Becker Video Game Design

Abstract :"Immigrants entering the European Community face a range of challenges in adapting to and understanding the culture of their host nation. Failure to address these challenges can lead to isolation and difficulties integrating into the society of the host country, leading to fragmented communities and a range of social issues . As part of a comprehensive suit e of services for immigrants , the European - funded M obile Assistance for Social Inclusion and Empowerment of Immigrants with Persuasive Learning Technologies and Social Network Services (MASELTOV) project seeks to provide both practical tools and le arning services via mobile devices, providing a readily usable resource for immigrants . In this workshop paper, the game - based learning aspect of the MASELTOV project is introduced, with the rationale behind its design presented. In doing so, the b enefits and implications of mobile platforms and emergent dat a capture techniques for game - based learning are discussed, as are methods for putting engaging gameplay at the forefront of the experience whilst relying on rich data capture and analysis to pro vide an effective learning solution. Through comparison to several other projects, a number of recommendations are put forward for games deployed in contexts similar to that of MASELTOV: a focus on establishing a significant audience with which to conduct ethical research into efficacy, the need for robust pedagogical frameworks suited to the learning context, and the evolution of methods for data capture and analysis of player activity."

Abstract: "Procedural generation of games has become an active re- search eld. We present a system that automatically gen- erates an interactive ction (IF) by learning from crowd- sourced corpora of example stories. We ask crowd workers from Amazon Mechanical Turk to write short stories about a given situation with simple language, from which a plot graph is learned, containing plot events, temporal prece- dence and mutual exclusion relations between the events. The plot graph describes an IF where players and non-player characters choose from executable events as determined by the plot graph. We demonstrate an IF learned from the domain of bank robbery"

"Abstract The eective information processing (e.g. search, organi- zation) of the heterogeneous information spaces requires metadata layer above the resources. However, the acqui- sition of resource metadata and domain models are chal- lenging tasks. Here, the crowdsourcing has emerged as an alternative to expert-based and automated semantics acquisition approaches. One of its branches are the games with a purpose (GWAPs) which encapsulate the seman- tics acquisition tasks into the game processes. We analyze existing GWAPs and propose their classication. Fur- thermore we devised our own GWAP-based approaches. For acquisition of lightweight term relationship network, we devised a search query formulation game, usable also for specic domain models. For acquisition of (personal) image tags, we devised a card game, where players mem- orize positions of concealed cards and identify identical pairs. For validation of music metadata, we devised a multi-choice question-based game, where players identify tag sets that are characteristic to music tracks they hear. We also looked at the GWAPs from their design per- spectives. We present a design oriented classication sys- tem for GWAPs, adress several design issues recurring in GWAPs and present new design patterns to solve them"

Abstract :"This thesis is a research project on the similarities and difference in 3D modeling and op- timizations for different sectors of multimedia. The purpose of this project is to analyse three different areas , an d carry out a project for practical comparison purpose s with the creation of a 3D model using different methods of modeling and optimization . The methods used in this project is a workflow step by step process of production , for later comparison and analysis. The result of this project was the creation of an optimized model for game production, the methods used at modeling pipeline and the comparison between different sectors of Mul- timedia illustrate the similarities and di fferen ces in modeling optimization between these sectors. This project is created to illustrate paths taken for modeling optimization in the biggest sectors of 3D production, with comparative results and analysis. "

" Persuasive technology with game mechanics can educate and motivate people to adopt energy efficient lifestyles. "

Abstract: "Non-player Characters (NPCs) that accompany the player en- able a single player to participate in team-based experiences, improving immersion and allowing for more complex game- play. In this context, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) teammate should make good combat decisions, supporting the player and optimizing combat resolution. Here we investigate the target selection problem, which consists of picking the op- timal enemy as a target in a modern war game. We look at how the companion's different strategies can influence the outcome of combat, and by analyzing a variety of non-trivial First Person Shooter (FPS) scenarios show that a mathemat- ically simple approach significantly improves over common strategies typically found in games, and can achieve results similar to much more expensive look-up tree approaches. This work has applications in practical game design, show- ing that simple, computationally efficient target selection can make an excellent target selection heuristic"

