Game Engine Research Articles

Development of Innovative Forms and Methods in Physical Culture as a Means to Increase Student Motivation for an Active Lifestyle

The article presents an analysis of innovative forms and methods of physical education that would help increase the interest of students in leading an active lifestyle. Its goal is to demonstrate the results of research activities related to the latest and most relevant forms and methods of physical education, as well as to highlight their potential application in the practice of teachers to increase the level of student motivation. The study employed various scientific methods, including analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, comparison, and generalisation. Physical activity has been shown to have positive effects on the human body, in particular helping to maintain cardiovascular health, musculoskeletal health, weight control, increasing energy and vitality, reducing stress and improving mental health, increasing brain activity and reducing the risk of developing chronic diseases.The analysis of the source material on the topic of the study revealed that increasing motivation for physical education is a relevant but underdeveloped issue. To address this, we constructed a table that outlines innovative forms and methods of physical education and their impact on students’ motivation to lead an active lifestyle. We have identified several innovative forms and methods of physical education that could increase students’ motivation for a healthy lifestyle. These include the use of virtual reality (VR), sensory technologies, game technologies, interactive simulators, multimedia teaching methods, interactive applications for a healthy lifestyle, training with celebrities, online training, training using the wind tunnel, and excursions. The introduction of virtual reality elements, as presented at CES 2019 in Las Vegas, is an interesting development. We believe that empirical research into the detailed study of the practical component of innovative forms and methods of physical education, which would help to increase the motivation of students at different levels to adopt a healthy lifestyle, is promising.

The Application of Game Theory in Engineering Project Management

The coexistence of conflict of interest and cooperation are two of the most significant characteristics in the process of construction project management. To maximize their interests, all parties involve and restrict each other in the process of management, resulting in the phenomenon of information asymmetry between Party A and Party B, passive slacking of contractors, project quality defects, and project claims in the process of project management. By applying game theory to the construction of engineering projects, it can facilitate managers from all parties to choose better decisions, thereby further improving the level of engineering management and expanding their own profits. Starting from the basic concepts of game theory and engineering project management, this article focuses on three perspectives: project bidding stage, construction stage, and engineering claim stage. It analyzes the game between owners and contractors under incomplete information conditions and concludes that both parties should realize the sharing of information resources and strictly abide by the principle of engineering contract equality. Several suggestions related to engineering project management are also proposed.

Effectiveness of "Escape Room" Educational Technology in Nurses' Education: A Systematic Review.

Escape room games are educational gamification technologies that consist of introducing a team of players into a physical or digital space in search of clues to answer puzzles, riddles or enigmas and solve a mystery or problem. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of escape room games on the training of nursing students in an international context. A systematic review was carried out in MEDLINE, WOS, SCOPUS, CINAHL and LILACS databases using the MeSH terms "Education, Nursing" and "Educational Technology", and the free term "Escape room", combined with Boolean operators AND/OR. Intervention studies in Spanish, English and Portuguese were included, without limitation for the year of publication. Selection and critical appraisal were conducted by two independent reviewers. A total of n = 13 interventional studies were included (n = 2 Randomized Clinical Trials and n = 11 quasi-experimental design). Escape rooms are a recent and growing educational methodology, increasingly used in academia and in the training of nurses and nursing students. However, it is necessary to expand their use and the quality of the studies in a greater number of contexts. Furthermore, it is necessary to homogenize and standardize validated instruments to evaluate the effectiveness of escape rooms in the nursing education area.

FaceFolds: Meshed Radiance Manifolds for Efficient Volumetric Rendering of Dynamic Faces

3D rendering of dynamic face captures is a challenging problem, and it demands improvements on several fronts---photorealism, efficiency, compatibility, and configurability. We present a novel representation that enables high-quality volumetric rendering of an actor's dynamic facial performances with minimal compute and memory footprint. It runs natively on commodity graphics soft- and hardware, and allows for a graceful trade-off between quality and efficiency. Our method utilizes recent advances in neural rendering, particularly learning discrete radiance manifolds to sparsely sample the scene to model volumetric effects. We achieve efficient modeling by learning a single set of manifolds for the entire dynamic sequence, while implicitly modeling appearance changes as temporal canonical texture. We export a single layered mesh and view-independent RGBA texture video that is compatible with legacy graphics renderers without additional ML integration. We demonstrate our method by rendering dynamic face captures of real actors in a game engine, at comparable photorealism to state-of-the-art neural rendering techniques at previously unseen frame rates.

