Validation of the GUESS-18: A Short Version of the Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS)

The Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS) is a 55-item tool assessing nine constructs describing video game satisfaction. While the development of the GUESS followed best practices and resulted in a versatile, comprehensive tool for assessing video game user experience, responding to 55 items can be cumbersome in situations where repeated assessments are necessary. The aim of this research was to develop a shorter version of the scale for use in iterative game design, testing, and research. Two studies were conducted: the first one to create a configural model of the GUESS that was then truncated to an 18-item short scale to establish an initial level of validity and a second study with a new sample to demonstrate cross-sample validity of the 18- item GUESS scale. Results from a confirmatory factor analysis of the 18-item scale demonstrated excellent fit and construct validity to the original nine construct instrument. Use of the GUESS-18 is encouraged as a brief, practical, yet comprehensive measure of video game satisfaction for practitioners and researchers

User Perceptions of Facebook Games

The popularity of social network sites have helped build and popularize the social (network) game genre.Presently, there are reports that social games are still growing in the established video game industry. Thisstudy focused on a giant sector of social games, that is, Facebook games. Particularly, the main goal of thisstudy was to assess the general attitude, habit, and behavior of people who currently or previously playedFacebook games. Of the 287 who completed the survey on Facebook games, over 70% indicated that theyno longer play games on Facebook (i.e., past Facebook gamers). Respondents reported that the mainreasons they stopped playing a Facebook game was due to being bored with the game, the game was tootime-consuming, and real-world money and more friends were needed for the game to be fun. When askedwhat features would be associated with the “ideal” Facebook game, many indicated features such as fastloading time, good graphics, game rewards, and an option to play the game without needing real-worldmoney

Can You Judge a Video Game By Its Cover? An Exploration of Subjective Impressions and Viewing Patterns

Studies have shown that first impressions of websites can lead to lasting opinions regarding usability and trustworthiness. However, little research has been conducted concerning first impressions of video games. In this study, 20 college-age students were asked to view and rate images of 48 game box covers after a brief exposure while their eye movement patterns were recorded. Results revealed that participants can reliably form different impressions (e.g., fun vs. boring) about certain video games based on a brief viewing of the game box cover. Analysis of eye tracking data revealed that participants viewed the front image, side title strip, and front game title the most. Relationships among the different subjective attributes (e.g., design quality, entertainment value) are reported

Usability and Performance of Tablet Keyboards: Microsoft Surface vs. Apple iPad

This study was an evaluation of typing performance and user satisfaction of three tablet keyboards: Surface TouchCover Keyboard, Surface Onscreen Keyboard, and iPad Onscreen Keyboard. Results show that participants typed faster with the Surface TouchCover Keyboard, but also committed more typing errors (e.g., unintended omission of letters and spaces). Users liked the TouchCover standard keyboard layout, but not the lack of sensitivity of the flat keyboard. The results from this study indicate the advantages of a physical keyboard with a standard layout for tablet usage over an onscreen keyboard

The Development and Validation of the Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS)

Objective: The aim of this study was to develop and psychometrically validate a new instrument that comprehensively measures video game satisfaction based on key factors. Background: Playtesting is often conducted in the video game industry to help game developers build better games by providing insight into the players’ attitudes and preferences. However, quality feedback is difficult to obtain from playtesting sessions without a quality gaming assessment tool. There is a need for a psychometrically validated and comprehensive gaming scale that is appropriate for playtesting and game evaluation purposes.Method: The process of developing and validating this new scale followed current best practices of scale development and validation. As a result, a mixedmethod design that consisted of item pool generation, expert review, questionnaire pilot study, exploratory factor analysis (N = 629), and confirmatory factor analysis (N = 729) was implemented. Results: A new instrument measuring video game satisfaction, called the Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS), with nine subscales emerged. The GUESS was demonstrated to have content validity, internal consistency, and convergent and discriminant validity. Conclusion: The GUESS was developed and validated based on the assessments of over 450 unique video game titles across many popular genres. Thus, it can be applied across many types of video games in the industry both as a way to assess what aspects of a game contribute to user satisfaction and as a tool to aid in debriefing users on their gaming experience. Application: The GUESS can be administered to evaluate user satisfaction of different types of video games by a variety of users

The Development and Validation of the Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS)

