Not all the bots are created equal:the Ordering Turing Test for the labelling of bots in MMORPGs

This article contributes to the research on bots in Social Media. It takes as its starting point an emerging perspective which proposes that we should abandon the investigation of the Turing Test and the functional aspects of bots in favor of studying the authentic and cooperative relationship between humans and bots. Contrary to this view, this article argues that Turing Tests are one of the ways in which authentic relationships between humans and bots take place. To understand this, this article introduces the concept of Ordering Turing Tests: these are sort of Turing Tests proposed by social actors for purposes of achieving social order when bots produce deviant behavior. An Ordering Turing Test is method for labeling deviance, whereby social actors can use this test to tell apart rule-abiding humans and rule-breaking bots. Using examples from Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games, this article illustrates how Ordering Turing Tests are proposed and justified by players and service providers. Data for the research comes from scientific literature on Machine Learning proposed for the identification of bots and from game forums and other player produced paratexts from the case study of the game Runescape

Using Image Recognition Technology as a Gameplay Mechanic

Image recognition (IR) has been used in previous entertainment applications, but for various reasons, these applications have had only moderate success. Meanwhile, art museum attendance has been declining in recent years. Our project attempts to demonstrate the feasibility of using IR technology as a gameplay mechanic in an application designed to increase the engagement of art museum attendees. Our mobile scavenger hunt, The Great Art Quest, is designed for deployment in any art museum

How Design Features in Digital Math Games Support Learning and Mathematics Connections

Current research shows that digital games can significantly enhance children’s learning. The purpose of this study was to examine how design features in 12 digital math games influenced children’s learning. The participants in this study were 193 children in Grades 2 through 6 (ages 8-12). During clinical interviews, children in the study completed pre-tests, interacted with digital math games, responded to questions about the digital math games, and completed post-tests. We recorded the interactions using two video perspectives that recorded children’s gameplay and responses to interviewers. We employed mixed methods to analyze the data and identify salient patterns in children’s experiences with the digital math games. The analysis revealed significant gains for 9 of the 12 digital games and most children were aware of the design features in the games. There were eight prominent categories of design features in the video data that supported learning and mathematics connections. Six categories focused on how the design features supported learning in the digital games. These categories included: accuracy feedback, unlimited/multiple attempts, information tutorials and hints, focused constraint, progressive levels, and game efficiency. Two categories were more specific to embodied cognition and action with the mathematics, and focused on how design features promoted mathematics connections. These categories included: linked representations and linked physical actions. The digital games in this study that did not include linked representations and opportunities for linked physical actions as design features did not produce significant gains. These results suggest the key role of mathematics-specific design features in the design of digital math games

A Qualitative Investigation of Users’ Video Game Information Needs and Behaviors

Video games are popular consumer products as well as research subjects, yet little exists about how players and other stakeholders find video games and what information they need to select, acquire, and play video games. With the aim of better understanding people’s game-related information needs and behaviors, we conducted 56 semi-structured interviews with users who find, play, purchase, collect, and recommend video games. Participants included casual and avid gamers, parents, collectors, industry professionals, librarians, and scholars. From this user data, we derive and discuss key design implications for video game information systems: designing for target user populations, enabling recommendations on appeals, offering multiple automatic organization options, and providing relationship-based, user-generated, subject and visual metadata. We anticipate this work will contribute to building future video game information systems with new and improved access to games

Velum: A 3D Puzzle Game and Facial Analysis Study

Velum is a first-person 3D puzzle/exploration game set in a timeless version of the Boston Public Garden. The project’s narrative framework and aesthetics are based on one of the Garden’s most prominent features, the Ether Monument, which commemorates the 1846 discovery of diethyl ether’s effectiveness as a medical anesthetic. A sequence of nine abstract challenges is rewarded by a progressive revelation of the player’s mysterious identity and purpose. The puzzle design was informed by the use of crowdsourced playtesting involving 300+ volunteers, combining standard data telemetry with AI-based facial image analysis capable of mapping player emotions to gameplay events

Velum: A 3D Puzzle Game and Facial Analysis Study

Velum is a first-person 3D puzzle/exploration game set in a timeless version of the Boston Public Garden. The project’s narrative framework and aesthetics are based on one of the Garden’s most prominent features, the Ether Monument, which commemorates the 1846 discovery of diethyl ether’s effectiveness as a medical anesthetic. A sequence of nine abstract challenges is rewarded by a progressive revelation of the player’s mysterious identity and purpose. The puzzle design was informed by the use of crowdsourced playtesting involving 300+ volunteers, combining standard data telemetry with AI-based facial image analysis capable of mapping player emotions to gameplay events

VELUM: A 3D Puzzle/Exploration Game Designed Using Crowdsourced AI Facial Analysis

Velum is a first-person 3D puzzle/exploration game set in a timeless version of the Boston Public Garden. The project’s narrative framework and aesthetics are based on one of the Garden’s most prominent features, the Ether Monument, which commemorates the 1846 discovery of diethyl ether’s effectiveness as a medical anesthetic. A sequence of nine abstract challenges is rewarded by a progressive revelation of the player’s mysterious identity and purpose. The puzzle design was informed by the use of crowdsourced playtesting involving 300+ volunteers, combining standard data telemetry with AI-based facial image analysis capable of mapping player emotions to gameplay events

Customizing Experiences for Mobile Virtual Reality

A criação manual de conteúdo para um jogo é um processo demorado e trabalhoso que requer um conjunto de habilidades diversi cado (normalmente designers, artistas e programadores) e a gestão de diferentes recursos (hardware e software especializados). Dado que o orçamento, tempo e recursos são frequentemente muito limitados, os projetos poderiam bene ciar de uma solução que permitisse poupar e investir noutros aspectos do desenvolvimento. No contexto desta tese, abordamos este desa o sugerindo a criação de pacotes especí cos para a geração de conteúdo per sonalizável, focados em aplicações de Realidade Virtual (RV) móveis. Esta abordagem divide o problema numa solução com duas facetas: em primeiro lugar, a Geração Procedural de Conteúdo, alcançada através de métodos convencionais e pela utilização inovadora de Grandes Modelos de Lin guagem (normalmente conhecidos por Large Language Models). Em segundo lugar, a Co-Criação de Conteúdo, que enfatiza o desenvolvimento colaborativo de conteúdo. Adicionalmente, dado que este trabalho se foca na compatibilidade com RV móvel, as limitações de hardware associadas a capacetes de RV autónomos (standalone VR Headsets) e formas de as ultrapassar são também abordadas. O conteúdo será gerado utilizando métodos actuais em geração procedural e facilitando a co-criação de conteúdo pelo utilizador. A utilização de ambas estas abordagens resulta em ambi entes, objectivos e conteúdo geral mais re-jogáveis com muito menos desenho. Esta abordagem está actualmente a ser aplicada no desenvolvimento de duas aplicações de RV distintas. A primeira, AViR, destina-se a oferecer apoio psicológico a indivíduos após a perda de uma gravidez. A se gunda, EmotionalVRSystem, visa medir as variações nas respostas emocionais dos participantes induzidas por alterações no ambiente, utilizando tecnologia EEG para leituras precisas