Video Game Design Research Articles

Computer Game Design: A Code of Ethics

This paper examines ethical issues involved in the production of computer games. A review of the current literature available is conducted to understand the work that has been completed on this subject and to identify any areas that require more analysis. The learnings from this review are used to inform a code of ethics for computer game design, based on a number of key principles. This is then tested with a case study of a computer game in production to demonstrate its use.

Digging the Digital: Beat Modalities and the Representation of the Beats in Video Games

Ever since setting their foot on the social and cultural landscapes of the post-World War II realities, the Beats have been both the subject of and subject to pop-cultural representations and appropriations. While figurations of Beat sensibility in film, television, press and popular music have been well recognized and analyzed, an area which remains uninvestigated for Beat influences, perhaps due to its relatively short pop-cultural presence, is the one of video games. Recent years, which have marked the release of titles such as Fallout 4 (Bethesda Game Studios, 2015) and Life Is Strange (Square Enix, 2015), attest to a certain amount of interest invested in Beat mythos by both indie game developers and the biggest game studios in the world, thereby opening a new chapter in representing the Beats in visual media. By, on the one hand, mapping out the categories of Beat references in video game narratives and, on the other, setting them against the backdrop of existing models of (mis)appropriating the Beats in visual culture, I will seek to explore the ways in which video game designers venture into the Beat ethos and I wish to address the implications this bears for the lineage of Beat pop-cultural presence. The final part of the essay takes a closer look at Fallout 4, making references to such theoretical concepts as Derridean hauntology, Zygmunt Bauman’s retrotopia and Simon Reynolds’ retromania, to further demonstrate how complex and ambiguous Beat video-game figurations can be.

The Aesthetics of Human-Machine Interaction: Generative Textuality in Hello Games’s No Man’s Sky

ABSTRACT Generative design is the artistic practice where an artist uses external systems (rules, algorithms, organic processes) to complete an artwork. Commonly utilized in video game design, generative design suggests an aesthetics of human-machine interaction, as machine decision-making partially shapes the experience of the player. In generative games, then, the relationship between designer, system, and audience dynamically shapes the conception, production, and reception of the game as a text. The interaction between designer, system, and audience unfolds in three ways. Firstly, by applying generative methods, the designer is explicitly de-centered, instead creating an environment in which systems somewhat-autonomously interact with entities. Secondly, generative games frame players as both entities within the game-world and agents from outside of it. Thirdly, generative games produce unexpected or emergent outcomes. Emergence is a product of the tension between decisions made by designer, system, and player(s). In essence, generative games produce novel worlds into which players are thrown, forcing them to learn to dwell within them. As Gianni Vattimo argues in Art’s Claim to Truth, in such artworks where “the hermeneutic circle is conceived in more existentialist terms, the act of interpretation is dramatized” (85). Further analysis of the interpretive drama found in games which utilize generative methods, especially as these texts continue to pervade popular culture and daily life, can unpack theories of intentionality, presence, and creativity in modern digital contexts. To elaborate these theories, I examine generative methods found in Hello Games’s No Man’s Sky. In this game the relationship between designer, text, and player produces emergent narratives with each subjective experience of the text, suggesting that human-machine interaction is inherently processual and relational.

Building a virtual Roman city: teaching history through video game design

AbstractIn October of 2018, a pedagogical experiment was conducted at York University, Toronto, Canada, in which students were given an assignment. For this assignment they were to conduct research on a variety of Roman public buildings in groups, build digital reconstructions of them using the Unity 3D game engine, and present them to the class in the form of a virtual reality (VR) simulation. In doing so, students were able to create a virtual built environment based on their research, navigate it, and discuss the space with a sense of immersion and scale. Using this experiment as a case study, the goal of this article is twofold: firstly, to assess the pedagogical efficacy of constructionist approaches to teaching students about Roman architecture, specifically using VR and video game design technology. The second goal is to address the technical and pedagogical challenges of using game design software in the classroom and to propose ways in which this assignment can be improved in the future.