Objective: The aim of this study was to develop and psychometrically validate a new instrument that comprehensively measures video game satisfaction based on key factors.Background: Playtesting is often conducted in the video game industry to help game developers build better games by providing insight into the players’ attitudes and preferences. However, quality feedback is difficult toobtain from playtesting sessions without a quality gaming assessment tool. There is a need for a psychometricallyvalidated and comprehensive gaming scale that is appropriate for playtesting and game evaluation purposes.Method: The process of developing and validating this new scale followed current best practices of scale development and validation. As a result, a mixed-method design that consisted of item pool generation, expert review, questionnaire pilot study, exploratory factor analysis (N = 629), and confirmatory factor analysis (N = 729) was implemented. Results: A new instrument measuring video game satisfaction, called the Game User Experience SatisfactionScale (GUESS), with nine subscales emerged. The GUESS was demonstrated to have content validity, internal consistency, and convergent and discriminant validity.Conclusion: The GUESS was developed and validated based on the assessments of over 450 unique video game titles across many popular genres. Thus, it can be applied across many types of video games in the industry both as a way to assess what aspects of a game contribute to user satisfaction and as a tool to aid in debriefing users on their gaming experience. Application: The GUESS can be administered to evaluate user satisfaction of different types of video games by a variety of users

Examining the Role of Gender in Video Game Usage, Preference, and Behavior

Since coming into mainstream culture in the 1970s, video games have become increasingly popular. While both men and women play video games, game companies have begun developing games specifically for women that, unfortunately, adhere to stereotypes about females (i.e., pink, fashion, and shopping). This study aims to help game developers better understand the gaming patterns of gamers, both male and female, through a questionnaire which asks questions about video game usage, preferences, behaviors, and spending habits. Results reveal that men overwhelmingly played more violent video games than women. However, women tend to play both violent and non-violent almost equally. Male gamers were more likely than female gamers to be drawn to games from the Strategy, Role Playing, Action, and Fighting genres whereas female gamers were more likely than male gamers to play games from the Social, Puzzle/Card, Music/Dance, Educational/Edutainment, and Simulation genres. Overall, more men than women treated playing video game as their primary hobby, while women were more likely to regard playing video games as a less important hobby after other more important hobbies such as watching television

User Performance and Satisfaction of Tablet Physical Keyboards

This study presents an evaluation of user performance and satisfaction of three physical keyboards that accompany two popular tablet computers. All keyboards were dual purpose in that they served as tablet covers in addition to typing input devices. The keyboards varied in weight, thickness, and key travel. The thinnest keyboard featured durability and pressure-sensitive keys while the other two keyboards were slightly thicker, but used mechanical keys. Participants unfamiliar with the keyboards were asked to type a series of phrases on each keyboard after a short practice. Typing performance, and perceived usability and workload were assessed. Results show a clear advantage in both performance and satisfaction for the mechanical-key keyboards. Users demonstrated typing speeds approximately 10 words per minute (WPM) slower and were prone to typing errors such as incorrect key substitutions, omissions, and inadvertent insertions with the thinner, pressure-sensitive keyboard. In addition, users reported the flat keyboard was more mentally demanding, more frustrating, and required more effort to use. Results from this study reveal the importance of tactile feedback to user typing performance and satisfaction. Designers of tablet physical keyboards must assess the tradeoff between optimal keyboard size, weight, and thickness, and a design that affords accurate typing

Validation of the GUESS-18: A Short Version of the Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS)

The Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS) is a 55-item tool assessing nine constructs describing video game satisfaction. While the development of the GUESS followed best practices and resulted in a versatile, comprehensive tool for assessing video game user experience, responding to 55 items can be cumbersome in situations where repeated assessments are necessary. The aim of this research was to develop a shorter version of the scale for use in iterative game design, testing, and research. Two studies were conducted: the first one to create a configural model of the GUESS that was then truncated to an 18-item short scale to establish an initial level of validity and a second study with a new sample to demonstrate cross-sample validity of the 18- item GUESS scale. Results from a confirmatory factor analysis of the 18-item scale demonstrated excellent fit and construct validity to the original nine construct instrument. Use of the GUESS-18 is encouraged as a brief, practical, yet comprehensive measure of video game satisfaction for practitioners and researchers

Validation of the GUESS-18: A Short Version of the Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS)

The Game User Experience Satisfaction Scale (GUESS) is a 55-item tool assessing nine constructs describing video game satisfaction. While the development of the GUESS followed best practices and resulted in a versatile, comprehensive tool for assessing video game user experience, responding to 55 items can be cumbersome in situations where repeated assessments are necessary. The aim of this research was to develop a shorter version of the scale for use in iterative game design, testing, and research. Two studies were conducted: the first one to create a configural model of the GUESS that was then truncated to an 18-item short scale to establish an initial level of validity and a second study with a new sample to demonstrate cross-sample validity of the 18- item GUESS scale. Results from a confirmatory factor analysis of the 18-item scale demonstrated excellent fit and construct validity to the original nine construct instrument. Use of the GUESS-18 is encouraged as a brief, practical, yet comprehensive measure of video game satisfaction for practitioners and researchers