Game Application Research Articles

Who learns more: the impact of dual-player and single-player modes in a serious game on dental students’ factual knowledge

BackgroundThe use of serious games in medical education provides a bridge between rapidly developing technology and traditional health-care teaching. Building on a promising web-based serious game for reviewing and acquiring factual knowledge in dental education, the present study investigated the benefits of a dual-player mode and various game options for enhancing knowledge gain and study motivation.MethodsBefore the intervention, students’ dental knowledge and game experience were assessed using a pre-knowledge test and questionnaire-based self-assessment. Students in the clinical study phase (n = 57) were stratified based on prior knowledge and gender and then randomly assigned to two groups, with two player modes: single player (SP) and dual player (DP). In the SP group, each participant played alone, whereas in the DP group, the participants played against a previously determined peer. For a period of 4 weeks, the students were able to playfully acquire knowledge from the field of operative dentistry using METIS, a serious game application with three different game options (Marathon, Sprint, and Time). After the intervention phase, both groups completed a post-knowledge test. The usability of the serious game was evaluated with a self-assessment questionnaire.ResultsThe competitive game mode (DP mode; M = 8.92, SD = 1.85) resulted in an increase in the factual knowledge test that was a mean of 2.49 points higher than the SP mode (M = 5.89, SD = 2.19; p < 0.001). The DP group also found the game significantly more helpful for learning (p = 0.04) and engaged more with the teaching content because of the app (p = 0.04). Overall, the usability of METIS was rated as excellent, and students successfully improved their knowledge of dentistry after game play with both game modes (SP, DP, p < 0.001), with the game option “Marathon,” which involves playing the largest number of questions, being the most preferred.ConclusionsThese results suggest that serious games such as METIS are a suitable educational medium for increasing students’ knowledge and interest in the field, and that competition with peers provides even greater motivation to engage with the learning content.

On the impact of Open RAN Fronthaul Control in scenarios with XR Traffic

Through extensive research and standardization efforts, mobile networks have rapidly evolved, offering improved services and allowing the establishment of new use cases, such as autonomous vehicles, smart cities, Industry 4.0, among others. While 5G networks have brought advancements that can support a broad spectrum of such new use cases, the requirements imposed by time-critical services as the eXtended Reality (XR) and Cloud Gaming (CG) applications still remain a challenge. Next generation networks are envisioned to adopt technologies that will allow them to surpass such barriers. Open Radio Access Network (RAN), utilizing the disaggregation paradigm, stands out as a pivotal technology thanks to its potential to endow the network with flexibility, automation, and intelligence. In fact, Open RAN is considered as one of the key enabling technologies for XR and CG applications. However, disaggregation of the RAN may result in bottlenecks in the links connecting the various parts of the network, like the Open Fronthaul link, especially when considering time-critical traffic. In this paper, we perform an analysis of the impact that the Open Fronthaul capacity limitations can have in the XR and CG traffic under 3GPP defined scenarios. Moreover, to address these limitations, we implement and extend a Fronthaul Control mechanism combined with modulation compression, using the open-source ns-3 based 5G-LENA network simulator. Results showcase that the Open Fronthaul capacity limitation can drastically reduce the performance of the XR and CG applications, and demonstrate the necessity for such mechanisms to be employed in order to meet their requirements in terms of latency and throughput.

On the Pre-Perception of Gamification and Game-Based Learning in Higher Education Students: A Systematic Mapping Study

Background The fields of gamification and game-based learning are growing and changing quickly, with researchers investigating the use of gamification in education using various methods and in numerous case studies, however, no research investigates the significance pre-perception of higher education students has in gamification, game-based learning, and serious games studies. Objective We perform a systematic mapping to identify the gaps in our understanding on the effects of pre-perception in gamification, focusing on the under-researched area of gamification and game-based learning applications for higher education. Results We present three main findings: (1) Current research on the effects of higher education’s students' pre-perception of gamification and game-based learning are limited. (2) The limited available research indicates perception towards gamification and game-based learning in participants may impact on the effectiveness of game-based solutions, but more research is required to better understand the relationship. (3) A significant body of new research work is required to examine how student perception can affect the effectiveness of gamification and game-based learning solutions in higher education. Conclusion Our understanding of the effect pre-perception may have on the results reported by research on gamification applications for higher education is limited. We encourage more, non-empirical research, to be conducted around pre-perception, and more research that considers gamification and game-based learning applications for higher education.

