The Impact of Agency and Familiarity in Cooperative Multiplayer Games
- 15 October 2017
- conference paper
- conference paper
- Published by Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) in Proceedings of the Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play
- p. 423-434
- https://doi.org/10.1145/3116595.3116622
Abstract
Many online videogames make use of characters controlled by both humans (avatar) and computers (agent) to facilitate game play. However, the level of agency a teammate shows potentially produces differing levels of social presence during play, which in turn may impact on the player experience. To better understand these effects, two experimental studies were conducted utilising cooperative multiplayer games (Left 4 Dead 2 and Rocket League). In addition, the effect of familiarity between players was considered. The trend across the two studies show that playing with another human is more enjoyable, and facilitates greater connection, cooperation, presence and positive mood than play with a computer agent. The implications for multiplayer game design is discussedKeywords
Funding Information
- Movember Foundation
This publication has 31 references indexed in Scilit:
- Electronic Friend or Virtual Foe: Exploring the Role of Competitive and Cooperative Multiplayer Video Game Modes in Fostering EnjoymentMedia Psychology, 2012
- Defining Media Enjoyment as the Satisfaction of Intrinsic NeedsJournal of Communication, 2010
- Development and Validation of an Internationally Reliable Short-Form of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS)Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2007
- Shared intentionalityDevelopmental Science, 2006
- Spatial Presence and Emotions during Video Game Playing: Does It Matter with Whom You Play?PRESENCE: Virtual and Augmented Reality, 2006
- Understanding and sharing intentions: The origins of cultural cognitionBehavioral and Brain Sciences, 2005
- Presence, ExplicatedCommunication Theory, 2004
- Toward a More Robust Theory and Measure of Social Presence: Review and Suggested CriteriaPRESENCE: Virtual and Augmented Reality, 2003
- The Effect of the Agency and Anthropomorphism on Users' Sense of Telepresence, Copresence, and Social Presence in Virtual EnvironmentsPRESENCE: Virtual and Augmented Reality, 2003
- Psychometric Properties of the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory in a Competitive Sport Setting: A Confirmatory Factor AnalysisResearch Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 1989