Abstract: "The Global Game Jam provides a unique opportunity to study time-constrained game development at a massive scale. We administered a free-response survey to 2013 Global Game Jam participants about their game development process. Categorized responses show: (a) participants use diverse in- spirations; (b) set goals for their personal benet, the im- pact on game players, and structure of the game system; (c) rarely employ traditional prototyping; and (d) evolve their games by scoping down many ideas, grounding a vague idea through implementation, and iteratively expanding a sim- ple core game. We discuss next steps to gain more in-depth information about design processes"

From the abstract: "As educators struggle to motivate the learners in their classroom, games provide a great opportunity to enrich the education curriculum. The use of games for this purpose is the primary goal of the growing s erious g ames field. ParabolaX is a s erious g ame designed to teach principles of quadratic functions [1] . ParabolaX was developed with two gameplay versions: full and basic. The basic version eliminated many game features. Leaners played ParabolaX during a single classroom session and took surveys before and after they played. Lea r ner scores on quadratic problems before playing were not significantly different than scores after playing ParabolaX , t (65) = - 0.486, p = 0.629 . Lea r ners that played the full version that included all game like features did not show significantly different engagement indicators than those who played the basic version. Learner engagement did not d iffer based on gender or prior experience playing digital games. 76.1% of learners playing the full version agreed that ParabolaX helped them understand quadratic functions compared to only 50% of those who played the basic version."

Abstract: "The purpose of this research was to develop and test smartphone game application for physical activity promotion in adolescen ts. The first study included various user - centered approaches (e.g. qualitative data, idea sessions) to get feedback on what was desired from the adolescents in terms of game development and design. The second study examined the degree to which mobile heal th studies reported on internal and external validity indicators. The last study evaluated the smartphone game applications through a mixed - methods approach. The results of this research showed that ph ysical activity while playing smartphone game applica tions can yield moderate physical activity intensity. Moreover, adolescents had moderate perceptions of the games and recommended specific changes to the games. Likewise, t he data suggest that smartphone physical activity game applications can be enjoyable if they are aesthetically appealing, easy to use, and foster social peer interactions . Overall, t his research demonstrated that smartphone games that were developed and designed based on adolescents' preferences and persuasive technology design principles could increase physical activity in adolescents and provides a tool for further exploration."

Abstract: "Movers and Shakers is a tablet - based serious game that explores how subversive game design can foster meaningful conversational conflict beyond outside the game's digital screens . This two - player strategy puzzle was developed at the Singapore - MIT GAMBIT Game Lab and is used as a research tool to ex plore novel challenges in multi player serious games. The project provides insights into the affordances and challenges of mobile serious games for co - located players."

Abstract: "The Global Games Jam (GGJ) attracts many people who are passionate about games development , co ming from a range of educational backgrounds. Therefore , the event can be experienced by novices and student developers as an opportunity for learning. This provi des an op ening to promote themes and ideas that could help form future thinking about games design, emerging as a form of induction on key design issues for new practitioners . Such an approach aims to raise awareness about issues which learners c ould help develop and take with them into industry . However, t he experience itself affords a deep experiential rhetoric and dialogue with experts that could be an effective pedagogical tool for issues seldom addressed deeply in formal educational settings . This pape r describes an account by one such individual, being introduced to game accessibility through participation in the GGJ . As such, it is not intended as a rigorous empirical analysis , but rather a perspective on one way a game jam can be experienced , invitin g further research on the topic."

"e describe an approach for developing an in- telligent game master (GM) for computer role-playing games. The role of the GM is to set up the game environment, man- age the narrative ow and enforce the game rules whilst keeping the players engaged. Our approach is to use the popular Belief-Desire-Intention (BDI) model of agents to de- veloping a GM."

Abstract: ""Sequence Breaking" is a type of feature interaction conflict that exists in video games where the player gains access to a portion of a game that should be inaccessible. In such instances, a game's subsuming featur e - its storylin e - is disrupted, as the predefined set of valid event sequences - event s being uninterruptable unit s of functionality that further the game's story - is not honoured, as per the game designer s' intentions. We postulate that sequence breaking often arise s through bypassing g eographic barriers, chea ting, and misunderstanding on the player's behalf. Throughout this dissertation, we pre sent an approach to preventing seque nce breaking at run - time with the help of Use Case Maps. We create a "narrative manager" and traversal algorithm to monitor the playe r's narrative progress and check the legality of attempted event calls. We verify our solution through test cases and show its feasibility through a game , concluding t hat our solution is sufficient and feasible."

