A team of multidisciplinary researchers at the University of 蓝莓视频 has identified three basic video game player traits that will help to make game design more personalized and more effectively motivate gamers in both entertainment and work applications.
Gustavo Fortes Tondello, a PhD candidate at 蓝莓视频 who co-authored the study with Lennart Nacke, an associate professor and director of the Human-Computer Interaction Games Group at 蓝莓视频鈥檚 Games Institute, has been developing a more definitive player traits model that gives scores for different preferences. The model generates scores for three different traits, including the degree to which players prefer action elements, aesthetic aspects, or goal orientation in games. Identifying traits makes it possible to analyze player preferences for different groups of people, including different age ranges or genders.
鈥淏y better understanding what people like when playing games, we can determine how best to apply those elements to situations that are not games,鈥 Tondello said. 鈥淲e can create systems that are more pleasant to use and help people feel more engaged and motivated to achieve their goals.鈥
The
research
began
by
analyzing
a
dataset
of
over
50,000
respondents
who
had
been
surveyed
for
an
earlier
player
satisfaction
model
called
BrainHex,
developed
by
Chris
Bateman
with
Nacke
and
colleague
Regan
Mandryk.
With
BrainHex,
researchers
identified
player
archetypes,
including
seeker,
survivor,
daredevil,
mastermind,
conqueror,
socializer,
and
achiever.
In
contrast,
this
more
recent
model
generates
scores
for
three
different
鈥渢raits,鈥
including
the
degree
to
which
players
prefer
action
elements,
aesthetic
aspects,
or
goal
orientation
in
games.
It鈥檚
possible
to
then
analyze
those
player
preferences
for
groups
of
people
who
are
in
different
age
categories,
or
different
genders,
for
example.
Tondello and Nacke, have been exploring what motivates people and helps keep them playing certain games. Ultimately, they want to use the information to make game design more personalized and more effectively motivate gamers in both entertainment and work applications.
鈥淪ome people have been found to really enjoy daredevil, fast action elements of games, while others like the aesthetic elements, such as the art and graphic design,鈥 said Nacke. 鈥淭he story can also be necessary for drawing some people into a game.
鈥淚f we can build systems that can adapt to and accommodate individual differences, interactive systems become more exciting and motivating for every one of us."
The study, , co-authored by Tondello, Nacke, Deltcho Valtchanov, Adrian Reetz, Rina Wehbe and Rita Orji, all of the University of 蓝莓视频 Games Institute, was published recently in the International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction.