Gaming in Virtual Reality: What Changes in Terms of Usability,Emotional Response and Sense of Presence Compared to Non-Immersive Video Games?

Abstract

Background. Virtual reality can provide innovative gaming experiences for present and future game players. However, scientific knowledge is still limited about differences between player’s experience in video games played in immersive modalities and games played in non-immersive modalities (i.e., on a desktop display).

Materials and method. Smash Hit was played by 24 young adults in immersive (virtual reality) and non-immersive (desktop) condition. Self-report questionnaires (VAS-A, VAS-HP, VAS-SP, SUS, SUS-II) and psycho-physiological measures (heart rate and skin conductance) were used to assess usability, emotional response and the reported sense of presence.

Results. No statistical differences emerged between the immersive and the non-immersive condition regarding usability and performance scores. The general linear model for repeated measures conducted on VAS-A, VAS-HP, VAS-SP scores for the virtual reality condition supported the idea that playing in the immersive display modality was associated with higher self-reported happiness and surprise; analysis on SUS-II revealed that the perceived sense of presence was higher in the virtual reality condition

Discussion and conclusion. The proposed study provides evidence that (a) playing a video game in virtual reality was not more difficult than playing through a desktop display; (b) players showed a more intense emotional response, as assessed by self-report questionnaires and with psycho-physiological indexes (heart rate and skin conductance), after playing in virtual reality versus after playing through the desktop display; (c) the perceived sense of presence was found to be greater in virtual reality as opposed to the non-immersive condition.

Keywords

commercial virtual reality video games gaming simulation/gaming usability video games virtual reality

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Aitken

R. C.

(1969). Measurement of feelings using visual analogue scales. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Medicine, 62(10), 989-993.

Anderson

C. A.

(2004). An update on the effects of playing violent video games. Journal of Adolescence, 27(1), 113-122.

Aoki

Oman

C. M.

Buckland

D. A.

Natapoff

(2008). Desktop-VR system for preflight 3D navigation training. Acta Astronautica, 63(7-10), 841-847.

Arms

Cook

Cruz-Neira

(1999). The benefits of statistical visualization in an immersive environment. In Rosenblum

Astheimer

Teichmann

(Eds.), Proceedings IEEE Virtual Reality (Cat. No. 99CB36316) (pp. 88-95). Los Alamitos, CA: IEEE Computer Society.

Baños

R. M.

Botella

Rubió

Quero

García-Palacios

Alcañiz

(2008). Presence and emotions in virtual environments: The influence of stereoscopy. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11(1), 1-8.

Baños

R. M.

Etchemendy

Farfallini

García-Palacios

Quero

Botella

(2014). EARTH of well-being system: A pilot study of an Information and Communication Technology-based positive psychology intervention. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 9(6), 482-488.

Bland

J. M.

Altman

D. G.

(1995). Comparing methods of measurement: Why plotting difference against standard method is misleading. The Lancet (London, England), 346(8982), 1085-1087.

Boucsein

(2012). Electrodermal activity. Boston, MA: Springer US.

Bowman

D. A.

Gabbard

J. L.

Hix

(2002). A survey of usability evaluation in virtual environments: Classification and comparison of methods. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 11, 404-424.

10.

Bowman

D. A.

Kruijff

LaViola

J. J.

Poupyrev

(2005). 3D user interfaces: Theory and practice. Boston, MA: Addison-Wesley.

11.

Brade

Lorenz

Busch

Hammer

Tscheligi

Klimant

(2017). Being there again—Presence in real and virtual environments and its relation to usability and user experience using a mobile navigation task. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 101, 76-87.

12.

Burdea

Coiffet

(2003). Virtual reality technology. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 12(6), 663-664.

13.

Buttussi

Chittaro

(2018). Effects of different types of virtual reality display on presence and learning in a safety training scenario. IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics, 24(2), 1063-1076.

14.

Cellan-Jones

(2016). 2016: The year when VR goes from virtual to reality. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-35205783

15.

Cherbuin

Brinkman

(2006). Hemispheric interactions are different in lefthanded individuals. Neuropsychology, 20, 700-707.

16.

Chirico

Cipresso

Yaden

D. B.

Biassoni

Riva

Gaggioli

(2017). Effectiveness of immersive videos in inducing awe: An experimental study. Scientific Reports, 7(1), Article 1218.

17.

Christopoulos

G. I.

M. A.

Yap

W. J.

(2016). The body and the brain. Organizational Research Methods, 27(1), 1-27.

18.

Cox

(2013). What makes a blockbuster video game? An empirical analysis of US sales data. Managerial and Decision Economics, 35(3), 189-198.

19.