"There's a recent tradition of developers screwing with pirates-from releasing enormous, immortal pink scorpions on them, to booby trapping their games with glitches when they get cracked. This weekend, Greenheart Games, creator of Game Dev Tycoon, just blew the curve for everyone. This is fantastic."

Abstract: "As a way to support developers , we propose the creation of specialized tools to deal with accessibility. The hypothesis defined was that it is possible to produce tools that coul d reduce the cost and effort needed to adapt games for people with special needs while achi eving a sufficient level of usability and a pleasant player exper ience . Because of the ambitious of the approach , the goal of the project is to explore if it is feasible through preliminary research . T hree experiments were set up to cover and explore different alternatives , given the diversity of player characteristics and game develop ment approaches . In these experiments we targeted t wo different platforms: a desktop game authoring tool oriented to educators , and a mobile game development framework oriented to programmers . In these experiments we used the to ols developed to produce several games that were also tested by end users . While the project focuses on disability, the ideas proposed can be generalized and applied to support optimizing game interfaces for a wide and diverse audience."

Abstract: "Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) have begun to develop hybrid systems that balance the learning benefits of ITSs with the motivational benefits of games. iSTART-ME (Motivationally Enhanced) is a new game-based learning environment developed on top of an existing ITS for reading comprehension (iSTART). In an 11 session labbased study, 40 high school students interacted with the full iSTART-ME system and completed comprehension measures at multiple time points (pretest, posttest, retention, and transfer). The current work examined students' comprehension outcomes and how they were related to performance within three integrated practice methods: Coached Practice (non-game), Showdown (game-based), and Map Conquest (game-based). Results indicate that performance within the game-based practice environments was positively related to comprehension outcomes, whereas performance within the non-game environment had no relation to subsequent comprehension measures."

Abstract: "In this paper, we explore the application of Software Product Line (SPL) technology in the video games domain by exploiting differences in various video game platforms to design a variable component - based software product line architecture for a multiplatform vide o game . Our approach consists of constructing a feature dependency model for describing variability in multiplatform video games. We explored variability in the user interface, input devices, output devices, CPU, as well as other variability in various vid eo game platforms. Then, we designed a variable component - based SPL that is tailored to every video game in the product line. We validated our approach by implementing a SPL of a combat flight - simulator game and by deriving two versions of the game: a Win dows desktop version and a Windows Phone version. The derivation process of each version is done by selecting features from the feature dependency model and the corresponding software components and SPL parameters that relate to those features. "

Abstract: "In recent years, there has been a dramatic proliferation of research concerned with game based learning and intelligent system s . Although the intelligent agent bas ed system has existed for many years, only recently its surge of mainstream popularity motivated researchers to acknowledge its educational value. With the increasing usage of game based learning, reliability requirements for intelligent system s or multi - a gent system s have become more critical. Quiz game is one of the game types which is easy to develop and not restrict ed by any specific subject and any people . And the m ulti - agent based system is flexible and saving resource . Hence we integrate the quiz gam e into multi - agent system s , we called it m ulti - agent based quiz game and also d evelop a framework to build personalized assessment game . For the instructor, they can understand student's playing situation and experience . For the students, they have p ersona lized assessment game . In this paper, we proposed a framewor k of multi - agent based Quiz - MASter , and describe each service from each agent briefly."

Abstract: "Serious Games are increasingly used as a training and educational tool. Fire keeps claiming a high number of victims. Some authors allege failures during the evacuation process as the main cause that contributes for that number. Fire drills are used to train buildings' occupants for emergency situations. However, fire drills' participants often have prior knowledge of their schedule and as result they are not as focused as they should. Moreover, fire drills require the mobilization of some resources, leading to financial costs. Performing a fire drill will always affect the normal functioning of the place where they take place; for this reason, sometimes they are not performed at all. In some special locations, like hospitals, fire drills are unsuitable. Emergency planning is crucial to prevent and minimize damage and victims. Albeit the improvement on safety measures, many occupants and employers in this type of buildings still lack adequate knowledge and training on how to behave in such hazardous situations. EVA is presented as a possible solution, which is based on the concept of Serious Game that can be used as a training tool for healthcare professionals. A preliminary prototype was developed. A sample of 20 subjects was selected to test it giving promising results. Results also showed that users who had training in fire prevention appear to perform better in the course. Moreover, participants who regularly play computer games overcame easily the game challenges. Further research and development are still to be explored, which are discussed in the concluding part of this paper."