Exploring casual exergames with kids using wheelchairs

Physical activity (PA) is important for health and well-being, but often PA is inaccessible for children using wheelchairs. In this work, we explore the potential of casual exergames to provide opportunities for physically active play. We apply existing wheelchair-controlled video games to explore children’s and parents’ perceptions of these games. Feedback shows that children and parents feel that casual exergames could be a valuable opportunity of offering wheelchair-accessible play, however, refinement of game concepts particularly regarding challenge and physical effort required to play is necessary. By integrating these findings into games for young people using wheelchairs in the future, we hope to provide opportunities for accessible and physically challenging play

Designing games for the rehabilitation of functional vision for children with cerebral visual impairment

Evidence has accumulated that visual rehabilitation for patients with neurological visual impairment can be effective. Unfortunately, the existing therapy tools are repetitive, uninteresting, and unsuitable for use with children. This project aims to improve the engaging qualities of visual rehabilitation for children, through the design of therapy tools based on game design principles. Development is ongoing in a participatory, user-centred manner in conjunction with a specialist centre for childhood visual impairment. This paper outlines design requirements and briefly reports early findings of the development process

Juicy Game Design: Exploring the Impact of Juiciness on the Player Experience

Visual embellishments (VEs) are design elements that support information already conveyed by other means. In games, a similar concept is known as juiciness, and refers to the provision of superfluous feedback in situations where a single player action triggers multiple non-functional reactions. Elements that could be considered VEs are commonly found in games as a way of improving the feedback loop of the game. While feedback elements have been previously investigated, juiciness remains relatively undefined and is underexplored. In this thesis, this issue is addressed through the creation of an empirically grounded definition of juiciness, and an empirical exploration of how the concept affects player experience. First, this project presents a literature review of existing research in this area, exploring the undying motivation through interaction design principles. It then presents a framework for juicy design built from a survey of game designers perspectives. This framework is then applied through several user studies that explore the impact of juiciness on player experience. The first user study explores the effects of VEs with 40 participants comparing the effects of visual embellishments in two research games created, the Frogger-clone Cuber, and the FPS game Dungeon Descent. The second study explores the effects of juiciness through the commercially available game Quake 3 Arena with 32 participants. Building from this, two further user studies are presented, exploring the effects of VEs in-the-wild through the deployment of the game Cuber, and through a within-subjects study of juiciness and gamification with 36 participants using an existing research simulation from the life sciences as research tool. This thesis defines juiciness as coherent design of game mechanics and visuals, while providing confirmatory, explicit and ambient feedback. The results of the empirical work carried out within this thesis show that the effects of juiciness are nuanced, and can vary depending on both the implementation and context of the juiciness. This work reveals that juiciness has the potential to target intrinsic motivation factors and increase the visual appeal of a game. Lastly the overall findings of the thesis are summarised, followed by a discussion of the wider implications of juiciness, and its relevance for game development

Designing movement-based play with young people using powered wheelchairs

Young people using powered wheelchairs have limited access to engaging leisure activities. We address this issue through a two-stage project; 1) the participatory development of a set of wheelchair-controlled, movement-based games (with 9 participants at a school that provides education for young people who have special needs) and 2) three case studies (4 participants) exploring player perspectives on a set of three wheelchair-controlled casual games. Our results show that movement-based playful experiences are engaging for young people using powered wheelchairs. However, the participatory design process and case studies also reveal challenges for game accessibility regarding the integration of movement in games, diversity of abilities among young people using powered wheelchairs, and the representation of disability in games. In our paper, we explore how to address those challenges in the development of accessible, empowering movement-based games, which is crucial to the wider participation of young people using powered wheelchairs in play

Exploiting players? critical reflections on participation in game development

Player involvement in the process of game development has become a de-facto standard in both industry and academia. Participation is intended to empower players, while helping designers create better games. However, participation also introduces uncertainty regarding players’ and designers’ relative roles, and creates new concerns over the exploitation of players, marginalization of designers, and the quality of game design outcomes. In this workshop, we invite the games research community to critically reflect on methods used to facilitate player participation, with the goal of establishing dialogue around meaningful and constructive player involvement