Dascal

Reid

IsHak

W. W.

Spiegel

Recacho

Rosen

Danovitch

(2017). Virtual reality and medical inpatients: A systematic review of randomized, controlled trials. Innovations in Clinical Neuroscience, 14(1-2), 14-21.

20.

Egan

Brennan

Barrett

Qiao

Timmerer

Murray

(2016). An evaluation of Heart Rate and ElectroDermal Activity as an objective QoE evaluation method for immersive virtual reality environments. In Eighth International Conference on Quality of Multimedia Experience (QoMEX) (pp. 1-6). New York, NY: IEEE.

21.

Elmqvist

Tudoreanu

M. E.

Tsigas

(2008). Evaluating motion constraints for 3D wayfinding in immersive and desktop virtual environments. In Burnett

Costabile

M. F.

Catarci

de Ruyter

Tan

Czerwinsky

Lund

(Eds.), Proceeding of the Twenty-Sixth Annual CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - CHI ’08 (pp. 1769-1778). New York, NY: ACM Press.

22.

Ermi

Mäyrä

(2005). Fundamental components of the gameplay experience: Analysing immersion. In de Castell

Jenson

(Eds.), Changing views: Worlds in play. Selected papers of the 20005 DiGRA’s Second International Conference (pp. 15-27). Vancouver: DiGRA & University of Vancouver.

23.

Estupiñán

Rebelo

Noriega

Ferreira

Duarte

(2014). Can virtual reality increase emotional responses (Arousal and Valence)? A pilot study. In A. Marcus (Ed.), Design, User Experience, and Usability. User Experience Design for Diverse Interaction Platforms and Environments (pp. 541-549). New York, NY: Springer.

24.

Felnhofer

Kothgassner

O. D.

Schmidt

Heinzle

A.-K.

Beutl

Hlavacs

Kryspin-Exner

(2015). Is virtual reality emotionally arousing? Investigating five emotion inducing virtual park scenarios. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 82, 48-56.

25.

Ferguson

C. J.

(2007). The good, the bad and the ugly: A meta-analytic review of positive and negative effects of violent video games. The Psychiatric Quarterly, 78(4), 309-316.

26.

Fitzgerald

Riva

(2001). Virtual reality. In Beolchi

(Ed.), Telemedicine glossary (pp. 327-329). European Commission-DGINFSO.

27.

Freeman

Garety

P. A.

Bebbington

Slater

Kuipers

Fowler

. . . Dunn

(2005). The psychology of persecutory ideation II: A virtual reality experimental study. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 193(5), 309-315.

28.

George

Mallery

(2003). SPSS for Windows step by step: A simple guide and reference, 11.0 update. Boston, USA: Allyn & Bacon.

29.

Gerling

K. M.

Klauser

Niesenhaus

(2011). Measuring the impact of game controllers on player experience in FPS games. In Lugmayr

(Ed.), Proceedings of the 15th International Academic Mindtrek Conference on Envisioning Future Media Environments - Mindtrek ’11 (p. 83). New York, NY: ACM Press.

30.

Hassenzahl

Tractinsky

(2006). User experience—A research agenda. Behaviour & Information Technology, 25(2), 91-97.

31.

Heim

(1998). Virtual reality and the tea ceremony. In Beckmann

(Ed.), The virtual dimension (pp. 1-28). Princeton, NJ: Princeton Architectural Press.

32.

Heim

Rothbaum

B. O.

Hodges

L. F.

Kooper

Opdyke

Williford

J. S.

. . . Bainbridge

W. S.

(2008). Affective outcomes of virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety and specific phobias: A meta-analysis. Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, 8(3), 250-261.

33.

Heineman

D. S.

(2016). Porting game studies research to virtual reality. New Media & Society, 18(11), 2793-2799.

34.

Hemenover

S. H.

Bowman

N. D.

(2018). Video games, emotion, and emotion regulation: Expanding the scope. Annals of the International Communication Association, 42(2), 125-143.

35.

Higuera-Trujillo

J. L.

López-Tarruella Maldonado

Llinares Millán

(2017). Psychological and physiological human responses to simulated and real environments: A comparison between Photographs, 360° Panoramas, and Virtual Reality. Applied Ergonomics, 65, 398-409.

36.

Kain

(2017). The most disappointing video games of 2017. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2017/12/19/the-top-11-most-disappointing-video-games-of-2017/#1b2595fc76c6

37.

Kim

Rosenthal

M. Z.

Zielinski

D. J.

Brady

(2014). Effects of virtual environment platforms on emotional responses. Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine, 113(3), 882-893.

38.

Kleiger

R. E.

Stein

P. K.

Bigger

J. T.

(2005). Heart rate variability: Measurement and clinical utility. Annals of Noninvasive Electrocardiology, 10(1), 88-101.

39.

