Abstract
Realistic 3D virtual environments, such as existing city models, have the potential to be used in pervasive games as a passageway between physical and virtual. Smooth attention displacement and transitions between these two realities are largely unexplored in the context of pervasive gameplay. We conducted two field trials using a pervasive live action role playing game to study the effect moving between the virtual and the physical has on co-presence and memorability. Although differences in co-presence during gameplay were small, they highlight the subtleties in the social structuring of pervasive gameplay. Spatial similarity between the physical and virtual environments made the 3D virtual environments more memorable. We identify two important issues to consider in embedding virtual environments into pervasive games: structuring of social interactions and the spatial realism of the VEs.
Highlights
Pervasive games take advantage of physical urban infrastructure and latest technological advancements in creative ways to compose gameplay that expands what is considered traditional gaming [18, 33, 37].Virtual environments (VEs) that resemble physical environments are already being used in many existing games
We investigate the semantic linking of the VEs and the physical world by spatial similarity, where because of the lack of player experience items that are measurable in the field, we study changes in co-presence during gameplay and memorability in relation to the spatial similarity between virtual and physical spaces
The memorability of the spatially realistic scene compares to that of already established connection between the VE scenes with landmarks, recollecting details of the scene seems to be easier from a familiar scene with well-known landmarks
Summary
Pervasive games take advantage of physical urban infrastructure and latest technological advancements in creative ways to compose gameplay that expands what is considered traditional gaming [18, 33, 37].Virtual environments (VEs) that resemble physical environments are already being used in many existing games. Proportioned game scenes provide a direct link between the physical and the virtual world, which in turn enables direct visualization of player movements or other sensor data from physical locations This link between physical and virtual worlds comes into focus when designing games where VEs are embedded into the context of pervasive gameplay. Montola classifies the expansions into three categories: the spatial, temporal and social [37] These expansions can be considered to outline the context of gameplay, as pervasive games take place in physical space in realtime. Despite the strong conceptual connection to the physical environment, the current pervasive games are in addition mostly digital They take advantage of the ubiquitous computing infrastructure of modern cities. This situation where attention shifts between physical and virtual is the target of this study
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