Designing Interactive Manual Wheelchair Skills Training for Children

Access to wheelchair skills training is important for the mobility and independence of wheelchair users, but training rates are low - particularly among young people. In this paper, we present \textit{Geometry Wheels}, a movement-based experience prototype to explore the potential of interactive technology to support basic wheelchair skills training for manual wheelchair users, designed with the support of occupational therapists. Results of an evaluation with 15 participants (10 young wheelchair users and 5 parents) show that interactive systems can deliver engaging and challenging activities that encourage wheelchair navigation and activity. However, the project also revealed challenges in designing for individual differences in physical abilities, in conflicts between children's and parents' perceptions of ability, and barriers to home use. We outline strategies for the design of rehabilitative technology to help young people with disabilities build physical abilities

Good Game Feel: An Empirically Grounded Framework for Juicy Design

Juicy design refers to the idea that large amounts of audiovisual feedback contribute to a positive player experience. While the concept is popular in the game design community, definitions of the concept remain vague, and it is difficult to analyze which elements contribute to whether a game is perceived as juicy. In this paper, we address this issue through a combination of industry perspectives and academic analysis to provide a more detailed understanding of contributors to juicy design. We present results from an online survey that received responses from 17 game developers, and create an affinity diagram to derive a framework that facilitates the analysis of juicy design rooted in developers’ perspectives. Through application to two commercially available games, we refine the framework, and contribute a tool that makes the idea of juiciness actionable for researchers and designers

Handing over the keys: a qualitative study of the experience of automation in driving

This article presents a qualitative driving simulator study designed to understand the experience of giving up control to automated processes in semiautonomous driving systems. The study employed an experience prototyping methodology, with 12 drivers (4 female) completing 2 sessions in a high-fidelity driving simulator. Condition A simulated a normally functioning car, while Condition B simulated a semiautonomous system that monitors driver behavior and takes evasive action when danger is detected. The simulator experience was used to ground wider discussion of automation and the experience of driving, which was explored through a semistructured interview. Results identify design challenges for autonomous driving systems; the loss of user agency and confidence, and handling the change between manual and automated control. Opportunities were identified; in augmenting rather than removing human abilities, and in providing new learning opportunities for drivers

Including the Experiences of Physically Disabled Players in Mainstream Guidelines for Movement-Based Games

Movement-based video games can provide engaging play experiences, and also have the potential to encourage physical activity. However, existing design guidelines for such games overwhelmingly focus on non-disabled players. Here, we explore wheelchair users’ perspectives on movement-based games as an enjoyable play activity. We created eight game concepts as discussion points for semi-structured interviews (N=6) with wheelchair users, and used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to understand their perspectives on physical activity and play. Themes focus on independent access, challenges in social settings, and the need for comprehensive adaptation. We also conducted an online survey (N=21) using the same game concepts, and thematic analysis highlighted the importance of adequate challenge, and considerations around multiplayer experiences. Based on these findings, we re-contextualize and expand guidelines for movement-based games previously established by Mueller and Isbister to include disabled players, and suggest design strategies that take into account their perspectives on play

Understanding the Effects of Gamification and Juiciness on Players

Gamification is widely applied to increase user engagement and motivation, but empirical studies on effectivenessare inconclusive, and often limited to the integration of tangible elements such as leaderboards or badges. In this paper, we report findings from a study with 36 participants that uses the lens of Self-Determination Theory to compare traditional gamification elements, and the concept of juiciness (the provision of abundant audiovisual feedback) in the VR simulation Predator!. Results show that gamification and juiciness improve user experience, but that only juiciness fulfills all basic psychological needs that facilitate intrinsic motivation when applied in nongaming settings. User preferences favour the combination of both approaches, however, neither improved performance, and there is evidence of juicy elements influencing user behaviour. We discuss implications of these findings for the integration of gamification, reflect on the role of both approaches in the context of feedback, and outline challenges and opportunities for further research. Index Term