Heuristic usability evaluation on games: a modular approach

Heuristic evaluation is the preferred method to assess usability in games when experts conduct this evaluation. Many heuristics guidelines have been proposed attending to specificities of games but they only focus on specific subsets of games or platforms. In fact, to date the most used guideline to evaluate games usability is still Nielsen’s proposal, which is focused on generic software. As a result, most evaluations do not cover important aspects in games such as mobility, multiplayer interactions, enjoyability and playability, etc. To promote the usage of new heuristics adapted to different game and platform aspects we propose a modular approach based on the classification of existing game heuristics using metadata and a tool, MUSE (Meta-heUristics uSability Evaluation tool) for games, which allows a rebuild of heuristic guidelines based on metadata selection in order to obtain a customized list for every real evaluation case. The usage of these new rebuilt heuristic guidelines allows an explicit attendance to a wide range of usability aspects in games and a better detection of usability issues. We preliminarily evaluate MUSE with an analysis of two different games, using both the Nielsen’s heuristics and the customized heuristic lists generated by our tool.Unión Europea PI055-15/E0

The Assessment of the Usability of Digital Educational Resources: An interdisciplinary analysis from two systematic reviews

Producción CientíficaInternational reports analyzing current and future educational trends with an emphasis on technologies applied to education declare the importance of the design and application of digital educational resources. Guaranteeing its usability allows obtaining an adequate resource with a high pedagogical and technological quality. The objective of this paper is to analyze the empirical researches to determine if exists convergence between educational and computational researches on the assessment of the usability of digital educational resources. To fulfill the objective, the PRISMA protocol was used to carry out two systematic reviews and answer the two scientific questions. The results show that in few cases an adequate integration is achieved between: (1) the criteria for assessing usability as established by Software Engineering; (2) the methods and computational models to assess usability and, (3) the criteria established in pedagogical usability. Due to these shortcomings, a model for evaluating the usability of digital educational resources is proposed as future work. It concludes with the importance of interdisciplinary integration to assess the usability of digital educational resources

Analysis and evaluation of mobile rhythm games : Game structure and playability

The rhythm game is an action simulation game adapted to the presented music. While it is expected to have an educational effect as a functional game, the relationship between the operability and rhythm education under the mobile platform is still questionable. In Korea, it seems that mobile rhythm game is a minority maniac genre that are played mostly among teenagers and early twenties. In this paper, we select three mobile rhythm games that are most played by Korean gamers in analysis. First, we analyze the user interface layout, note control, evaluation style and level of difficulty for three games – Deeno, Cytus, and Lanota. Then, we take a user survey in order to evaluate the playability of those games. All three games obtain high scores but there exust several statistically significant differences among games in analysis

Factors influencing the adoption of mobile services consumers' preferences using analytic hierarchy process

The rapid and widespread development of innovations in mobile services is changing societies and improving lives around the world. Due to lagging adoption, many of these new innovations have yet failed to generate revenue that was expected by mobile network operators, application and content developers. There are several factors which are affecting the service adoption by consumers. This paper aims to provide practitioners and academics, an insight on what consumers' preferences are by using an Analytic Hierarchy Approach (AHP). The objective of this paper is to identify factors influencing the adoption of the mobile services. In this study we have considered Payment Mode, Functionality, Added Value and PQCP (perceived quality, cost and performance) as the main service adoption factors. The survey results indicate that Functionality is the most important influencing factor for the respondents, followed by Added Value, PQCP and Payment Mode.Adoption,AHP,Mobile Value Services,Consumer's Preferences

Agent Oriented Software Engineering (AOSE) Approach to Game Development Methodology

