The manuscript has its sections. A reporting checklist may need a separate upload. Screenshots, video, audio, or supporting data may belong in a multimedia appendix. The cover letter has its own job. A final pass should confirm that these pieces agree before the submission portal asks for them one at a time.

This guide answers one narrow question: what should an author check when assembling the reporting checklist and multimedia appendix for a JMIR Serious Games submission? The requirements below come from the current JMIR Publications instructions for authors, which apply across its journals; authors should also review any additional journal- or article-type-specific instructions before submitting.

Start with the JMIR Serious Games preparation page and compare the stored requirements with the current official instructions for the manuscript's article type.

Make the article type the first decision

The article type determines more than a label in the portal. It affects the manuscript structure and whether a reporting guideline applies. Before polishing filenames or building a supplement folder, confirm the intended article type in the current JMIR instructions.

For original research data articles, JMIR's general instructions describe an IMRD-based structure that includes the title, abstract, keywords, Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion, followed by end matter such as acknowledgments, funding, conflicts of interest, a data availability statement, author contributions, abbreviations, an optional multimedia appendix, and references.

That sequence is useful as a reconciliation list. It is not permission to insert a missing declaration from memory. Authors remain responsible for supplying accurate statements and deciding what applies to their study.

Use subheadings to make longer sections easier to navigate. Where the work allows it, matching Methods and Results subheadings can help a reader see which results correspond to which planned analyses or procedures. The wording and scientific organization remain the authors' responsibility; the preparation job is to make the approved structure visible and consistent.

Identify the reporting guideline before upload

JMIR's instructions require completed reporting checklists for certain study designs and article types. The examples in the current guidance include randomized trials, systematic reviews, and scoping reviews. The correct checklist depends on what the manuscript actually reports, so choose it from the study design and the journal's current instructions—not from a nearby paper or an old submission folder.

Build a simple three-way check:

1. Confirm the article type selected for submission.
2. Confirm which reporting guideline, if any, the current instructions require for that study design.
3. Confirm that the completed checklist points to the final manuscript rather than an earlier draft.

The third step catches a common packaging failure. A checklist can be complete yet stale: page numbers changed, headings moved, or a revision removed the passage named in an earlier response. Reopen the checklist beside the exact manuscript intended for upload and verify every location reference.

Do not use the checklist to invent details that are absent from the study record. If an item is not applicable or cannot be reported, the authors should decide how to address it truthfully. A preparation service can surface blanks and mismatches; it cannot determine the research answer.

Treat the checklist as part of the package

JMIR directs authors to upload completed reporting checklists in the multimedia appendix. That means the checklist must be managed as a submission file, not left as a private drafting aid.

Give the file a stable, descriptive name that identifies the guideline and its role without exposing personal or sensitive information. Then check that it opens cleanly, contains the intended completed version, and does not carry tracked changes, comments, or annotations that were meant only for the author team.

Keep superseded checklists outside the upload folder. Renaming three versions as “final,” “final2,” and “really-final” does not make the newest one easier to verify. A single upload folder containing only the approved files is safer than trying to choose among drafts inside the portal.

Build the multimedia appendix deliberately

JMIR describes a multimedia appendix as optional supplementary material and lists examples that can include supporting files, screenshots, video or audio, and original data files. Optional does not mean unstructured. Every included file should have a clear purpose, a manuscript reference where appropriate, and an author-approved final version.

Create an inventory before upload. For each supplementary item, record a plain-language label, the final filename, its purpose, and where the manuscript refers to it. Then reconcile the inventory against both the manuscript and the actual folder.

Useful questions include:

• Does every in-text mention of a multimedia appendix point to a file that exists?
• Does every file in the upload folder have a corresponding manuscript mention when the instructions or context require one?
• Are numbering and labels consistent across the manuscript, captions, and filenames?
• Do media files open and play from the upload folder?
• Have author teams removed accidental exports, hidden drafts, and files that are not intended for reviewers or publication?

Screenshots deserve a separate privacy pass. They should not expose participant details, email addresses, account identifiers, private messages, access tokens, or other information that does not belong in the publication package. The same caution applies to video, audio, and source data. Authors and their institutions must make the underlying ethics, consent, privacy, and sharing decisions.

Keep the manuscript and appendices in sync

Late edits often create the most confusing package errors. A supplementary item gets renumbered, but the manuscript reference does not. A new analysis changes the Methods headings, while the Results headings still follow the older plan. A reporting checklist still points to a page that disappeared after formatting.

After the content is frozen for submission, run one final pass in this order:

1. Open the exact manuscript file from the upload folder.
2. Read each mention of a reporting checklist or multimedia appendix.
3. Open the named file and confirm that its visible label and contents match the manuscript.
4. Check the reporting checklist's location references against the final pagination and headings.
5. Reopen media files on a clean device or application when practical.
6. Remove superseded files from the upload folder without deleting the team's working archive.

This sequence is deliberately repetitive. The goal is not to reread the study; it is to verify that the submission package points to itself correctly.

Do not forget the cover letter and end matter

JMIR's instructions also ask for a cover letter. Keep it in the same final-package review even though it is not part of the manuscript body or multimedia appendix. Confirm that it names the intended journal and article type and reflects the submission the editors will actually receive.

Then check the manuscript's end matter against the applicable instructions. For original research data articles, the general JMIR structure includes acknowledgments, funding, conflicts of interest, data availability, author contributions, abbreviations, any multimedia appendix, and references. Not every manuscript will use every optional element, but any included statement should be accurate, complete, and consistent with the portal entries.

Avoid copying declarations from another article or filling gaps with assumptions. Funding, conflicts, data availability, authorship, ethics, and related statements require author verification. Formatting can make those statements consistent; it cannot establish their truth.

Reopen the final package before entering the portal

Use a final seven-point check:

1. The journal and article type match the submission plan.
2. The manuscript follows the applicable structure and uses consistent section headings.
3. Any required reporting checklist is complete and references the final manuscript.
4. The checklist is included in the multimedia appendix as instructed.
5. Every supplementary file opens and matches its manuscript label or reference.
6. The cover letter and applicable end-matter statements are present and author-approved.
7. The upload folder contains only the intended final files.

JMIR's general instructions apply across its publications, while additional journal-specific requirements may also apply. Recheck the live source before submission, especially when an earlier draft or template has been in circulation for a while.

Prepare the package without changing the research

The cleanest final pass treats the manuscript, reporting checklist, cover letter, and multimedia appendix as one connected submission package. Each file should open, carry a clear role, and agree with the manuscript that reviewers will see.

Articlo formats author-provided manuscripts and checks them against stored journal requirements. It does not write or interpret research, choose reporting answers, verify scientific or medical claims, make ethics or data-sharing decisions, submit on an author's behalf, or guarantee acceptance. Authors remain responsible for the research content and submission decisions.

Run a free JMIR Serious Games readiness check or revisit the journal-specific preparation page before upload.