The Influence of Image Media And Puzzle Games on Conceptual Understanding (Research on Social Studies Lesson (IPS) at Elementary School)

Conceptual understanding is a person's ability to understand what is taught, capture the meaning of what is learned, and utilize the contents of the material being studied, as well as solve problems related to the material being studied. This study aims to determine the effect of using picture and puzzle media on conceptual understanding in social studies lessons in elementary schools. This research method is Quasi Experimental Design, this research instrument uses a test to measure conceptual understanding. The sample in this study was 20 students of class VA as the control class and 20 students of class VC as the experimental class. Data analysis techniques used the Normality Test, Homogeneity Test and t-Test. The results of the study showed that the application of picture media and puzzle games on students' conceptual understanding in social studies learning was better and showed a significant effect than those who did not use learning media. This is evidenced by the results of the hypothesis test, namely to 2.03&gt; 1.90 for conceptual understanding. There is a difference between the control class and experimental class, the test results of the experimental class are greater than the control class. So it can be said that picture media and puzzle games can be used as an alternative in the learning process in the classroom.

EmPATHs - A serious board game to raise awareness and empathy towards vulnerable-to-exclusion groups in mobility

IntroductionSocial inequalities are a day-to-day problem experienced by the most vulnerable populations. In mobility, a basic human need, these inequalities can translate into lower accessibility to basic needs and social exclusion. The mobility barriers and needs of vulnerable-to-exclusion (v2e) groups have been documented in the literature, however, issues on accessibility, empathy and awareness strategies and people's attitudes remain. Serious games —fun teaching tools— have been successfully applied in urban/transport planning and have also been used to increase empathy and prosocial behavior. Despite the application of serious games in multiple fields pertinent to this study, the pressing mobility and accessibility issues faced by vulnerable populations have not been addressed in any serious game to date. This study focuses on creating and evaluating a serious board game (EmPATHs) to raise awareness and empathy towards v2e groups among various stakeholders while being fun at the same time. MethodIn this case, the goal of the game is to reach as many destinations as possible by playing different v2e personas. The winner of the game is the player who has reached the most destinations at the end with different v2e personas. EmPATHs targets university students from mobility-related programs, the general public, practitioners and decision makers from related fields. The game was created following a four-step iterative design process involving four categories of participants' groups, namely, frequent board game players (gamers) and experts on accessibility, mobility justice, and serious games. The game's evaluation was based on the answers of 26 players and focused on characteristics of serious games and the main goal of the game. The evaluation methodology included close-ended questions to assign a score from 1 to 5 to the established criteria and open-ended questions to complement with the quantitative results. Results & conclusionsThe participants considered EmPATHs to be a fun (4.4/5 score) and engaging (4.5/5 score) game, with a medium difficulty level (2.5/5 score) and which does not evoke frustrating feelings (2.0/5 score). The participants acknowledged learning more in-depth about barriers of v2e people (4.5/5 score) and recognized the game's capacity to raise awareness (4.5/5 score). They also felt more likely to empathize with v2e groups after the game (4.5/5 score). Future applications of the game can be expected to be in teaching contexts, public mobility-related events, and workshops with stakeholders from the planning and designing field.

Gamification for Studying Mathematics by E-Learning

The difficulties of studying mathematics in this digital age call for solutions that might boost student engagement and motivation. To make learning more dynamic and interesting, it is suggested that a gamification methodology that combines game simulation with gamification is applied. In order to enhance mathematics instruction using an online learning platform. A thorough grasp of the difficulties associated with studying mathematics. To complement the learning objectives for mathematics, the gamification design includes selecting question types, constructing game situations, and producing visual components. This research creates a gamification paradigm using the Quizizz gaming application. The research focuses on the case of IKPIA Perbanas Jakarta for mathematics courses, which has the primary objective of optimizing mathematical learning through the concept of gamification. The researcher used the Dick and Carey development model, which has 10 phases from requirement identification to assessment, to create this learning model. The implementation of the Quizizz application and the gamification approach in an online learning environment occurs at the development stage. Technical configuration, application testing, and modifications based on preliminary feedback are all part of the implementation process. The success of the gamification technique in raising students' motivation and comprehension of the mathematics content was then assessed. Researchers used this helpful gamification to determine suitable designs for delivering learning content. Gamification for mathematics education is also very practical. In education, gamification by Quizizz as an application for gamification only supports but cannot replace the position of teachers and books. Mathematical learning devices with gamification are effective because they have met the classification very well at 79.17% and 20.83%, respectively, at an accuracy rate of 95.83%. Research has limited problems related to being carried out only in the IKPIA Perbanas Jakarta environment, which has students in semester one who have the characteristics of technology generation with the application of gamification that is integrated into the e-learning of Perbanas. The value of this research is the use of gamification for students studying in higher education and integrated into the Learning Management System (LMS).