Perfunctory gamification in the world of second language learning

Abstract Gamification is a trend that is steadfastly increasing in popularity in several fields that involve learning. Several concepts borne out of this have recently been applied with the intent to facilitate second language learning. This is most notably visible in the form of apps and online teaching courses that take advantage of mechanics that are drawn directly from video game design principles. In the context of language learning, the incorporation of game mechanics can be used to construct effective systems of incentive and ultimately enrich the FL learning experience in various ways, potentially resulting in improved outcomes. However, the prevailing trend in the gamification of language learning apps is to rely on a Black Hat gamification mechanics. These are propagated without much reflection in manner that can only be described as perfunctory gamification. Nevertheless, the subpopulation of so-called hardcore gamers is not only unsusceptible to these techniques, but exhibits a strong aversion to them. As a result, hardcore gamers are for the most part functionally excluded from the pool of potential CALL app users. The present work outlines several potential solutions to the problem of perfunctory game design practices that alienate hardcore gamers. Chief among these is the proposal to actively work towards a paradigm shift from gamification towards game-based learning.

Collaborative Video Game Design as an Act of Social Justice

This research is about bringing social justice art education into classrooms through the medium of video games and exploring the ways in which video game design can be a learning tool that can make contributions to and engage in social justice work. Drawing from a case-study research project with a small group of middle school students, through the lens of critical pedagogy informed by recent work by Dipti Desai, this project examines how learning happens through dialogue and knowledge weaving. Findings have led me to consider the potential of this type of video game design as a site of resistance and transformation in art education.

The correlation between positive reviews, playtime, design and game mechanics in souls-like role-playing video games

The “Souls-like” role-playing video game genre was inadvertently created due to the influence of the “Souls franchise”. However, each game has different twists which can be new gameplay mechanics, graphical style, etc. while maintaining the core elements of the “Souls franchise”. The goal of this study is to understand which gameplay mechanics are more liked by comparing reviews of these games to each other. Thus, different game design elements and game mechanics are investigated in 21 “Souls-like” video games to see how the users reacted to them and whether they positively reviewed them. All (993,932) reviews were scraped from the Steam webpage regarding these games in the middle of April 2021 using the steam_reviews Python package. These reviews contain the playtime at review, whether a positive or negative rating is given, and a textual component among others. Overall, 11 various game design elements and game mechanics were set up for the investigation: the setting, graphical dimensions as well as style, level design, and whether there are difficulty settings, multiplayer features, upgradeable weapons/armor, equipment durability, in-game map, extra penalties upon death, and a classic level-up system. Based on data distributions, either the t-test or the Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon test was used for the analysis. The syuzhet package, which uses Natural Language Processing methods, was used in the statistical program package R along with the NRC Emotion Lexicon to evaluate the textual parts. According to the results, a slight-to-moderate correlation exists between positive reviews and the users’ playtimes: more playtimes mean a larger chance of having positive reviews. Significant differences also exist in the percentages of positive reviews among these games: Hollow Knight is the most liked game. Out of the investigated 11 factors, significant differences exist among all of them: drawn graphics (96.48%) and 2D style (95.61%) are the two most liked factors, while pixel graphics (87.11%) and a futuristic setting (86.74%) are the two least liked ones. Almost every factor can significantly affect all eight basic emotions (anger, anticipation, disgust, fear, joy, sadness, surprise, trust). The exceptions are graphical dimensions, weapon/armor upgradability, in-game map, and extra penalties upon character death as no significant differences exist in case of trust (p = 0.85), anger (p = 0.24), sadness (p = 0.21) and disgust (p = 0.095), respectively when the average sentiments per review were examined. Future “Souls-like” game design and development can be influenced by the results as game developers can more easily choose from the factors they want to implement or whether they want them at all in their games.