AFFORDABLE VIRTUAL REALITY HAPTIC-FEEDBACK SURGICAL SIMULATOR: A PROOF OF CONCEPT

INTRODUCTIONSimulation plays an important role in surgical education and the ability to perfect surgical performance. Simulation can be enhanced by adding various layers of realism to the experience. Haptic feedback enhances the simulation experience by providing tactile responses and virtual reality imagery provides an immersive experience and allows for greater appreciation of three-dimensional structures. In this study, we present a proof-of-concept haptic simulator to replicate key steps of a cervical laminoplasty procedure. The technology uses affordable components and is easily modifiable so that it can be used from novice through to expert level. Custom models can be easily added ensuring the simulator can be used in a wide range of orthopaedic applications from baseline education through to day of surgery pre-operative simulation.METHODWe used the Unity Game Engine, the 3D Systems “Touch” Haptic Feedback Device (HFD), and a Meta Quest VR headset. Our system uses a number of complex algorithms to track the shape and provide haptic feedback of a virtual bone model. This allows for simulation of various tools including a high-speed burr, Kerrison rongeur and intraoperative X-rays.RESULTSOur simulator replicates the tactile sensations of bone-burring tasks. Although we focused on the cervical laminoplasty procedure, the system can load data from CT scans, enabling the simulation of multiple other procedures. The parts cost of our system, $10,000 NZD, is a fraction of the cost of traditional surgical simulators.DISCUSSIONOur simulator reduces financial barriers to accessing orthopaedic simulators. Trainees can perform hands-on practice without compromising patient safety. The immersive nature of VR, combined with realistic haptic feedback, enables trainees to develop the dexterity and three-dimensional understanding of detailed bony work. Further refinements are needed before we can perform validation studies on our system.CONCLUSIONSWe present an affordable surgical simulator capable of simulating bony surgical procedures in a VR environment using haptic feedback technology and consumer-grade components.ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThis research was made possible by the generosity of the Wishbone Trust.

Animation in digital media

The article is devoted to the creation of animated works in the digital environment. Modern technologies develop new approaches to the formation of communication between the viewer and the work. Analysis of the new creation technologies for computer animation reveals that animation performed on game engines with the use of motion capture and computer graphics transforms the production process, with characters “animated” via digitizing of the actor’s movement. Actor's facial expressions and movements conveyed to the digital character depend on the actor's skill in portraying their character's personality. This develops limitations of creating animated plastic movement, exaggeration, hyperbolization, and conventionality, thus making animators look for new approaches to visual imagery, as well as opportunities to improve the means of artistic expression for the modern computer animation.

Automatic creation of personalised virtual construction safety training using digital twins

The construction industry faces persistent safety challenges, with many occupational accidents and fatalities. Virtual safety training methods often fall short in terms of realism. This article introduces a pioneering approach that exploits digital twins to create Virtual Training Environments (VTEs) tailored for construction safety. The Digital Twin for Construction Safety (DTCS) framework seamlessly integrates Building Information Modelling (BIM) models, schedules, resources, and hazard data into a prototype using the game engine Unity. It enables the generation of VTEs with minimal user interaction, empowering safety trainers to define personalised scenarios based on specific project parameters and training requirements tailored to the trainees’ needs. The evaluation of this approach through three distinct real-world projects and a case study with six trainees demonstrates its efficacy. Results indicate the DTCS framework’s ability to efficiently create VTEs independently of the project once a BIM model is available. Moreover, the framework provides meaningful feedback to the trainee by evaluating the performance using run-time data collection. The collected data promises use for several applications, but future research must validate its effectiveness. Beyond training, the study highlights the utility of VTEs in improving safety design and hazard mitigation strategies through data-driven insights.

Integrating gamification and gaming technologies into Ukrainian education: transforming the learning experience

