ExperienceLab

Siri on the iPhone 4S - why people don't use it

The voice recognition performs well, it's well integrated, it's context-aware, it's location-aware, it has some killer come backs… but do people actually use it? 

First impressions of Google Plus: a return to private sharing

Facebook was about telling everyone what you're up to, Twitter was about information sharing, Google Plus is about sharing stuff in the way you want to.

I signed up to Google Plus a couple of days ago and my first thought was 'what's this circle business all about then?'

And then I found a use for it. 

Do better motion controllers affect gaming?

We decided to investigate the effect of the new generation of motion controllers (e.g. Wii MotionPlus and Sony PlayStation Move) on the gaming experience, looking at the following factors:

• Immersion – how engaged and immersed they are in the game
• Motivation – why people play
• Style of play – types of movements and amount of movement

Comparing the Wiimote and Wii MotionPlus, we found that a more accurate motion controller (Wii MotionPlus) did influence style of play – gamers played more realistically and in turn were more immersed in the game. The effect was particularly strong in people who played primarily to win!. People who played to relax still benefited but the effects were less pronounced. This suggests that hardcore gamers may particularly benefit from advances in motion controllers.

The research also showcases the use of different methods to get at players experiences whilst playing games. We used a full-body motion capture suit, video recordings, questionnaires and interviews, to gather data. 

Read a summary of the findings here: research article (PDF)

The research was conducted by Jasmir Nijhar in collaboration with PlayableGames, and formed the basis of an M.Sc. project for the UCL Interaction Centre.

See the PlayableGames research page for more articles and research!

 

 

Designing video game packaging – what makes a good game cover?

PlayableGames recently conducted research into game packaging to find out:

• What makes a good game cover?
• What information do gamers look for when they pick a game off the shelf?
• What drives their decision to purchase a game… and conversely what might make them walk away? 

Our findings are available on the PlayableGames research page.

By interviewing real gamers while they were shopping for games, we uncovered key findings that could be used to improve the design effective game covers. For example, gamers often found it difficult to find information about multiplayer options and hardware requirements. But this was a key factor in deciding whether to buy the game. For parents, it would be great if age ratings were displayed in a consistent location so they always knew where to look for this.