TY - GEN
T1 - Decoding the Flow Experience in Video Games
T2 - 20th International Forum on Digital TV and Wireless Multimedia Communications, IFTC 2023
AU - Zhang, Di
AU - Wu, Qi
AU - Huang, Xinhui
AU - Zhang, Boning
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2024.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - We explore the application of psychophysiological measures to gain real-time and objective insights into the flow experience of gamers, aiming to overcome the limitations of traditional self-report surveys, which can be intrusive and lack real-time capabilities. In this study, a self-developed game platform is employed to capture users’ real-time performance data and physiological responses. The recorded data includes in-game process logs, eye movement patterns, and galvanic skin response (GSR). To objectively quantify gaming performance, a novel method employing a gradient boosting model is introduced, offering a comprehensive understanding of the gaming experience. The experimental results indicate that gaming performance tends to improve during flow states compared to non-flow states. Flow states are characterized by specific physiological markers, including saccade number in the area of interest (AOI), average peak velocity of saccades, pupil diameter, blink rate, and fixation number. Additionally, GSR signals exhibit significant differences between flow and non-flow states, with an increased peak frequency during the flow state. The integration of real-time multi-modal measurements offers a novel approach to investigating the flow experience in games, providing valuable insights for future research in immersive game design and user experience evaluation.
AB - We explore the application of psychophysiological measures to gain real-time and objective insights into the flow experience of gamers, aiming to overcome the limitations of traditional self-report surveys, which can be intrusive and lack real-time capabilities. In this study, a self-developed game platform is employed to capture users’ real-time performance data and physiological responses. The recorded data includes in-game process logs, eye movement patterns, and galvanic skin response (GSR). To objectively quantify gaming performance, a novel method employing a gradient boosting model is introduced, offering a comprehensive understanding of the gaming experience. The experimental results indicate that gaming performance tends to improve during flow states compared to non-flow states. Flow states are characterized by specific physiological markers, including saccade number in the area of interest (AOI), average peak velocity of saccades, pupil diameter, blink rate, and fixation number. Additionally, GSR signals exhibit significant differences between flow and non-flow states, with an increased peak frequency during the flow state. The integration of real-time multi-modal measurements offers a novel approach to investigating the flow experience in games, providing valuable insights for future research in immersive game design and user experience evaluation.
KW - Flow
KW - Game User Experience
KW - Performance Measures
KW - Physiological Indicator
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85200516705&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-981-97-3626-3_7
DO - 10.1007/978-981-97-3626-3_7
M3 - Conference Proceeding
AN - SCOPUS:85200516705
SN - 9789819736256
T3 - Communications in Computer and Information Science
SP - 82
EP - 95
BT - Digital Multimedia Communications - 20th International Forum on Digital TV and Wireless Multimedia Communications, IFTC 2023, Revised Selected Papers
A2 - Zhai, Guangtao
A2 - Zhou, Jun
A2 - Yang, Hua
A2 - Ye, Long
A2 - An, Ping
A2 - Yang, Xiaokang
PB - Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH
Y2 - 21 December 2023 through 22 December 2023
ER -