Changes in the field of education in Ukraine are necessary for integration into the European space. The personality of the learner, pedagogy of partnership, and the constant need to motivate and engage students drive teachers to search for modern forms of work. Gaming technologies can be effective tools for stress relief, adapting to specific situations, and fostering relationships within a collective. The aim of this research is to examine and analyse the impact of gamification and gaming technologies on the educational process in Ukraine. This study employs both theoretical and empirical methods. The theoretical methods include analysis, synthesis, and generalization, while the empirical methods use comparison and description. The study analyses different scientific perspectives on gaming technologies and gamification in Ukrainian education, paying special attention to the implementation of relevant gaming forms of cooperation with students during the period of changes in Ukrainian education, particularly in the educational process. Research has shown that gamification and gaming can have a positive impact on the development of a learner's personality, motivation for learning, relationships within the student community, academic performance, and acquisition of necessary knowledge and skills for future development and career. The research results highlight the usefulness of incorporating gaming technologies in the educational process, particularly in the context of the digitization of Ukrainian education. The study shows the effectiveness of group cooperation, quests, quick quizzes, situation modelling, business games, and other teaching methods. The article provides evidence of qualitative improvements in the educational process within the Ukrainian education system. These changes are primarily driven by the need to cultivate a new type of personality that can develop essential skills and competencies for the future during their secondary education. Gaming technologies and gamification play a significant role in transforming learning by attracting learners' attention and motivating them to complete tasks.

An evaluation of intelligent and immersive digital applications in eliciting cognitive states in humans through the utilization of Emotiv Insight

The amalgamation of Virtual Reality (VR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) results in the development of many promising applications that are helpful for society in many aspects. This research was done to study the effect of immersive and non-immersive applications on user's psychological parameters. In this paper, an intelligent, interactive, and immersive digital application was designed, and the various psychological parameters of users while using the application were analyzed through the brain computer interactive device, Emotiv. The impact of these robust and immersive applications on the emotions of human beings was analyzed. According to the observations, the stress and relaxation levels are getting minimally affected, whereas the engagement levels are high for an immersive application rather than a non-immersive application. Hence, it can be concluded that immersive applications put users “in” the application environment and provide a near-realistic experience by blurring the line between the real and virtual worlds. Deeper immersion results from the increased sensation of presence, which in turn is helpful in increasing motivation and emotional investment.•This paper demonstrates the implementation of the A* algorithm within the Unity 3D Game Engine to develop an intelligent digital application, fostering interactivity and depth.•This paper explores the integration of VR technology to transform the digital application into an immersive and interactive experience, enhancing user engagement and realism.•This paper investigates the utilization of the Emotiv Insight device to analyze cognitive parameters within both non-immersive AI-based and immersive AI & VR-based applications, providing insights into user experiences.

Technology-enhanced learning in Pharmacology through non-linear storytelling

There is a growing body of literature highlighting the potential of game-based learning (GBL) in creating immersive, highly engaging, active learning experiences. Furthermore, advances in digital technology along with the demand for online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has brought digital GBL to the forefront of innovative teaching practice. Here, I share some of the digital GBL strategies we have developed to support our pharmacology teaching. In collab¬oration with our students, we have co-created a series of “choose your own adventure” style games using Twine; an open-source storytelling game engine. Importantly, we have shown that adoption of these GBL approaches is highly effective in promoting student engagement, subject understanding, and learning community. Furthermore, I also dis¬cuss how AI tools can allow educators with little knowledge or experience of game development to create unique and engaging learning experiences for their students.

The Use of a Virtual Reality System in the Rehabilitation of Children with Progressive Muscular Dystrophies

The research aim is to prove the effectiveness of individual programs of physical therapy and occupational therapy for children with progressive muscular dystrophy (PMD), which include game technologies of virtual reality. The following research methods were used in the work: general scientific (analysis, synthesis, synthesis of literature); clinical (clinical examination); pedagogical (observation, experiment); biomedical (development of motor functions), mathematical statistics. It has been proven that after the implementation of a synergistic rehabilitation program on the MFM scale positive changes were observed among children with dystrophic pathologies; according to the Vignos scale, no improvement in results was recorded; according to the Brooke scale - similar situation,among children with PMD Landusy-Dejerin, Emery-Dreyfus and unspecified form, the final results did not differ from the weekend, and among children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, born PMD and Erb-Roth PMD showed deterioration of parameters.

IMPROVING THINKING ABILITY BASED ON USING GAMES IN MATHEMATICS LESSONS

This article describes the methods of using game technology in subjects taught in special schools. Based on the use of game technologies in the teaching of mathematics, conclusions are given on improving the thinking ability of children with disabilities.

Is Native Naïve? Comparing Native Game Engines and WebXR as Immersive Analytics Development Platforms.

Native game engines have long been the 3-D development platform of choice for research in mixed and augmented reality. For this reason, they have also been adopted in many immersive visualization and immersive analytics systems and toolkits. However, with the rapid improvements of WebXR and related open technologies, this choice may not always be optimal for future visualization research. In this article, we investigate common assumptions about native game engines versus WebXR and find that while native engines still have an advantage in many areas, WebXR is rapidly catching up and is superior for many immersive analytics applications.

