So say three of the leading game academics, Ian Bogost, Mia Consalvo and Jane McGonigal, at this year's Game Developer's Conference. The trio presented a bounty of relevant research that's being conducted in laboratories around the world which offer unique insights into how gamers consume interactive entertainment, and how developers could make products that respond to the needs and desires of their consumers.
They offered accounts of ten studies that are accessible online, which range from the effects of music and voice, to control and communication strategies.
Their top ten includes:
10. How does music impact a player's effectiveness? 9. What do players really think about voice chat and its usefulness in gameplay? 8. Gestural and embodied controllers are fun--but are they good for gameplay? 7. Does the presence of other players make an online game more or less immersive? 6. Are game players cheating as much as developers (and other players) think they are? 5. What innovative game design uses exist for player-controlled cameras? 4. What strategies do gamers invent to communicate to other players in online games, and can games be better designed to support these strategies? 3. Can alternative controllers, like eye tracking devices, offer a PC gaming experience that is more fun and involving than mouse control? 2. How can developers generate facial animation that combines speech and variable emotion? 1. How do game events marking success versus failure affect a player's level of engagement?
There's a summary of the talk at gamasutra, and further information at McGonigal's site.
