UX evaluation of VR locomotion & virtual object interaction mechanics

Virtual Reality (VR) Interactions like in Ready Player One? Locomotion (LOC) and Virtual Object Interaction (VOI) are two key areas of concern, when designing and developing VR games and other VR applications. This paper describes a study of three interaction modes and their underlying VOI and LOC mechanics, using a range of consumer-oriented VR input setups, spanning from gamepad, over Spatially Tracked Hand Controllers, to Controllerless Hand Tracking and Omnidirectional Treadmill. All corresponding mechanics were implemented in the specifically developed, optimized and polished “real-world” game Gooze, to test them in a real-world scenario with corresponding challenges in gaming and human computer interaction. A within-subjects experiment with 89 participants using qualitative and quantitative analysis methods was conducted. The interaction modes and their mechanics were evaluated based on the four User Experience aspects: Player Enjoyment, Support of Gameplay, Simulator Sickness and Presence, with the latter being subdivided into the four sub-parameters: General Presence, Spatial Presence, Involvement and Experienced Realism, according to the igroup Presence Questionnaire. The paper concludes with summarizing the individual advantages and disadvantages of the assessed interaction modes

“VRification”: applying virtual reality to digital games

In the following, we discuss the process of applying virtual reality to digital games. We named this process “VRification” and will elaborate on some of its opportunities and issues. Based on a literature survey and professional practice, this work covers several examples of VR games, which were intended as such from the beginning (Job Simulator and Lucky’s Tale) and others, which were ported to VR after their initial release (DOOM VR and LizzE). We conclude that, for VR games, it is essential to be optimized for the full potential of targeted interface technologies. Furthermore, porting former-non-VR games to VR can create successful user experiences, when aiming for the same high standard of optimization, especially regarding simulator sickness

Local multiplayer immersion affected by 3D stereoscopy

In this paper, we describe an experimental study, which evaluates how 3D stereoscopy affects player immersion in a possibly very distracting local multiplayer game. The game “Nicely Dicely” was specifically developed for this purpose, with 3D stereoscopy in mind, right from the beginning. Groups of participants were competitively playing the game in non-3D monoscopic and 3D stereoscopic presentations via a 3D compatible projector and corresponding active shutter glasses. In the following, we elaborate on the game and our quantitative and qualitative hybrid experiment design and methodology. An analysis of the resulting data will show that, indeed 3D stereoscopy significantly increases spatial presence, involvement and player immersion, even in a local multiplayer situation. Furthermore, some guiding insights relating the game’s design will be illustrated

An experiment design: investigating VR locomotion & virtual object interaction mechanics

In this paper, we describe an experiment outline on investigating design and user experience related aspects of several virtual reality locomotion and virtual object interaction mechanics. These mechanics will be based on consumer hardware like a common game controllers, an infrared hand and finger tracking device, VR hand controllers and an omnidirectional treadmill. Corresponding related work will contextualize and motivate this research. The projected experimental study will be based on user test sessions with a specifically developed 1st person VR puzzle horror game, called Gooze. A hybrid approach of self-assessment, in-game parameter tracking and session observations will be proposed for the investigation. Statistical analysis methods will be suggested to evaluate results. Furthermore, this paper will give an overview of the game and elaborate on design, gameplay and user experience related insights of already conducted informal pre-studies with it

Virtual Reality 3rd person camera behavior modes

We describe and evaluate five different level design independent modes of handling camera behavior in the 3rd person game LizzE – And the Light of Dreams in Virtual Reality. The behavior of the different modes will each be illustrated in detail. To evaluate the modes A: Fast circling, B: Lazy Circling, C: No Circling, D: Blink circling and E: Buffered pulling, an experimental study with 33 subjects was conducted. An analysis of the resulting data will show why Buffered pulling seems to be the most promising of the examined modes. We elaborate on the quantitative and qualitative hybrid experiment design and methodology. Eventually the advantages and disadvantages of the five tested modes are discussed in terms of supporting the gameplay, player enjoyment, in game performance and the tendency to induce nausea

Managing Archaeological Landscapes in Northumberland

The Till-Tweed river catchment areas in Northumberland contain outstanding archaeological and palaeoenvironmental remains which have been in general only poorly understood. This study has assembled detailed data that will provide a platform for future landscape-based research and site-based investigation. Written from a landscape, or geoarchaeological perspective, this study develops a methodology and management tool that will allow planners, curators and developers working in the region to to easily access information across sectors, and provide a transparent and easily comprehended record of sensitive archaeological and palaeoenvironmental sites

Distinctions in practice within coaching in Scotland

This research sought to identify distinctions in the practice of coaches within Scotland. A survey design was adopted, with a snowball sampling strategy generating 74 responses. The data from coaches within Scotland, compared with that from respondents in other European nations, suggest that: a greater proportion of the Scottish coaching community are male, that coaches commonly evaluate at the end of every meeting and also seek feedback from commissioning managers as well as clients, that there are numerous approaches to coaching and also to continuous professional development that are less widely adopted in Scotland, that the reputation of the coaching provider is often an important factor for those commissioning coaching and that there are preferences for certain coaching models when presented with particular client issues. Recommendations are made for future analytical research to identify causal factors for any phenomena that can be cautiously determined from this data set

Distinctions in practice within coaching in Wales

This research sought to identify distinctions in the practice of coaches within Wales, compared to other European nations. A survey design was adopted, with a snowball sampling strategy generating 150 respondents. Seven surveyed aspects of coaching practice produced distinctive responses from coaches within Wales: they are less likely to have membership of any professional coaching bodies, they spend a very small proportion of their working time coaching, they are more likely to operate as internal coaches or for low fees, they are more likely to engage in self-reflection and participate in peer networks, they have a marked preference for behavioural/goalfocused methods, they are thorough in the range of topics they cover when contracting and they are likely to be selected as coaches based predominantly upon their experience levels. Recommendations are made for future analytical research to identify causal factors for these distinctions

Colour vision model-based approach for segmentation of traffic signs

This paper presents a new approach to segment traffic signs from the rest of a scene via CIECAM, a colour appearance model. This approach not only takes CIECAM into practical application for the first time since it was standardised in 1998, but also introduces a new way of segmenting traffic signs in order to improve the accuracy of colour-based approach. Comparison with the other CIE spaces, including CIELUV and CIELAB, and RGB colour space is also carried out. The results show that CIECAM performs better than the other three spaces with 94%, 90%, and 85% accurate rates for sunny, cloudy, and rainy days, respectively. The results also confirm that CIECAM does predict the colour appearance similar to average observers

A user study on curved edges in graph visualization

Recently there has been increasing research interest in displaying graphs with curved edges to produce more readable visualizations. While there are several automatic techniques, little has been done to evaluate their effectiveness empirically. In this paper we present two experiments studying the impact of edge curvature on graph readability. The goal is to understand the advantages and disadvantages of using curved edges for common graph tasks compared to straight line segments, which are the conventional choice for showing edges in node-link diagrams. We included several edge variations: straight edges, edges with different curvature levels, and mixed straight and curved edges. During the experiments, participants were asked to complete network tasks including determination of connectivity, shortest path, node degree, and common neighbors. We also asked the participants to provide subjective ratings of the aesthetics of different edge types. The results show significant performance differences between the straight and curved edges and clear distinctions between variations of curved edges