Psychological benefits of game practice in higher education settings: from stress to happiness

Introduction. Teaching/learning and professional work at higher educational establishments, being an intellectually and emotionally intense activity, provokes stress in teachers and students, which has a negative impact on their health: fear, anxiety, fatigue, irritability, and nervousness. Game practice is the most effective method to relieve emotional tension and activate the educational process within the framework of students’ and teachers’ successful cooperation through communication. The purpose of the article was to assess the influence of game practice on the psychological state of teachers and students at higher school, as well as the levels of stress and happiness. Materials and methods. The study involved 69 university teachers (89% women, 19% men) from 29 regions of Russia and 176 students (51% males, 49% females) in the first-year undergraduate course at Volgograd State Technical University (Russian Federation). The study was carried out using a Google Forms survey. Results. The present study did not find any significant relationship between the manifestation of stress and the use of the game practice in the teaching process at higher educational establishments, which proved to be an unexpected result, since the lecturers (49%) and students (56%) recognised that game practice reduced their stress levels. However, the analysis of the revealed results showed that most of the students were affected by academicrelated stress: 46% of the respondents had high stress level, 34% – moderate stress level, and 20% – mild stress level. The stress level in the teachers’ professional activity also revealed a high rate – 52% of the respondents answered that they experienced professional stress quite often. At the same time, psychological well-being within the framework of game technologies had the following indicators: 54% of the teachers felt quite happy, 29% – absolutely happy. As to the students, they reported a middling indicator of happiness (46%). Conclusion. Game practice is a modern learning tool used at higher educational establishments, which improves the psychological well-being of students and teachers and is an effective way to combat stress and achieve increased happiness level. However, a more profound study of this subject, along with the development of due methodological recommendations, can contribute to more effective integration of game practice into the educational process and enhance the well-being of both students and teachers.

Enhancing students’ motivation in studying mathematics disciplines: The effectiveness of applying contextual and gaming technologies

Introduction. Russian and international research investigations conducted on the problem of using game and contextual technologies in education have proven their effectiveness in obtaining certain knowledge, skills and abilities, as well as developing logical thinking. However, previous works have not suggested effective interactive game and contextual trainings that teach teamwork, improve communication skills and increase students’ interest in studying the subject. The aim of this article is to investigate the effectiveness of using contextual and game technologies in enhancing students’ motivation to studying mathematics disciplines. Materials and Methods. The research was conducted using the following methods: review and analysis of international and Russian scholarly literature on the research problem, tests, questionnaires, educational experiments. Results. The authors studied and analysed Russian and international scholarly literature and conducted theoretical and methodological research. The analysis of test results revealed that the knowledge obtained by means of contextual techniques and games contributes to enhancing motivation to studying mathematics disciplines. The analysis of the survey data showed that technologies are useful in learning, develop logical and analytical thinking, help to develop cognitive abilities, curiosity, attention and intelligence, as well as the ability to acquire knowledge independently. It is emphasized that practice-oriented tasks developed by the authors, aimed at integrating mathematical principles into real situations and problems in various fields of knowledge, facilitate the development of professional competences in future professionals. The authors note that the results of using the developed educational tools were tested in academic groups where the authors conducted practical classes. Conclusions. The article concludes about the effectiveness of using contextual and game learning techniques in developing logical and practice-oriented thinking and encouraging students to study mathematics disciplines.

Playing Tetris with Your Mind: A BCI-Controlled Gaming Experience

Brain-Computer Interface Controlled Tetris: Exploring Feasibility and User Experience. This project explores the feasibility and user experience of controlling a Tetris game using a Brain-Computer Interface (BCI). The BCI system utilizes non-invasive Electroencephalography (EEG) to detect P300 brainwaves generated by user focus on specific on-screen cues corresponding to desired game actions (left, right, rotate, drop).An ESP8266 microcontroller board, EEG sensor, and display are used to create a portable BCI system. Software development leverages open-source libraries for EEG signal processing, classification, and game engine control (onboard or external).The experiment evaluates BCI control performance through metrics like accuracy, speed, and Tetris completion rate. A control group playing traditional Tetris (if applicable) allows for comparison. Subjective user experience is assessed through questionnaires and surveys. The results are expected to demonstrate the feasibility of BCI- controlled Tetris using affordable hardware. Potential trade-offs between BCI control speed and traditional methods will be explored. User experience analysis will provide insights into the challenge, enjoyment, and future directions of BCI gaming. This project contributes to the growing field of BCI applications by demonstrating its potential for novel and mind-controlled gaming experiences. Keywords: Brain-Computer Interface, Electroencephalography, performance.