Gamification Attributes to Enhance Socio-Vocational Readiness Among People with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Developmental Disabilities: A Conceptual Paper

People with disabilities, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual developmental disabilities (IDD) may experience obstacles in social, communication, vocational, and behavioral skills that limit their participation. Video modeling (VM) entails demonstrating desired behaviors through video simulation. Its effectiveness in encouraging adaptive behaviors in work-related social activities has been demonstrated for ASD and IDD. Gamification is the application of game attributes to nongame situations. Within health care, education, and rehabilitation, gamification has included simulations of real-life events to engage clients and improve function. In this conceptual paper, we examined the link between gamification’s intrinsic attributes and the VM paradigm through examples of our evolving VM studies for individuals with ASD and IDD. The discussed interfaces demonstrate gamification attributes that likely contributed to their usability and effectiveness. This conceptual framework illustrated a new perspective concerning the effectiveness of VM paradigms. We encourage clinicians and technology developers to consider the value of incorporating gamification when designing VM interventions to enhance independence in the daily lives of vulnerable populations. Embracing gamified VM can promote engaging interventions, enhancing skill acquisition across diverse populations.

HEALTH EDUCATION: INFORMATION TO PREVENT ACCIDENTS WITH SCORPIONS

We aimed to describe an experience of developing and applying a Didactic Sequence (DS), which included an educational game designed to study scorpion sting prevention. We developed a didactic game titled "Journey against Scorpionism." The DS unfolded in three stages: firstly, we conducted a dialogued expository class to address the topic of scorpionism. In the second stage, we showcased specimens of scorpions to the students. The third stage involved the application of the didactic game. The project was implemented in five public schools in the city of Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, Brazil, involving both primary and secondary school students. Approximately 150 students took part in the activities, with an average of 30 students per class. We observed a keen interest among the students regarding the topic, with active participation as they shared stories related to scorpion stings or sought clarification on the subject. This engagement fostered a moment of significant interaction. When we presented the scorpions, there was a palpable enthusiasm for learning about the animal's biology. As the students engaged with the didactic game, we noted that it effectively reinforced the knowledge they had acquired. We believe that these educational initiatives have the potential to contribute to the prevention of scorpionism and, consequently, to reduce mortality resulting from such incidents.

Pengembangan Game Edukasi Digital Tema Seni dan Bahasa dengan Metode Multimedia Development Life Cycle

Education for early childhood, especially for PAUD TK-B in the age range of 4-6 years, is crucial in providing and shaping the foundation of children's knowledge. An engaging teaching method will enhance children's interest in learning, thus the need for digital learning media as an alternative. One step in implementing digital learning is through Educational Games. This research is conducted by developing the PAUD TK-B Nurussunnah Educational Game using the Multimedia Development Life Cycle (MDLC) method. The game's validation includes usability aspects such as effectiveness, satisfaction levels, and adaptation to the TK-B curriculum. After development, the educational game undergoes alpha and beta testing using the black box method. Beta testing involves evaluating usability for the efficiency and satisfaction of TK-B students, with an effectiveness rate of 98.94% and satisfaction rate of 88.57%. The interview results with expert teachers indicate that the educational game aligns with the curriculum at the educational unit level for PAUD. Thus, based on the research findings, the PAUD TK-B Educational Game application can be considered an alternative learning media for TK-B students.

Reinforcement Learning in Social Sciences: A Survey

Reinforcement Learning (RL) has become one of the most prominent topics in artificial intelligence research. It is widely used in various fields, such as recommendation systems, psychology, economics, and natural language dialogue systems. Finding the best path of action to maximize cumulative reward is the long-term strategy of RL. Undertaking research may yield suboptimal immediate results but optimal long-term consequences. Economists can address difficult behavioral problems with knowledge, especially those generated by deep learning algorithms. We provide the most recent advancements in RL methods in this study, along with their applications in gaming, finance, and economics. The survey's last section discusses RL's present problems and potential future developments. Such open problems as sample efficiency, safety, and interpretability are currently being sought after by researchers. Moreover, several ambitious prospective applications of RL in a wide variety of domains are discussed. This study gives a comprehensive review of the many methods and uses of RL in social science. This study's results will give researchers a standard against which to evaluate the utility and efficacy of frequently used RL. Guide future investigations across several domains.