Governance on, with, behind, and beyond the Discord platform: a study of platform practices in an informal learning context

ABSTRACT Emerging scholarship has brought critical attention to the increasing influence of digital platform architectures on learning across disciplines and contexts. Allied with such scholarship, this study examines how the logics of social media platforms create the conditions for new formations of literacy to emerge at the intersection of digital capitalism and literacy expression. Examining data collected at the Giga-Games Camp (pseudonym), a series of video game design summer camps for adolescents, the author leverages topological methodology to show how Giga-Gamers’ literacy engagements with Discord, a social media platform popular among gamers, were articulated as the platform practice of governance. The author argues that unraveling the processes by which literacy is platformized within digital media ecologies can help educational researchers and practitioners better attend to the social, political, and economic substrates shaping learning and literacy in the platform era.

Only you can save the world (of videogames): Authoritarian agencies in the heroism of videogame design, play, and culture

Joseph Campbell’s classical monomyth claims to describe a universal human narrative: the hero’s journey. For decades, it has commanded a revered position in American literary theory, global media production, and the world of videogames. Although the monomyth is still one of the few recognized approaches to videogame writing, there have been few critical examinations of it as a dominant design paradigm. This article therefore interrogates the power dynamics of monomythic videogames, especially concerning authoritarian agencies in the ‘world savior’ model of many AAA titles. Understanding authoritarianism as an agentic modality of gameplay, the study uses an assemblage-based approach that encompasses the agencies of popular designs and their embedded ideologies; labor conditions of videogame production; gaming culture; political contexts; monomyth- and authoritarianism-saturated media landscapes; exertions of nonhuman actors and player’s subjectivities. To illustrate the patterns of authoritarian modalities in world-savior videogames, I conduct an analysis of Horizon Zero Dawn as an exemplary case study. Finally, I turn to gaming culture for evidence of the potentials that these videogames have to nourish authoritarian sensibilities, highlighting the parallel authoritarian agencies of heroic gameplay and harassment campaigns like GamerGate.

Models of Instructional Design in Gamification: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Gamification allows for the implementation of experiences that simulate the design of (video) games, giving individuals the opportunity to be the protagonists in them. Its inclusion in the educational environment responds to the need to adapt teaching–learning processes to the characteristics of homo videoludens, placing value once again on the role of playful action in the personal development of individuals. The interest that has arisen in studying the implications of gamification processes in the different educational stages, in order to determine their impact and suitability, has led to an increase in scientific publications. With the intention of studying the presence and implications of gamification in teacher training as a methodological principle implemented in the teaching–learning process, both in its initial and permanent stages, this systematic review of the literature identifies those instructional design models applied in the field of gamification, as well as its educational significance. Thus, the need to introduce gamified practices in the field of teacher training is observed, providing an experiential learning that allows teachers to apply this methodology in a relevant way in their professional development, based on their own experience.

Gamification in Education: A Study of Design-Based Learning in Operationalizing a Game Studio for Serious Games

The gamification of learning has proven educational benefits, especially in secondary education. Studies confirm the successful engagement of students with improved time on task, motivation and learning outcomes. At the same time, there remains little research on games and learning at the postsecondary level of education where traditional pedagogies remain the norm. Studies that have been conducted remain almost exclusively restricted to science programs, including medicine and engineering. Moreover, postsecondary subject-matter experts who have created their own gamified experiences often are forced to do so on an ad hoc basis either on their own, teaching themselves game engines, or with irregular support from experts in the field. But to ensure a well-designed, developed, and high-quality educational experience that leads to desired outcomes for a field, a sustainable infrastructure needs to be developed in institutions that have (or can partner with) others that have an established game design program. Moreover, such a design-based learning approach can be embedded within an existing studio model to help educate participants while producing an educational product. As such, this qualitative case study provides an example of the process of operationalizing a game design studio from pre-production through post-production, drawing from the design and development of the educational video game The Museum of the Lost VR (2022). The results, resources, and classification system presented are scalable and provide models for different sized institutions. Methods to develop a sustainable infrastructure are presented to ensure interdisciplinary partnerships across departments and institutions with game design programs to collaborate and create educational experiences that optimize user experience and learning outcomes.

