Journal of Gaming & Virtual Worlds - Volume 5, Issue 3, 2013

Procedural audio is an alternative approach to sound design in computer games, which offers extensive possibilities for dynamic audio. There are many arguments for using this approach to sound design, but as of today procedural audio has not been utilized in many contemporary commercial computer games. This article is based on a series of interviews with audio programmers, sound designers and audio middleware software developers between December 2011 and May 2012. The article discusses and summarizes the most important conclusions from these interviews concerning procedural audio in computer games. In doing so it seeks to answer the question: Why is this approach to sound design not more popular in modern computer games? The lack of well-integrated tools is mentioned as being one of the most important issues. Sound quality, education and poor communication between the industry and academia are other important issues. There are different approaches for designing procedural audio tools and different possibilities for improving the perceived sound quality of the models. In the future, one would not expect to see a full integration of procedural tools directly in the audio middleware, it being more likely to see those tools as plug-ins from third-party companies.

This study is a preliminary investigation of whether exploring and interacting in a virtual world, using a customized gesture-based interface, can encourage physical activity in an older population. Older people were consulted to find out what features of a virtual world would appeal to them. Informed by this consultation, a garden was implemented in Second Life. In order to allow users without IT experience to access the garden, and to provide a stimulus for physical exertion, a gesture interface was developed to allow small user movements to control larger or faster avatar movements. We termed this system Second Lives for the Third Age (SL3A). Preliminary evaluation was performed with two older female users. They were both able to use SL3A, despite some difficulties caused by excessive speed of some avatar responses. One user was positive and the other was indifferent about the relevance of such a system to them.

Children’s virtual worlds attract millions of preteens. This article, which uses ethnographic methods and usability testing techniques, examines children’s interest in virtual worlds and how behaviours associated with socializing, gaming, exploring and creating influence their use of the spaces. The study, which consisted of interviews and observations of sixteen children between 6 and 11, examined how cognitive and social development influence their use of virtual worlds. Specifically, the study considers whether children behave in the spaces according to the expectations established by the rules or play on their own terms. The results suggest that children use the spaces in ways that fit their style of play, despite limits created by membership-only features and virtual wealth accumulation. They often ignore the social aspects of play and focus on arcade style games and quests. Some children cited a preference for more creative options.

The social dynamics of player communities in online games have been the subject of much research during the last decade. Following a systematic review of empirical research publications from 2000–2010, this article synthesizes the key methods and concepts researchers have used to study and characterize player communities. It also synthesizes the key aspects and operationalizations researchers have concentrated on. The analysis shows that qualitative approaches have been more common than quantitative ones. The concepts used to characterize player communities were often not clearly defined or overlapped in meaning. Yet they revealed a prevalence of micro (groups or teams), meso (guilds or organizations) and macro (communities and networks) perspectives. About 22 different aspects and operationalizations of player communities were identified. Six were most common, i.e. culture and social norms, social structuring, rationale, number of members, used information and communication technologies and time of existence. The article concludes with several suggestions for future research.

This article interrogates the importance of feelies for game design and game history, making the case for considering feelies not as ephemera, but as essential game components. Feelies have often been treated as supplementary aspects of game design, as evidenced by the reissue and even archiving of games without feelies. However, researchers would do well to consider carefully the impact feelies have on player experience, particularly as practices established around these early games continue to inform game design; too much attention to the digital components of games can efface the physicality of video games and artificially simplify interpretations.

The free-to-play economic model of social network games (SNGs) requires them to maintain a large number of active players. Only a small percentage of the player population will purchase in-game goods, which provides the income stream that funds the continued operation of the game. Understanding the reasons why players choose to play (and consequently spend their money) or abandon SNGs is important for designing SNGs that are economically viable. We explore the reasons why players decide to continue or stop playing SNGs by reporting the results of a survey questionnaire presented to a large population (N=48,882) of players of a Chinese SNG. We show that although players joined the game for different reasons, most players keep playing the game because of their sense of achievement. In contrast to other SNG studies, social obligations did not prevent players from leaving the game as they become bored.

Qualitative and quantitative data reveal that residents of virtual worlds have rich expectations for their in-game bodies (avatars), and that these expectations are important to how players respond to the typically hypersexualized bodies produced for most games. This paper argues that players are not a homogenous group in their response to such sexualization, but rather that while some players object to it, others, both male and female, enjoy it. The sexualization of videogame avatars participates in the social construction of gender norms and this process can disenfranchise players, but it also offers many players opportunities reclaim, subvert, and/or transform gender norms and thereby experience feelings of empowerment. As players have varied responses to the sexualization of videogame bodies, game designers need to provide a wide variety of customization options for both male and female bodies; these need not eliminate those currently offered, but should supplement them with other body types.

‘Is a separation between real and virtual life obsolete?’: Cyberspace 2012 – 10th International Conference: Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic, 30 November–1 December 2012

The Drax Files: The World Makers – documenting real lives via machinima: Interview with Filmmaker Bernhard Drax (Draxtor Despres)