SceneFusion: Room-Scale Environmental Fusion for Efficient Traveling Between Separate Virtual Environments.

Traveling between scenes has become a major requirement for navigation in numerous virtual reality (VR) social platforms and game applications, allowing users to efficiently explore multiple virtual environments (VEs). To facilitate scene transition, prevalent techniques such as instant teleportation and virtual portals have been extensively adopted. However, these techniques exhibit limitations when there is a need for frequent travel between separate VEs, particularly within indoor environments, resulting in low efficiency. In this article, we first analyze the design rationale for a novel navigation method supporting efficient travel between virtual indoor scenes. Based on the analysis, we introduce the SceneFusion technique that fuses separate virtual rooms into an integrated environment. SceneFusion enables users to perceive rich visual information from both rooms simultaneously, achieving high visual continuity and spatial awareness. While existing teleportation techniques passively transport users, SceneFusion allows users to actively access the fused environment using short-range locomotion techniques. User experiments confirmed that SceneFusion outperforms instant teleportation and virtual portal techniques in terms of efficiency, workload, and preference for both single-user exploration and multi-user collaboration tasks in separate VEs. Thus, SceneFusion presents an effective solution for seamless traveling between virtual indoor scenes.

3D Gamut Morphing for Non-Rectangular Multi-Projector Displays.

In a spatially augmented reality system, multiple projectors are tiled on a complex shaped surface to create a seamless display on it. This has several applications in visualization, gaming, education and entertainment. The main challenges in creating seamless and undistorted imagery on such complex shaped surfaces are geometric registration and color correction. Prior methods that provide solutions for the spatial color variation in multi-projector displays assume rectangular overlap regions across the projectors that is possible only on flat surfaces with extremely constrained projector placement. In this article, we present a novel and fully automated method for removing color variations in a multi-projector display on arbitrary shaped smooth surfaces using a general color gamut morphing algorithm that can handle any arbitrarily shaped overlap between the projectors and assures imperceptible color variations across the display surface.

Gamification in Higher Education: challenges and proposal for teachers of the Architecture Career

The aim of this research was to identify the main challenges that Architecture teachers face when integrating gamification into their teaching activities, with the intention of offering recommendations and strategies to improve their adaptability and effectiveness in the educational environment. A study involving 25 teachers from the Universidad Nacional de Chimborazo was carried out through purposive sampling. The results revealed challenges such as alignment of objectives and activities, adaptation of content and integration of feedback. A mixed non-experimental, cross-sectional cohort approach was adopted, using surveys with 21 closed-ended questions and a reliability coefficient of 0.720. These surveys, all non-parametric, allowed for a Spearman correlation analysis, which supported the effectiveness of gamification in stimulating interdisciplinarity, knowledge integration and competence development. This finding could motivate teachers to seek training in this area. As a result, the development of a didactic guide containing guidelines, platforms and usage guidelines for the effective application of gamification in the classroom is proposed.

Play to Resolve: Educational Games as a Pathway to Conflict Resolution for Early Learners

This study explores the role of educational games in developing conflict resolution skills among children aged 6 to 8, a critical period for social and emotional development. Utilizing a qualitative research design and an exploratory case study approach, the research was conducted in two educational institutions in X, Indonesia, involving 60 children from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. This diversity provided insights into how educational games affect children with varying levels of social experience and resource access. Data collection methods included observations, semi-structured interviews, and document analysis. Findings indicate that educational games significantly enhance conflict resolution skills by improving communication, empathy, teamwork, and self-regulation. Children demonstrated increased impulse control and thoughtful responses during game-related conflicts, as reported by teachers and parents. These improvements align with Vygotsky's theory of social development, highlighting the importance of structured play in cognitive and social growth. The study concludes that educational games offer a dynamic platform for practicing conflict resolution, thereby fostering children's social and emotional development. Recommendations for educators include integrating a variety of cooperative and role-playing games into curricula and conducting regular debriefing sessions to reinforce learning. This research underscores the broad applicability of educational games in diverse contexts, supporting their integration into educational settings to equip children with essential life skills.

