Advanced HCI Games

1
Advanced HCIGames

• This lecture explores theories which seek to
  explain why people enjoy games. We highlight Flow
  Theory which can be used to explain involvement
  in many absorbing tasks, not just games.
• Three recent developments are examined against
  this theoretical background
• EverQuest,
• There,
• Uncle Roy All around You

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Play vs Work

• Traditionally, HCI concerned with workplace
• System is valuable if useful and usable
• Work-based systems
• solutions to frequently encountered problems
• provide more efficient and effective ways to deal
  with problems
• easy to understand and operate
• can be evaluated usability methods
• Play-based systems
• not a solution to a problem
• aim is attraction, excitement, engagement, fun,
  challenge
• difficulty in learning or operation may be part
  of fun/challenge
• harder to evaluate

3
Map of Human-Computer Interaction
Use and Context
Many of these issues can be viewed from a games
perspective.Which issues are important?
Human-Machine Fit and Adaptation
Social Organization (and Work)
Application Areas
Human
Computer
Computer
Dialogue
Graphics
Techniques
Human
Information
A a
Processing
Dialogue
Dialogue
Language,
Architecture
Genre
Input and Output Devices
Communication
Ergonomics
and Interaction
Example Systems
Evaluation
Implementation
and Case Studies
Techniques
Techniques and Tools
Design
Approaches
Development Process
From Saul Greenberg CPSC 481Human Computer
Interaction I Principles and Design
http//pages.cpsc.ucalgary.ca/saul/481/
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Factors in Games Design

• Realism
• Simulation
• Representation
• Playability
• Narrative/story telling
• Conflict
• Interaction
• Would you play a game if you didnt enjoy it?
• What makes a game enjoyable?

ENJOYMENT?
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Media Enjoyment

• Many theories to explain enjoyment
• Disposition Theory
• Positive/negative attitudes towards characters
• Empathy for characters
• Attitude
• Affected by previous experience
• Transportation Theory
• Immersion in a narrative world
• Melding of attention, imagery feelings
• Cognition
• Making judgements e.g. characters ethics,
  interest, intelligence etc.
• Parasocial Interaction
• Involvement with a character (thinking about
  character, imagining their life etc)
• Flow
• Ability to concentrate on a task

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A Universal Theory

• Many theories have narrow focus on one aspect
• Flow Theory (Csiksentmihalyi, 1990)
• broad, applicable to many situations/media
• What makes experiences enjoyable? (not just
  games)
• Very large sample (thousands) over 12 years
• People who spend large amount of time effort on
  difficult but unrewarding activities
• Composers, chess players, rock climbers
• Later survey of what ordinary people did for
  enjoyment

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Flow Theory

• A task that can be completed
• Ability to concentrate on the task
• Concentration is possible because
• task has clear goals
• Provides immediate feedback
• Ability to exercise a sense of control over
  actions
• A deep, but effortless, involvement
• Removes awaraeness of everyday frustrations
• Concern for self disappears
• But sense of self emerges stronger afterwards
• Sense of duration of time is altered

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GameFlow (Sweetser Wyeth, 2005)

• Flow Theory applied to games
• Concentration
• Game should require concentration
• Player should be able to concentrate on game
• Challenge
• Game sufficiently challenging and matched to
  players skill level
• Player skills
• Game must support player skill development and
  mastery
• Control
• Players should feel a sense of control over their
  actions in the game
• Clear goals
• Feedback
• Immersion
• Deep but effortless involvement in game
• Social interaction
• Games should support create opportunities for
  social interaction

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Flow in Games

• Presence of 8 elements does not mean everybody
  experiences flow in same way
• Some may enjoy the challenge
• Others may enjoy the social interaction
• Others may enjoy just the feeling of immersion
  (forget work, personal problems etc.)
• Disposition towards one particular element may
  explain differences in game genres, gaming
  behaviour etc.
• Online Multi-user games
• Sociability
• Ubiquity (games outside the box)

10
EverQuest

• 3D fantasy massively multiplayer online
  role-playing game (MMORPG) released March 1999.
• To play buy software plus monthly fee
• free trial to experience before paying
• Players explore fantasy world of sword and
  sorcery,
• fighting monsters and enemies
• for treasure and experience points
• interacting with other players
• players advance in level
• gaining power, prestige and abilities
• players can gain powerful items for their
  characters
• slaying monsters (and then looting whatever items
  they were carrying)
• doing "quests" (tasks and adventures given by
  non-player characters ( NPCs ) in which a reward
  is given upon success)
• gathering raw materials and fashioning them, via
  trades (e.g. tailoring or blacksmithing) into
  useful items

Keith Parkinson EverQuest Box ArtFrom
http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ImageEverQuest_Box_A
rt.jpg
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EverQuest

• 3D environment set in
• fictional world of Norrath
• its moon Luclin
• alternate planes of reality
• Geography of the EverQuest universe is vast
• few have visited all of the nearly 400 zones
• Multiple instances of the world exist on various
  servers
• each server hosts 1000 - 3000 simultaneous
  players online at peak times
• A player can create multiple characters
• choosing from a variety of classes and races
  (e.g., humans, gnomes, trolls, halflings, elves,
  etc.)

