Are virtual reality serious video games more effective than web video games?

Abstract

Virtual Reality is widely used for many educational purposes. However, despite the increasing trend in the use of this technology, it is not yet clear whether it is more effective for learning than other technologies such as traditional computer video games. This paper presents a serious video game to learn Scrum, a methodology widely used in the software industry. The game is available in mobile Virtual Reality and Web (using WebGL) formats. Both versions of the game are compared in terms of knowledge acquisition and motivation enhancement through a robust empirical study involving 289 students and instruments such as pre-post tests and a questionnaire. The obtained results suggest that both formats of the game are useful for acquiring knowledge and promoting aspects such as fun, motivation, and engagement. The results also suggest, strikingly, that there is no difference in terms of learning effectiveness between the two versions of the game.