‘Knock Once for Yes’ – Knocking as Feedback in the Location-Based Game Passing On

In this paper the design, implementation and testing of the Location-Based game Passing On is explored. It is a multi-player game for mobile phones, with a focus on asymmetric and limited communication. While one player can communicate by talking, the other can answer only by knocking. This limited and asymmetric communication became one of the central gameplay resources in the game, shaping much of the experience for the players. Using observations and interviews, the knocking and the experience it created is analyzed and discussed. It is shown how this made the game emphasize social interaction, moving the focus from the phone to the environment, and how the knocking helped create a sense of presence for the player feeling them

‘Knock Once for Yes’ – Knocking as Feedback in the Location-Based Game Passing On

In this paper the design, implementation and testing of the Location-Based game Passing On is explored. It is a multi-player game for mobile phones, with a focus on asymmetric and limited communication. While one player can communicate by talking, the other can answer only by knocking. This limited and asymmetric communication became one of the central gameplay resources in the game, shaping much of the experience for the players. Using observations and interviews, the knocking and the experience it created is analyzed and discussed. It is shown how this made the game emphasize social interaction, moving the focus from the phone to the environment, and how the knocking helped create a sense of presence for the player feeling them

‘Knock Once for Yes’ – Knocking as Feedback in the Location-Based Game Passing On

In this paper the design, implementation and testing of the Location-Based game Passing On is explored. It is a multi-player game for mobile phones, with a focus on asymmetric and limited communication. While one player can communicate by talking, the other can answer only by knocking. This limited and asymmetric communication became one of the central gameplay resources in the game, shaping much of the experience for the players. Using observations and interviews, the knocking and the experience it created is analyzed and discussed. It is shown how this made the game emphasize social interaction, moving the focus from the phone to the environment, and how the knocking helped create a sense of presence for the player feeling them

Transdiegetic Sound and auditory immersion in an asymmetrical cooperative game

This research is looking to determine how sound interaction, in particular transdiegetic sound, as a core mechanic affects player immersion in an asymmetrical cooperative game. Sound design is crucial for increasing player immersion within single player game experiences, but the issues arises in a multiplayer context where communicating with other players can break this in-game immersion There is rich potential of exploring the game design possibilities of separating the sensory modalities between two players and exploring how the restricted information is conveyed and consequently how this affects player immersion. This research expands upon this by examining the interplay between four game design patterns; transdiegetic sound, player communication, asymmetrical gameplay and immersive experiences. This project developed a game which requires one player to wear a pair of headphones and be prevented from viewing the game screen. The other player is able to see the game screen and have the controls to move around the game environment but is not able to hear audio cues from within the virtual space; this only being audible to the player wearing the headphones. The research suggests that the novel design approach highlights how current methods of measuring player immersion such as questionnaires may not always be appropriate due to the assumptions they contain within the questions they ask. The results also suggests that whilst the relationship between transdiegetic sound and asymmetrical gameplay may not appear to be significant, there is an interplay between these mechanics that influences the immersive experience for the player. This project proposes that future work considers this interplay and avoids attempting to analyse how a design pattern determines player immersion in isolation but that it considers how it behaves it relation to the other design choices within the game