Methods Beyond the Screen: Conducting remote player studies for game design research

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Muscat Alexander Duckworth Jonathan Wilson Douglas
2019 DiGRA '19 - Proceedings of the 2019 DiGRA International Conference: Game, Play and the Emerging Ludo-Mix

In this paper we present a qualitative research methodology for conducting scholarly remote player studies, derived from a comparison of player-testing protocols. Within the game design research field, approaches to studying designs are frequently adapted from standardized player-testing techniques. These often focus on measuring player experience so a design may be evaluated. While such methods provide a useful basis for conducting iterative design studies, these present limitations for researchers seeking to interrogate design approaches outside of conventional assessment models or gameplay paradigms. We discuss these issues through a methodological lens, in the study of WORLD4, a game designed for experiences of ambiguity. Through a two-stage player experience case study we reveal methodological considerations, insights, and highlight disciplinary questions. In doing so we present a contextually aware, time and resource conscious method for conducting remote player studies, useful for game design researchers working outside of labs or investigating alternate design spaces.

 

Towards Genre as a Game Design Research Approach

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Goddard William Muscat Alexander
2017 DiGRA '17 - Proceedings of the 2017 DiGRA International Conference

Game design research is a growing field within game studies. Design in research, however, raises new questions. What should game design research investigate? How generalizable should its claims be? Considering the ‘ultimate particular’ of design, this paper explores how design research should investigate particular demarcations of works. This paper suggests genre as an approach in game design research, arguing that genres meaningfully, albeit reflexively, demarcate ‘likenesses’ worth investigation. Genre demarcations can be used to ground and orient research; lists of genre-games and informal descriptions suggest, what to, and how to, investigate genre, respectively. However, scholarly propositions of genres are necessary to support research. These propositions must make explicit, contestable, and substantive designerly claims about that genre, such as design values, structural patterns, and aesthetics, laying a scholarly foundation for future claims. These foundations support scholarly tradition in game design research by providing a context to ground, situate and disseminate findings.

 

Designing Unconventional Use of Conventional Displays in Games: Some Assembly Required

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Goddard William Muscat Alexander
2016 DiGRA/FDG '16 - Proceedings of the First International Joint Conference of DiGRA and FDG

Game design is experiencing a renewed interest in co-located games and the social play it facilitates. Specifically, public settings such as game exhibitions and parties are the host of games with unique experiences supported in part by custom and unconventional hardware design. These installations of custom hardware can create barriers for distribution and facilitation. However, it is possible to create both similar and novel and installation-like experiences with ephemeral DIY-installations. We investigate two games that create such novel experiences. These games explore ephemeral installation design through the unconventional use of displays, but using only conventional and commercially available hardware. Our investigation reveals six themes, providing an understanding of how to utilize this design space related to the social, spatial, and tangible aspects of these game designs, such as creating movement and aggregated spectatorship. We present unconventional use of videogame hardware in public settings as an underexplored design space.

 

First-Person Walkers: Understanding the Walker Experience through Four Design Themes

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Muscat Alexander Goddard William Duckworth Jonathan Holopainen Jussi
2016 DiGRA/FDG '16 - Proceedings of the First International Joint Conference of DiGRA and FDG

The First-Person Walker genre is defined by minimal player interactions, a deliberate slow pacing of the game play, and ambiguous goals. These distinct characteristics of First- Person Walkers challenge how we may consider a digital game. As such, there is a gap in understanding the design attributes that contribute to the unique game experiences afforded by ‘Walkers’. We conduct a player experience study of four Walker games, Gone Home, Dear Esther, Proteus, and The Stanley Parable. From our analysis we discuss four distinct design themes specific to the Walker game experience: 1) player interaction, 2) temporal space, 3) player focus, and 4) ambiguity. We consider how each of these themes can be used to enhance the design of First-Person Walker player experiences.