Korhonen

Montola

Arrasvuori

(2009). Understanding playful user experiences through digital games. In Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Designing Pleasurable Products and Interfaces, DPPI 2009 (pp. 274-285). New York, NY: ACM Press.

40.

Kruijff

Marquardt

Trepkowski

Schild

Hinkenjann

(2017). Designed emotions: Challenges and potential methodologies for improving multisensory cues to enhance user engagement in immersive systems. The Visual Computer, 33(4), 471-488.

41.

Lachlan

Krcmar

(2011). Experiencing presence in video games: The role of presence tendencies, game experience, gender, and time spent in play. Communication Research Reports, 28(1), 27-31.

42.

Lee

Peng

Park

(2009). Effects of computer/video games and beyond. In Bryant

Oliver

M. B.

(Eds.), Media effects: Advances in theory and research (pp. 551-556). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

43.

Liarokapis

(2006). An exploration from virtual to augmented reality gaming. Simulation Gaming, 37(4), 507-533.

44.

Limperos

Waddell

T. F.

Ivory

A. H.

Ivory

J. D.

(2014). Psychological and physiological responses to stereoscopic 3D presentation in handheld digital gaming: Comparing the experiences of frequent and infrequent game players. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 23(4), 341-353.

45.

Lin

C. J.

Chen

H.-J.

Cheng

P.-Y.

Sun

T.-L.

(2015). Effects of displays on visually controlled task performance in three-dimensional virtual reality environment. Human Factors and Ergonomics in Manufacturing & Service Industries, 25(5), 523-533.

46.

Lin

J. H. T.

(2017). Fear in virtual reality (VR): Fear elements, coping reactions, immediate and next-day fright responses toward a survival horror zombie virtual reality game. Computers in Human Behavior, 72, 350-361.

47.

Lombard

Ditton

(1997). At the heart of it all: The concept of presence. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 3(2), JCMC321.

48.

MacQuarrie

Steed

(2017). Cinematic virtual reality: Evaluating the effect of display type on the viewing experience for panoramic video. In Rosenberg

E. S.

Krum

D. M.

Wartell

Mohler

Babu

S. V.

Steinicke

Interrante

(Eds.), 2017 IEEE Virtual Reality (VR) (pp. 45-54). New York, NY: IEEE.

49.

Malone

T. W.

(1980). What makes things fun to learn? Heuristics for designing instructional computer games. In Gorsline

G. W.

(Ed.), Proceedings of the 3rd ACM SIGSMALL Symposium and the First SIGPC Symposium on Small Systems - SIGSMALL ’80 (pp. 162-169). New York, NY: ACM Press.

50.

Malone

T. W.

(1982). Heuristics for designing enjoyable user interfaces. In Proceedings of the 19 Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - CHI ’82 (pp. 63-68). New York, NY: ACM Press.

51.

Martel

Gerroir

Hassan

Girouard

Muldner

(2015). Diving headfirst into virtual reality: Evaluating HMD control schemes for VR games. In Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (FDG 2015). New York, NY: ACM Press.

52.

Merhi

Faugloire

Flanagan

Stoffregen

T. A.

(2007). Motion sickness, console video games, and head-mounted displays. Human Factors, 49(5), 920-934.

53.

Morris

(2015). Is 2016 the year of virtual reality? Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2015/12/04/2016-the-year-of-virtual-reality/

54.

Munafo

Diedrick

Stoffregen

T. A.

(2017). The virtual reality head-mounted display Oculus Rift induces motion sickness and is sexist in its effects. Experimental Brain Research, 235(3), 889-901.

55.

Naz

Kopper

McMahan

R. P.

Nadin

(2017). Emotional qualities of VR space. In Rosenberg

E. S.

Krum

D. M.

Wartell

Mohler

Babu

S. V.

Steinicke

Interrante

(Eds.), IEEE Virtual Reality Conference (pp. 3-11). New York, NY: IEEE.

56.

Nielsen

(1993). Usability engineering. San Francisco, CA: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers Inc.

57.

Nielsen

(1994). Usability inspection methods. In Plaisant

(Ed.), Conference Companion on Human Factors in Computing Systems - CHI ’94 (pp. 413-414). New York, NY: ACM Press.

58.

Pallavicini

Argenton

Toniazzi

Aceti

Mantovani

(2016). Virtual reality applications for stress management training in the military. Aerospace Medicine and Human Performance, 87(12), 1021-1030.

59.

Pallavicini

Ferrari

Garcea

Zanacchi

Mantovani

(2018). Effectiveness of virtual reality survival horror games for the emotional elicitation: Preliminary insights using Resident Evil 7: Biohazard. In Antona

Stephanidis

(Eds.), Universal access in human-computer Interaction. Virtual, augmented, and intelligent environments: 12th international conference, UAHCI 2018, held as part of HCI International 2018. Cham, Switzerland: Springer.

