IT UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN WORK Class code: Name of course: Course manager: Course e-portfolio: Thesis or project title: Supervisor: Full Name: Birthdate (dd/mm-yyyy): E-mail: 1. @itu.dk 2. @itu.dk 3. @itu.dk 4. @itu.dk 5. @itu.dk 6. @itu.dk 7. @itu.dk Andreas Lagerstedt Jasper van’t Veen Lars Lyskjær-Rudbæk Bachelor thesis 2014 IT-University of Copenhagen Supervisor: Miguel Angel Sigart Vila Distributed Game Interfaces Characters: 132758 Project Summary Index The mainstream video game industry has just started implement- ing smart devices into the home gaming environment in the form of “companion apps”. As the question of how this implementation can affect the play experience of videogames is still largely un- answered, this study aims to investigate current companion apps and in turn discuss how to make the inclusion of smart devices in video games meaningful. This has been done by considering the Introduction 2 game and app constellations as parts of one, distributed game in- terface with the aim of creating guidelines for their design. Three games were chosen for the study: Assassin’s Creed 4 Black Flag, Research question 3 Grand Theft Auto 5 and Battlefield 4. Theory 4 The study has been conducted with an offset in theories con- cerning play as an activity in an enacted experience, types of play Methodology 10 and games, player immersion, affordance, goal-directed design, models for comprehension, game interfaces, distributed user Existing Companion Apps 13 interfaces and the importance of context. This has served as a background for analysing the three games and their “Compan- ion Apps” as distributed game interfaces. In order to fully un- Findings 26 derstand how these can affect the play experience, a qualitative study consisting of five individual interviews and a focus group Analysis 36 with the same participants has been conducted. Discussion 40 Analysing the three games in question as distributed game in- terfaces has revealed a mismatch in the game type and enacted Guidelines for Design 42 experience each platform offers. The findings from the qualita- tive study showed how the players understanding and expecta- tions of each platform differed greatly, which in turn affected the End Notes 45 play experience of the distributed game interfaces. Discussing how to implement such interfaces in a meaningful way has let References 46 to the conclusion that understanding and designing for the giv- en context of play, and utilizing the unique affordances of smart Appendix Index 47 devices for novel interactions is key. Following these guidelines can greatly affect the play experience by letting the players’ un- derstanding of smart devices shift from everyday- to in-game artefacts. 1 Introduction Smart devices have become a popular gaming platform for a a matter of understanding video game interfaces and how these plethora of users worldwide. The easily accessible iOS AppStore are affected when tasks are distributed across devices. and Google Play has helped to distribute games in to the pock- As a result, we propose that a closer study of the implementa- ets of a broad spectrum of players spread out across gender, tion of smart devices in video games is due. We aim to cover age and nationality. The mainstream games industry has started current iterations of smart-device implementations in games to adapt to the new age of connectivity, which is evident in the by investigating how players perceive the separate platforms focus on social capabilities in the newest video game consoles, included in the play experience as well as the implementation Playstation 4 and Xbox One, and the inclusion of “companion of smart devices a whole. The subjects of study will be As- apps” in blockbuster game franchises. Examples of the latter sassin’s Creed 4, Grand Theft Auto V (GTA V) and Battlefield can be found with Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed 4 Black Flag, Rock- 4’s respective companion app solutions naturally delimiting our star’s GTA 5 and EA’s Battlefield 4. Upcoming mainstream game study to an investigation of the “home gaming environment” launches such as The Division1, Watch_Dogs2 and The Crew3, as we will call it. This will be done through examining players’ among others, are boasting of including companion apps as views and ideas in interviews and a focus group. The results will well. be used as a foundation for discussing how the implementa- Smart-devices have only been around for a few years com- tion of smart-devices affect the play experience of videogames pared to other consumer electronics, and nothing is decisive and hence will lead to the creation of guidelines for designing at all when it comes to their role in the home gaming setting. distributed game interfaces. Hence, this study will focus on an- While different implementations are taking place with the in- swering the following research question: clusion of smart-devices in video games, the concept is still in its infancy. However, the content of these inclusions mostly consists of functions that already existed in the previous itera- tion of the game. Hence, the possible play experiences enabled by this constellation of devices, is still largely unexplored. Un- derstanding the unique properties of each device included in the game environment might prove essential in order to create novel experiences for players to indulge in. The inclusion of smart devices broadens the amount of techno- logical platforms present in video game experiences. We pro- pose that understanding what users expect of these platforms can help to create meaningful implementations. Investigating how the different devices are connected and how this in turn shapes the players’ investment in the game, can prove integral to revealing what measures must be taken in order to imple- ment these devices in a meaningful way. Overall, we see this as 2 How does inclusion of smart devices affect the play experience of video games and what guidelines need to be developed for future games to make this inclusion meaningful? 3 Theory In order to investigate how the inclusion of smart devices af- that can break the aforementioned connection. This enforces fects the play experience we will outline prior research con- the need to examine players’ understanding of each platform cerning play, immersion, user experience and video games in- and how to combine them in the home gaming environment. terfaces as well as the importance of understanding context. This will be done in order to give us both a vocabulary and a Definition of play and games toolset to analyze and discuss our findings. To achieve a better understanding of how smart devices affect the overall play experience, we feel it is necessary to include Relationship between the player previous classifications on what constitute a game and different and the screen types of games. No matter how much a digital game can engross and immerse Caillois gives six definitions as to what defines play. In his the player into its’ world, the relationship between the player words play 1) is a free activity and not obligatory in any way, and the screen is still the same as it always has been. The player 2) is separate from the routines of ordinary life, 3) is uncertain and the screen can be considered as two separate, connected and it’s course cannot be predicted in any way, 4) is unproduc- entities. The immersion the player experiences in a game will tive and doesn’t generate any wealth and with its end you are stop when the player at some point either physically or psycho- back where you started, 5) is governed by rules that does not logically breaks the connection (Simon, 2009). apply in the ordinary world and the players have to abide them Digital devices such as the Oculus Rift and Nintendo Wii has and, 6) is inherently make belief and involves an awareness of challenged this stereotypical relation between player and the a second reality, different from everyday life (Caillois, 1961, as screen. By incorporating the player’s bodily actions into game- cited in, Salen, K. and Eric Zimmerman, 2005). play, they help blur the line between screen and player letting The four different forms of play is Agon, Alea, Mimicry and Ilinx. the game take on a new form. The focus shifts from the player Agon is present in games of competition. Examples found in playing the game, to the player actually “becoming” the game. digital games are fighting games such as Tekken (1994 - 2013), By “becoming” the game, we as players “embody” the gameplay or Street Fighter (1987 - 2012) and first person shooters like Call and bring it into the physical world. In this way, interaction with of Duty (2003 – 2013), where the matter of eliminating an oppo- the game is performed in relation to spectators or in social play nent, human or AI, is the main attraction. Alea represent games with friends (Simon, 2009). Even if the bodily actions are too of chance, which are mostly found in gambling, but also present excessive and are of no “real” use when interacting with the in games where certain percentages of probability determine game, it still instills a feeling of fun in the participants of the the outcome of in-game actions. This could be games based play session. of the Dungeons and Dragons system, such as Baldur’s Gate If motion controls can stimulate this form of embodiment and (1998 - 2013), where a digital dice roll determines how much sense of sociality between players, it is intriguing to examine damage is done and if an in-game action is successful. Mimicry how smart devices can affect players’ relation to the screen, embraces the make-belief aspect of play and appears in games or as it is starting to become the case, multiple screens.