Design and Production of Educational Video Games for the Inclusion of Deaf Children

This work presents the design and development of an educational video game, a product committed to the project "Model for the production of educational digital content for the inclusion of deaf people" attached to the national program financed by Colciencias - Colombia: "Educational and technological pedagogical architecture for teacher training in and for diversity”. The video game was made under the logic of applied and design research. It recognizes the importance of this resource as a didactic tool, which enhances and strengthens the learning process in deaf and hearing children, in the area of ​​natural sciences. Instructional design includes: topic, purpose, target audience, learning objectives, and competencies. For its planning, elaboration and development, the environment, the rules, the challenge and the genre of the game were taken into account, deriving the prototype in the Unity engine.

Probability disclosures are not enough: Reducing loot box reward complexity as a part of ethical video game design

Probability disclosures are not enough: Reducing loot box reward complexity as a part of ethical video game design

Design, development, and evaluation of a serious video game to promote visitors' engagement in a museum exhibition context

Museums have different challenges form a lack of funding and staff to a decrease in visitors. Due to the lack of interest from visitors, museums have created more enjoyable experiences for the public. The literature has shown that serious games are beneficial to visitors, as they can both encompasses entertainment and learning. On the other hand, this technology is mainly designed without the opportunity to allow for constant changes, resulting in a short life span. In this research, we propose the design and development of a serious video game for Caracol Museo de Ciencias, inspired by escape room game mechanics, which aims to promote visitors' engagement and to provide them with a different game experience every time they visit the museum, through the continuous updating of the game by museum staff with the help of a web authoring tool.

A Research-Based Approach to Game Writing Pedagogy

This paper discusses the importance of, and presents a possible framework for, phenomenological research of game industry practice to enhance pedagogy in computer game design (CGD) education. Built around examples from one such study on the practices of game industry writers, the author provides background for the study in question, outlines the theoretical framework of the research design, and presents an overview of the findings. A discussion of possible impacts and further applications in other subdisciplines of game development follows.

Infrastructures of Play: Labor, Materiality, and Videogame Education

Preparing students for the job market is not the limit of our responsibilities as videogame educators. We must also prepare them to be ethical actors within the industries they may join. This paper argues for augmenting player-centric videogame design education and game studies pedagogies with approaches that situate videogames in context as operational components of extractivist business models and the political and financial economies that support them. This approach entails teaching videogames as technical systems with complex and expansive upstream and downstream supports and impacts. These supports and impacts have real and frequently detrimental effects on the environment, communities, and individual human lives, and yet are relatively rarely discussed in the literature, especially in comparison to discussions that focus on representation and rhetoric. By looking beyond the frame of the individual videogame as an expressive artifact, educators can help learners to apprehend issues such as the growing material and environmental costs of computer-based entertainment and the many tiers of labor exploitation involved in producing videogames and the computing machinery that makes them possible, among other concerns. The paper concludes by suggesting that students equipped with these kinds of understandings will be able to make more informed ethical assessments, and thus wiser choices, as they percolate into the videogames industries and, in some cases, into positions of leadership.

What Children with Neuromotor Disabilities Need to Play with Technological Games

Game activity is fundamental for children’s cognitive and social development. During recent years, technology development has led to changes in several areas, including the ludic one. However, while in the literature, there are plenty of studies that report the importance of technology-based games in rehabilitation program, little attention has been paid to their role as pure entertainment. In contrast, the market does not provide videogames that are engaging, accessible, and inclusive. In this context, a survey was distributed to families who have a child with neuromotor limitations to investigate how these children deal with play, in particular with videogames, and what the requirements are for accessible and inclusive videogames. FightTheStroke distributed the questionnaire to families with a child with neuromotor impairments in April 2020. Fifty-six families responded to the survey. The answers revealed that children generally manifest positive feelings when playing with videogames, especially with cooperative ones, even if they are not fully accessible. The survey also collected user needs and suggestions from families about the design of videogames for neuromotor-impaired children. Guidelines derived from the survey are reported for the development of entertaining, inclusive, and accessible videogames, playable by children with neuromotor disabilities.