This thesis investigates existing game development methodologies, through the process of researching game and system development models. The results indicate that these methodologies are engineered to solve specific problems, and most are suitable only for specific game genres. Different approaches to building games have been proposed in recent years. However, most of these methodologies focus on the design and implementation phase. This research aims to enhance game development methodologies by proposing a novel game development methodology, with the ability to function in generic game genres, thereby guiding game developers and designers from the start of the game development phase to the end of the implementation and testing phase. On a positive note, aligning development practice with universal standards makes it far easier to incorporate extra team members at short notice. This increased the confidence when working in the same environment as super developers. In the gaming industry, most game development proceeds directly from game design to the implementation phase, and the researcher observes that this is the only industry in which this occurs. It is a consequence of the game industry’s failure to integrate with modern development techniques. The ultimate aim of this research to apply a new game development methodology using most game elements to enhance success. This development model will align with different game genres, and resolve the gap between industry and research area, so that game developers can focus on the important business of creating games. The primary aim of Agent Oriented Agile Base (AOAB) game development methodology is to present game development techniques in sequential steps to facilitate game creation and close the gap in the existing game development methodologies. Agent technology is used in complex domains such as e-commerce, health, manufacturing, games, etc. In this thesis we are interested in the game domain, which comprises a unique set of characteristics such as automata, collaboration etc. Our AOAB will be based on a predictive approach after adaptation of MaSE methodology, and an adaptive approach using Agile methodology. To ensure proof of concept, AOAB game development methodology will be evaluated against industry principles, providing an industry case study to create a driving test game, which was the problem motivating this research. Furthermore, we conducted two workshops to introduce our methodology to both academic and industry participants. Finally, we prepared an academic experiment to use AOAB in the academic sector. We have analyzed the feedbacks and comments and concluded the strengths and weakness of the AOAB methodology. The research achievements are summarized and proposals for future work outlined

A Conceptual Framework for Mobile Learning

Several technology projects have been launched to explore the opportunities that mobile technologies bring about when tackling issues of democratic participation and social inclusion through mobile learning. Mobile devices are cheaper than for instance a PC, and their affordance, usability and accessibility are such that they can potentially complement or even replace traditional computer technology. The importance of communication and collaboration features of mobile technologies has been stressed in the framework of ICT-mediated learning. In this paper, a theoretical framework for mobile learning and e-inclusion is developed for people outside the conventional education system. The framework draws upon the fields of pedagogy (constructivist learning in particular), mobile learning objects and sociology.Mobile Learning, Digital Divide, Constructivist Pedagogy, Forms Of Capital

Virtual Reality Games for Motor Rehabilitation

This paper presents a fuzzy logic based method to track user satisfaction without the need for devices to monitor users physiological conditions. User satisfaction is the key to any product’s acceptance; computer applications and video games provide a unique opportunity to provide a tailored environment for each user to better suit their needs. We have implemented a non-adaptive fuzzy logic model of emotion, based on the emotional component of the Fuzzy Logic Adaptive Model of Emotion (FLAME) proposed by El-Nasr, to estimate player emotion in UnrealTournament 2004. In this paper we describe the implementation of this system and present the results of one of several play tests. Our research contradicts the current literature that suggests physiological measurements are needed. We show that it is possible to use a software only method to estimate user emotion

Design and Implementation of Mobile Application for Herbal Medicine Prescription for Obstetrics and Gynecology Problems

In recent times, traditional herbal medicine found its way to modern medicine. It is used in many countries and common to all cultures due to its affordability. Hence, there is a need for the development of herbal database systems that contain the taxonomy hierarchy, structured knowledge of herbs that could be prescribe in a rapid and convenient fashion. This need serves as the major motivation for this work. In this paper, we proposed a mobile application for herbal medicine prescription on obstetrics and gynecology problems which provide patients with an opportunity to participate in and become knowledgeable of the whole prescription for the illness. The application was designed using android developing tools such as eclipse editor and SQLite as database engine. It was tested for usability and acceptability and the results were promising. This application can also be used as alternative therapy, to meet the needs of those who could not afford orthodox medicine or those who do not even believe in the use of orthodox medicine. The system is user-friendly enough for indigenous and those literate in English language only