Neurogaming in Virtual Reality: A Review of Video Game Genres and Cognitive Impact

This work marks a significant advancement in the field of cognitive science and gaming technology. It offers an in-depth analysis of the effects of various video game genres on brainwave patterns and concentration levels in virtual reality (VR) settings. The study is groundbreaking in its approach, employing electroencephalograms (EEGs) to explore the neural correlates of gaming, thus bridging the gap between technology, psychology, and neuroscience. This review enriches the dialogue on the potential of video games as a therapeutic tool in mental health. The study’s findings illuminate the capacity of different game genres to elicit varied brainwave responses, paving the way for tailored video game therapies. This review contributes meaningfully to the state of the art by offering empirical insights into the interaction between gaming environments and brain activity, highlighting the potential applications in therapeutic settings, cognitive training, and educational tools. The findings are especially relevant for developing VR gaming content and therapeutic games, enhancing the understanding of cognitive processes, and aiding in mental healthcare strategies.

Enhancing Wave Function Collapse Algorithm for Procedural Map Generation Problem

In this study, the Improved Map Generation Algorithm (GHAO) method is presented to improve traditional methods in procedural map creation. Traditional procedural map generation techniques using noise generation exhibit shortcomings in the consistent composition of a real map with its uniformly distributed features. On the other hand, procedural map creation techniques that use wave function collapse require that some map pieces already exist to create a map. The observed disadvantages were eliminated by using a hybrid technique with the designed GHAO method. The developed algorithm is similar to real maps in terms of the distribution of map regions, does not need 3D model parts, and performs map creation operations without increasing the algorithm's time complexity. The evaluation of IMGA was carried out by coding the method into the Unity game engine.

Enhancing Resilience in Biometric Research: Generation of 3D Synthetic Face Data Using Advanced 3D Character Creation Techniques from High-Fidelity Video Games and Animation.

Biometric authentication plays a vital role in various everyday applications with increasing demands for reliability and security. However, the use of real biometric data for research raises privacy concerns and data scarcity issues. A promising approach using synthetic biometric data to address the resulting unbalanced representation and bias, as well as the limited availability of diverse datasets for the development and evaluation of biometric systems, has emerged. Methods for a parameterized generation of highly realistic synthetic data are emerging and the necessary quality metrics to prove that synthetic data can compare to real data are open research tasks. The generation of 3D synthetic face data using game engines' capabilities of generating varied realistic virtual characters is explored as a possible alternative for generating synthetic face data while maintaining reproducibility and ground truth, as opposed to other creation methods. While synthetic data offer several benefits, including improved resilience against data privacy concerns, the limitations and challenges associated with their usage are addressed. Our work shows concurrent behavior in comparing semi-synthetic data as a digital representation of a real identity with their real datasets. Despite slight asymmetrical performance in comparison with a larger database of real samples, a promising performance in face data authentication is shown, which lays the foundation for further investigations with digital avatars and the creation and analysis of fully synthetic data. Future directions for improving synthetic biometric data generation and their impact on advancing biometrics research are discussed.

PTVR - A software in Python to make virtual reality experiments easier to build and more reproducible.

Researchers increasingly use virtual reality (VR) to perform behavioral experiments, especially in vision science. These experiments are usually programmed directly in so-called game engines that are extremely powerful. However, this process is tricky and time-consuming as it requires solid knowledge of game engines. Consequently, the anticipated prohibitive effort discourages many researchers who want to engage in VR. This paper introduces the Perception Toolbox for Virtual Reality (PTVR) library, allowing visual perception studies in VR to be created using high-level Python script programming. A crucial consequence of using a script is that an experiment can be described by a single, easy-to-read piece of code, thus improving VR studies' transparency, reproducibility, and reusability. We built our library upon a seminal open-source library released in 2018 that we have considerably developed since then. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the PTVR software for the first time. We introduce the main objects and features of PTVR and some general concepts related to the three-dimensional (3D) world. This new library should dramatically reduce the difficulty of programming experiments in VR and elicit a whole new set of visual perception studies with high ecological validity.