DESIGNING BETTER EXERGAMES: APPLICATION OF FLOW CONCEPTS AND THE FITT PRINCIPLE TO FULL BODY EXERTION VIDEO GAMES AND FLEXIBLE CHALLENGE SYSTEMS

Exercise video games have a recognized potential for widespread use as tools for effective exercise. Current exergames do not consistently strike a successful balance between the “fun gameplay” and “effective exercise” aspects of the ideal exergame. Our research into the design of better exergames applies existing gameflow research and established exercise guidelines, such as those published by the American College of Sports Medicine, to a collection of four custom exergames: Astrojumper, Washboard, Sweet Harvest and Legerdemain implement full-body motion mechanics that support different types of exercise, and vary in intended duration of play, game complexity, and level of physical challenge. Each game also implements a difficulty adjustment system that detects player performance from in-game data and dynamically adjusts game difficulty, in order to balance between a player’s fitness level and the physical challenge presented by the game. We have evaluated the games produced by our design approach through a series of user studies on players’ physiological and psychological responses to gameplay, finding that balance between challenge types (cognitive or physical) is an important consideration along with challenge-skill balance, and further, that game mechanics able to support creativity of movement are an effective means of bridging between gameplay and exercise in order to improve the player experience

Gameful Digital Rhetoric を用いた行動ナビゲーション実現のためのフレームワーク

早大学位記番号:新6865早稲田大

Understanding the exergame user experience : users' motivation, attitude and behaviour in a location-aware pervasive exergame for adolescent children

The benefits of physical activity for adolescent children are well understood. Despite this, within much of the Western World, children fail to achieve the recommended guidelines for physical activity participation, spending too much time on sedentary activities. Thanks to recent progressions in ubiquitous technologies, exergames - exercise video games - have emerged as a potential solution to the problem. By facilitating physical activity, and encouraging behavioural change within an enjoyable and motivating context, exergames have the potential to remove some of the barriers preventing many adolescents from sufficient physical activity participation. There are, however, few studies of exergame systems that have looked at the impact of the system over time. Additionally, many systems are not evaluated within ecologically valid contexts. The result of this is a lack of real understanding on the efficacy of exergame systems and their feasibility as a valid solution. This thesis investigates the design, development, and evaluation of a locationaware exergame for adolescent children: iFitQuest. Through analysis of two prolonged use school-based evaluations, this research provides evidence on the ability of exergames to facilitate physical activity and reduce sedentary behaviour, when targeted at adolescent children within a school context. The results of two evaluations suggest that iFitQuest was enjoyable, motivating, and physically demanding, with the ability to promote physical activity of all intensities in players with a range of attitudes towards physical activity, their own physical activity abilities, and physical activity participation backgrounds. The primary contribution of this thesis is the indepth evaluation of the exergame user experience. Looking beyond the general success of the system, the experience of individual players was analysed through the lens of Bandura's theory of self-efficacy. Through a mixed-methods case study analysis, self-efficacy was established as an accurate method to explain and understand in-game behaviour, in particular with respect to goal setting and game selection habits. By influencing and moderating the players' motivation, attitude and in-game behaviour, self-efficacy was established as a useful tool for future exergame practitioners. Guidelines on the application of self-efficacy are provided, with respect to both analysis and design. Additionally, through a naturalistic and prolonged evaluation, a number of logistical and contextual lessons for the evaluation of exergames were established. In particular, the use of a user-centred design approach for the development of similar systems is validated through a series of design guidelines, which account for the importance and influence of the evaluation context

The non-fitness-related benefits of exergames for young individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder: A systematic review

Background Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a common neurodevelopmental condition characterized by social-communication deficits and is often accompanied by an array of autism-specific traits, including cognitive and motor differences. Research has begun to investigate the utility of exergames (virtual exercise games) for combating some of the functionally impairing facets of ASD. However, no review to date has investigated the positive effects of exergaming for young autistic individuals, exclusive of their effects on fitness-related/health-related outcomes. Methods We systematically reviewed the literature for articles published between 1990 and 2020, which aimed to examine the effectiveness of exergames for targeting some of the facets observed in autistic children, exclusive of physical fitness-related outcomes. Results Out of 193 relevant articles, 10 met the inclusion criteria. Some studies showed initial beneficial effects of exergaming for executive function and motor skills, however more work is needed to examine the beneficial effects of exergaming for social development in young autistic individuals. Conclusion The present review suggests the potential use of exergaming for enhancing some functions in ASD and future research is needed to expand the use of exergames for supporting social-communication skills. Furthermore, additional studies using rigorous research designs are needed to draw stronger conclusions about the effects of exergames for the young autistic population