Game Design Commons^™

Pilot Study Of A Kinect-Based Video Game To Improve Physical Therapy Treatment, Jacob Samuel Brown

Department of Computer Graphics Technology Degree Theses

Burnie is an exergame being developed at Purdue University and is used in this study. Burnie was developed using the Unity3D engine and OpenNI to interface with the Xbox Kinect. This study looked at how gesture intensity affected perceived enjoyment and perceived fatigue of the game. The results of the study could not reject the null hypothesis. Gesture intensity does not have a significant relationship to perceived enjoyment and perceived fatigue. This result means that future studies can alter the gesture intensity of the game Burnie without adversely affecting the player’s enjoyment and fatigue levels.

Mobile Games With Intelligence: A Killer Application?, Philip Hingston, Clare Bates Congdon, Graham Kendall

Research outputs 2013

Mobile gaming is an arena full of innovation, with developers exploring new kinds of games, with new kinds of interaction between the mobile device, players, and the connected world that they live in and move through. The mobile gaming world is a perfect playground for AI and CI, generating a maelstrom of data for games that use adaptation, learning and smart content creation. In this paper, we explore this potential killer application for mobile intelligence. We propose combining small, light-weight AI/CI libraries with AI/CI services in the cloud for the heavy lifting. To make our ideas more concrete, we describe …

Exploration Of Physical Computing: Digital Interfaces Using Microsoft Kinect And Peggy 2 Led Matrix, Jeffrey Franklin

Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies

Physical computing, or more specifically social immersive media, is an offshoot of New Media that incorporates interactive physical systems (software/hardware systems) to sense and respond to the analog world. This serves as a creative framework for understanding our own relationship to the digital world. In this project, computer vision is incorporated as a medium between both input and output through the use of two cameras, a typical webcam and a Microsoft Kinect. For the first part of the project, a webcam streams visual data into a computer program which interpolates the video data into a 25x25 virtual dot matrix. This …

Design & Communication: The Future Of Service-Learning, Ulrike Gencarelle M.A., Laura Gabiger Phd, Deana Marzocchi

Computer Graphics Department Faculty Publications and Creative Works

Poster for a presentation at the Eastern Region Campus Compact Conference 2012.

Depicted are online writing class projects, as well as web and print design examples created by Johnson & Wales (Providence Campus) Digital Media department design students for non-profit organizations in Rhode Island communities.

Adventures In The Classroom Creating Role-Playing Games Based On Traditional Stories For The High School Curriculum, Csenge Virág Zalka

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this thesis is to develop a template for turning traditional stories into role-playing games for the high school curriculum. By developing 3 sample games based on Greek mythology, Arthurian legends, and a widespread folktale type, I explored the process of creating games that fit the limits of secondary classrooms and can be used to address specific educational standards. The sample games were tested with groups of high school and college students, and the results of the testing sessions evaluated in a narrative case study format. Feedback from the testing sessions was incorporated in the template, the final …

Women And Video Games: Pigeonholing The Past, Allison Perry

Scripps Senior Theses

Academic work dealing with the overlap between video games and female representation is limited in both volume and proper research. Most texts agree on three supposed flaws with video games: they alienate female participants, there are no games for female players, and female players cannot relate to female characters. This thesis sheds light on these points, not only citing specific counter-examples, but also showing how many of these issues reflect on a larger societal problems.

Accurate Player Modeling And Cheat-Proof Gameplay In Peer-To-Peer Based Multiplayer Online Games, Daniel Everett Pittman Jr.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

We present the first detailed measurement study and models of the virtual populations in popular Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs). Our results show that, amongst several MMORPGs with very different play styles, the patterns of behaviors are consistent and can be described using a common set of models.

In addition, we break down actions common to Trading Card Games (TCGs) and explain how they can be executed between players without the need for a third party referee. In each action, the player is either prevented from cheating, or if they do cheat, the opponent will be able to prove …

"We Should Have Brought The Tank": Hypermediated Interactivity In Red Vs. Blue, Marc A. Ouellette

English Faculty Publications

Machinima, the practice of adapting recorded video game play into short films, highlights an often unacknowledged but significant shift in the consumption of video games and represents a key and underexplored intersection between the two leading theoretical camps. Considering the landmark series Red vs. Blue through the lens of Bolter and Grusin's propositions about "new" media's relationships with other forms offers an entry point for theorizing not only machinima but also the intersections between the ludology and narratology positions in games studies.

Question 1: Google And Pac-Man; Question 2: Magnetic Levitation, Larry Weinstein

Physics Faculty Publications

On the 30th anniversary of the introduction of the video game Pac-Man, Google created a miniature version of the game and placed it as its logo on its home page. How much total time was wasted in the United States playing this game?

(Thanks to Daniel Drill of Old Dominion University for suggesting the question.)