Application of Interactive Games on Tourism Objects Based on Augmented Reality Gamification

The development of information technology is always growing rapidly, especially in the field of android smartphones. Android smartphones can now be obtained at a fairly affordable price. With rapid development, there are so many innovations that can be developed by the smartphone itself, even the tourism sector such as The Sila's Agroutourism can get the impact of several innovations that exist along with the times such as Augmented Reality. In this research, the author uses two augmented reality methods, namely Marker Based Tracker and also Markerless. Where Marker based tracker is a method that uses image illustrations in the form of QR codes or special logos to identify an object in the Augmented Reality application. While Markerless is a method that does not require a marker or image to display the object. So that this research produces an augmanted reality game using the marker-based tracker method and also markerless which takes the GPS tracker method as its markerless method. This test uses 3 tests, namely Blackbox testing, Response Time testing and also User Experience Questioner (UEQ). Where the UEQ results filled in by 35 respondents get results above average (Excelent). So that it shows that this game is good and as expected.

From Play to Concentration: The Effect of Digital Educational Games on Preschool Children’s Attention Skills

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of a digital educational game application on the attention skills of 5-6-year-old children. The research, planned with a quasi-experimental design and pre-test post-test control groups, measured children's attention skills using the ‘Concentration Test for Five-Year-Old Children’ (Frankfurter Test Für Funjahrige Konzentration–FTF-K). The study used the MentalUp application, a digital educational game designed to improve the attention skills of preschool children. Sixteen different types of mini-games supporting 13 different attention skills were included in the study. A total of 40 children aged 5-6 years were divided into two groups based on gender. The preschool children were instructed to complete the application in a quiet classroom environment following a pre-post-test design. The results indicated that the digital educational game application significantly improved the children's attention skills. While there was no significant change from pre- to post-test scores for the control group, the attention skills of the children in the experimental group were positively affected. The findings extend the current knowledge on attention skills in preschool children, highlighting the necessity of incorporating digital educational games into classroom practices to support attention skills at an early age. This study also provides valid evidence for the dissemination of digital educational games among preschool children.

Cops and robbers game and applications of its variant

Pursuit-evasion game is a game with a pursuer player and an evader player, it has numerous applications including artificial intelligence, robot motion planning and so on. The cops and robbers game is a type of pursuit-evasion game played on graphs, and its variant is a very fruitful research area in graph theory. The purpose of this paper is to find the specific relations between pursuit-evasion game applications and different types of variants of the cops and robbers game. The research method is to find variants with different game rules and winning strategies and classify them. Then compare these rules and strategies with the applications of pursuit-evasion games to find their relationships. The comparison result shows that there are many differences between the variants and the applications, which lead to their inability to be directly related. The application of the pursuit-evasion game is mainly based on route planning and object distance, and generally contains multiple variant types, which is different from the current research direction of variant.

New Approach to Personalizing Scenarios for a Single-Player 3D Soulslike Game

The results of an analysis of games in the Action/RPG genre and existing methods for personalizing their scenarios are presented, and the stages of developing a computer video game using methods for personalizing its scenarios are outlined. These include strengthening and weakening the player and opponents, as well as changing the environ­ment; approaches and technologies used to solve the problems of developing a system for gameplay personification of game scenarios and developing a software product are revealed. A description of the design stages by the authors of a Soulslike-style game application with the possibility of personalizing its scenarios, the results of functional testing and game performance in terms of the number of frames per second are presented.

Bibliometric and Visualization Insights: Understanding the Trend in the Application of Serious Games in Cultural Heritage

Serious games have become one of the most promising ways to display and disseminate cultural heritage. Institutions and scholars have become increasingly interested in developing serious games in cultural heritage in recent years, and relevant academic results have been outstanding. Still, a lack of comprehensive analysis of publications in this field exists. This study aims to analyze the current status and trends of the application of serious games in cultural heritage. This article adopts bibliometric methods through a strict screening process, identifies 156 relevant articles from the Web of Science database, and uses VOSviewer and Scimago Graphica tools to conduct a comprehensive analysis. The results of this study are expected to enrich the knowledge base of the research field, providing insights into the current landscape, research hotspots, and development trends of this interdisciplinary field and offering insights into future research directions.

Modeling Behavioral Dynamics in Digital Content Consumption: An Attention-Based Neural Point Process Approach with Applications in Video Games

Modeling Behavioral Dynamics in Digital Content Consumption: An Attention-Based Neural Point Process Approach with Applications in Video Games