Supporting spatial orientation during route following through dynamic maps with off-screen landmark persistence

ABSTRACT We describe an exploratory investigation of a dynamic digital map, inspired by videogame design. Participants followed a novel route through an urban environment, using a custom map that presented directional information for off-screen landmark locations. Spatial orientation (pointing to remembered landmarks) in this group was compared to participants using a static version of the same custom map (without the directional cues) and an additional control group that used a static mobile map from the public domain. Participants using the dynamic map were most accurate in making egocentric orientation judgments, although groups did not appear to differ in their configural spatial knowledge. These data suggest that landmark persistence may help users to build more accurate on-line representations of their spatial orientation.

Integrating Drama Management into an Adventure Game

Often, video game designers must choose between creating a linear experience, and designing an open world with many different story lines that fail to form a tightly crafted narrative arc. A drama manager (DM) can provide a solution to this dilemma. ADM monitors an interactive experience, such as a computer game, and intervenes to shape the global experience so that it satisfies the author's expressive goals without decreasing a player's interactive agency. In this demo we present the first integration of declarative optimization-based drama management (DODM) into an adventure-style dungeon game called EMPath.

Serious Game Design and Clinical Improvement in Physical Rehabilitation: Systematic Review.

BackgroundSerious video games have now been used and assessed in clinical protocols, with several studies reporting patient improvement and engagement with this type of therapy. Even though some literature reviews have approached this topic from a game perspective and presented a broad overview of the types of video games that have been used in this context, there is still a need to better understand how different game characteristics and development strategies might impact and relate to clinical outcomes.ObjectiveThis review assessed the relationship between the characteristics of serious games (SGs) and their relationship with the clinical outcomes of studies that use this type of therapy in motor impairment rehabilitation of patients with stroke, multiple sclerosis, or cerebral palsy. The purpose was to take a closer look at video game design features described in the literature (game genre [GG], game nature [GN], and game development strategy [GDS]) and assess how they may contribute toward improving health outcomes. Additionally, this review attempted to bring together medical and game development perspectives to facilitate communication between clinicians and game developers, therefore easing the process of choosing the video games to be used for physical rehabilitation.MethodsWe analyzed the main features of SG design to obtain significant clinical outcomes when applied to physical rehabilitation of patients recovering from motor impairments resulting from stroke, multiple sclerosis, and cerebral palsy. We implemented a PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) database-adjusted electronic search strategy for the PubMed, IEEE Xplore, and Cochrane databases.ResultsWe screened 623 related papers from 2010-2021 and identified 12 that presented results compatible with our inclusion criteria. A total of 512 participants with stroke (8 studies, 417 participants), cerebral palsy (1 study, 8 participants), and multiple sclerosis (2 studies, 46 participants) were included; 1 study targeting the elderly (41 participants) was also included. All studies assessed motor, sensory, and functional functions, while some also measured general health outcomes. Interventions with games were used for upper-limb motor rehabilitation. Of the 12 studies, 8 presented significant improvements in at least one clinical measurement, of which 6 presented games from the casual GG, 1 combined the casual, simulation, and exergaming GGs, and 2 combined the sports and simulation GGs.ConclusionsOf the possible combinations of game design features (GG, GN, and GDS) described, custom-made casual games that resort to the first-person perspective, do not feature a visible player character, are played in single-player mode, and use nonimmersive virtual reality attain the best results in terms of positive clinical outcomes. In addition, the use of custom-made games versus commercial off-the-shelf games tends to give better clinical results, although the latter are perceived as more motivating and engaging.