Animal tissue is diamagnetic. How large a magnetic field gradient is needed to levitate frogs or people?

Systems At Play: The Construction Of International Systems In Social Impact Games, Jorge Albor

Master's Theses

This thesis explores how game makers conceive of and navigate the intersection between digital systems and real world systems by asking, how can social impact game designers shape procedural rhetoric to effectively address complex real world systems with digital systems? By examining three game case studies, I reach four significant findings regarding player agency, subversive play, design approaches to scale, and game difficulty in regards to systems fluency.

Texture Mapping With Mudbox And 3ds Max, Joshua Holland

Graphic Communication

The purpose of this study was to determine the intuitiveness of texture mapping and compressibility of files generated using Autodesk 3ds Max 2012 versus Autodesk Mudbox 2012. This will be used by anyone starting to learn how to texture map and who is comparing programs that have the capability to do so. This will save users time in researching which program is better suited for their needs.

This study investigated how Autodesk 3ds Max 2012 and Autodesk Mudbox 2012 compared in mapping textures to 3D models. A basic computer skills assessment test and an intuitive test was administered to twelve …

Possible Symbolics 33, Stephen Andrade

Computer Graphics Department Faculty Publications and Creative Works

Professor Steve Andrade is continuously experimenting in a wide range of visual arts and technology. He is an avid researcher in the areas of interactive technology, gaming, modern visual metaphor, archeology, fine arts, Western geology and the sociology of technology space.

When he is not teaching or conducting projects at the University, Professor Andrade can be found traveling or working in his studio (pictured here). His artwork includes digital imaging, graphic art posters, virtual space planning, information graphics, 2d and 3d sculpture, representational sketching, realism, video and his current passion - abstract modern painting with a hint of allegory. He …

The Risk Factors Of Alcohol Abuse Among College Athletes, Jacob Jones

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Self-concept theory was used as a theoretical basis to investigate the utility of social norms alcohol prevention programs designed for college athletes. The predictive relationship among alcohol use and athletic identity, competitiveness, drinking game participation, and level of sport participation was investigated. It was discovered that drinking game participation is a significant predictor of total weekly alcohol use above and beyond the other predictors. In addition, drinking game participation and organized recreational sport participation were significant predictors of total binge drinking episodes. While controlling for drinking game participation and competitiveness, no significant differences were found in the amount of alcohol …

The Carp Metaverse Art Ebooks, Velazquez Bonetto

SWITCH

This article describes the Cybernetic Art Research Project (CARP), founded in 2007 as a location in the Art Space Diabolus in Second Life. Their goal is to produce what they call HyperArt - "technically sophisticated and substantive art that explores all the possibilities of virtual media."

Cinema Of Video Games, Michael Tucker

SWITCH

This article explores the unique potential of video games, arguing that they surpass traditional storytelling forms like literature, theater, illustration, and film by offering players a sense of agency and emotional ownership. Through interactive environments and storytelling, video games can create personalized narratives shaped by player decisions.

Agency In Video Games, Marek Kapolka

SWITCH

This article explores the concept of agency in video games, which the author distinguishes separately from interactivity. While traditional games emphasize challenge and goal completion, artistically-driven games may prioritize experiences of choice with undirected play.

Enslaved Interactivity, Yomi

SWITCH

This article argues that no longer are players passive while playing video games, but play active roles in forming the narratives within video games. Using "Every Day the Same Dream" as a case study, the author writes that video games should empower players to act and shape narratives, fostering awareness that extends beyond the game.

Stop Putting The Hero’S Journey In A Skinner Box, Kelsey Higham

SWITCH

This article describes how goals and reward structures shape player motivation in games, distinguishing between challenge-driven players who enjoy skill development and content-driven players who want narrative and aesthetic experiences. The author argues that while goal-based design is useful for teaching skills and guiding play, it can also limit enjoyment and accessibility.

The Justice League Unlimited, Zenmondo Wormser

SWITCH

This article explains the mission and operations of the Justice League Unlimited (JLU), a volunteer group in Second Life dedicated to peacekeeping, education, and charity. Acting as a neighborhood watch, JLU members patrol high-risk areas, identify and report violations of the platform’s Terms of Service and Community Standards, and sometimes resolve issues through direct communication.

Redefining Classical Music Literacy: A Study Of Classical Orchestras, Museum Anthropology, And Game Design Theory, Kimberly M. Zahler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current state of declining audiences for the performing arts in the United States is cause for concern for those musicians and ensembles interested in the continuation of the art forms. The previous model of using audience numbers as the sole or primary measure of an orchestra's success is no longer sufficient in an era of participatory design and interactive experiences. Through observation and analysis of the culture of classical music, this study focuses on the emerging visions of participatory culture and the ways in which museum anthropology and game design theory can be used to redefine classical music literacy …