12
EverQuest

• Gameplay involves
• grouping with fellow players to kill monsters for
  experience and gear
• exploring the large world
• socializing
• role-play
• joining player guilds
• mastering trade skills
• duels with other players

13
EverQuest

• Parts of EQ can be experienced alone without help
  of other players
• EQ very group-centric game
• A single character, unable to complete many of
  the encounters in EQ, unless well prepared (use
  of equipment or with spell enhancements)
• Most parts completed with groups of up to 6
  people
• Most challenging (and rewarding) encounters
  require cooperation of 72 players
• Large force of gamers performing one task
  referred to as a "raid"
• Complex raids can take experienced guild dozens
  of attempts before success

14
EverQuest Raid
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There (www.there.com)

• Marketed as a virtual getaway
• Main activities social interaction exploration
• A virtual chat environment which allows
  customization of avatars with clothing and
  accessories
• A skill-based game where skills are advanced
  through levels rewards earnt
• A friendly social environment where events can be
  held
• Vehicles like dune buggies and hoverboards can be
  raced or fights using paintball guns can be
  staged
• Users can create and market their own clothing
  and object designs

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There
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There

• Bars provide venues for large groups of people to
  gather
• Players choose their own appearance
• There images from users.snowcrest.net/ fox/there/

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There
Chat displayed in speech bubbles
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There

• Text chat in bubbles allows temporal qualities of
  converstions to be captured
• Speech bubbles rise above avatars
• Conversation history viewable
• Emotional gestures have become conversation topic
• Dancing competions
• Chaining emotional gestures together to make
  avatar dance
• Social presence
• Interaction with human beings
• Scheduling events
• Group formation
• (Brown and Bell, 2004)

• Avatars can make emotional gestures

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Uncle Roy All Around You

• Uncle Roy All Around You
• a game that pitches Online Players around the
  world alongside players on the real streets of
  the city
• Street Players
• use handheld computers to search for Uncle Roy
• using a map and incoming messages to move through
  the city  
• Online Players
• cruise through a virtual map of the same area
• searching for Street Players to help them find a
  secret destination
• Using web cams, audio and text messages players
  must work together
• They have 60 minutes and the clock is ticking...

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Uncle Roy All Around You

• Street Players
• Members of the public play as Street Players
  using a handheld computer
• Uncle Roy sends directions, gives instructions
  and makes observations along the way
• Can see Online Players exploring this same area
  of the city on the map on their handheld computer
  
• Can send audio messages to Online Players to ask
  for help
• If they trust an Online Player they may lead them

22
Uncle Roy All Around You

• Online Players
• The game drops Online Players into a virtual city
  
• Street Players appear in the virtual city as
  black figures in a column of orange light.
• Other Online Players appear as white figures.
• A postcard
• is hidden somewhere on the streets of the real
  city
• Using arrow keys to navigate, Online Players must
  search through the virtual city to find its
  location
• Online Players
• can then send messages to Street Players guiding
  them to collect this postcard from the real city
• If they succeed, players are invited to Uncle
  Roy's office

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Summary

• Similar themes in Everquest, There Uncle Roy
• Evidence of importance of Flow
• especially challenge, skills, control, immersion
  social interaction
• Players collaborate to achieve tasks
• Shared experience important

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References

• Brown, B and Bell, M. (2004) Social interaction
  in There. Proceedings of CHI 2004, Vienna,
  Austria. p350-359, New York ACM Press.
• Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990) Flow The Psychology
  of Optimal Experience. Harper Perennial, NY.
• Flintham et al. (2003) Uncle Roy all around you
  mixing games and theatre on the city streets.
  Proceedings of Level Up Conference, University of
  Utrecht, November, 2003.
• Sweetser, P. and Wyeth, P. (2005) GameFlow A
  Model for Evaluating Player Enjoyment in Games.
  ACM Computers in Entertainment, Vol. 3, No. 3,
  July 2005.