60.

Pallavicini

Ferrari

Zini

Garcea

Zanacchi

Barone

Mantovani

(2017). What distinguishes a traditional gaming experience from one in virtual reality? An exploratory study. In Ahram

Falcão

(Eds.), Advances in Human Factors in Wearable Technologies and Game Design: Proceedings of the AHFE 2017 International Conference on Advances in Human Factors and Wearable Technologies (pp. 225-231). Cham, Switzerland: Springer.

61.

Parker

(2016, March 6). Virtual reality is a disappointment? Not in the world of video gamers. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/22/technology/personaltech/virtual-reality-video-games.html

62.

Parkin

(2016). PlayStation boss: Virtual reality throws out the game-design rule book. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/mar/16/playstation-virtual-reality-vr-headset-game-andrew-house?CMP=share_btn_gp

63.

Parsons

T. D.

Rizzo

A. A.

(2008). Affective outcomes of virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety and specific phobias: A meta-analysis. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 39(3), 250-261.

64.

Pausch

Proffitt

Williams

(1997). Quantifying immersion in virtual reality. In Proceedings of the 24th Annual Conference on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques - SIGGRAPH ’97 (pp. 13-18). New York, NY: ACM Press.

65.

Pedroli

Serino

Cipresso

Pallavicini

Riva

(2015). Assessment and rehabilitation of neglect using virtual reality: A systematic review. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 9, Article 226

66.

Pratt

D. R.

Zyda

Kelleher

(1995). Virtual reality: In the mind of the beholder. Computer Archive, 28(7), 17-19.

67.

Price

Mehta

Tone

E. B.

Anderson

P. L.

(2011). Does engagement with exposure yield better outcomes? Components of presence as a predictor of treatment response for virtual reality exposure therapy for social phobia. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 25, 763-770.

68.

Rajae-Joordens

R. J.

(2008). Measuring experiences in gaming and TV applications. In Westerink

J. H. D. M.

Ouwerkerk

Overbeek

T. J. M.

Pasveer

W. F.

de Ruyter

(Eds.), Probing experience (pp. 77-90). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.

69.

Ravaja

Salminen

Holopainen

Saari

Laarni

J. J.

irvinen

(2004). Emotional response patterns and sense of presence during video games. In Hyrskykari

(Ed.), Proceedings of the Third Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction - Nordichi ’04 (pp. 339-347). New York, NY: ACM Press.

70.

Reunanen

Penttinen

Borgmeier

(2017). “Wow-factors” for boosting business. In Kantola

J. I.

Barath

Nazir

Andre

(Eds.), Advances in Human Factors, Business Management, Training and Education: Proceedings of the AHFE 2016 International Conference on Human Factors, Business Management and Society (pp. 589-600). Cham, Switzerland: Springer.

71.

Reuters. (2017, June 7). Sony’s PlayStation VR headset sales top 1 million units. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/07/sonys-playstation-vr-headset-sales-top-1-million-units.html

72.

Riva

Mantovani

Capideville

C. S.

Preziosa

Morganti

Villani

. . . Alcañiz

(2007). Affective interactions using virtual reality: The link between presence and emotions. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 10(1), 45-56.

73.

Rizzo

Parsons

T. D.

Lange

Kenny

Buckwalter

J. G.

Rothbaum

. . . Reger

(2011). Virtual reality goes to war: A brief review of the future of military behavioral healthcare. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings, 18(2), 176-187.

74.

Robertson

(2017, October 11). How virtual reality developers are surviving the hype cycle. The Verge. Retrieved from https://www.theverge.com/2017/10/11/16458806/oculus-rift-htc-vive-vr-hype-game-developers

75.

Ryan

R. M.

Rigby

C. S.

Przybylski

(2006). The motivational pull of video games: A self-determination theory approach. Motivation and Emotion, 30(4), 344-360.

76.

Saposnik

Teasell

Mamdani

Hall

McIlroy

Cheung

, … Stroke Outcome Research Canada (SORCan) Working Group. (2010). Effectiveness of virtual reality using Wii gaming technology in stroke rehabilitation: A pilot randomized clinical trial and proof of principle. Stroke, 41(7), 1477-1484.

77.

Sauro

(2011). A practical guide to the system usability scale: Background, benchmarks & best practices. Denver, CO: Measuring Usability LLC.

78.

Seymour

N. E.

Gallagher

A. G.

Roman

S. A.

O’Brien

M. K.

Bansal

V. K.

Andersen

D. K.

Satava

R. M.

(2002). Virtual reality training improves operating room performance: Results of a randomized, double-blinded study. Annals of Surgery, 236(4), 458-463.

79.

Shaffer

Ginsberg

J. P.

(2017). An overview of heart rate variability metrics and norms. Frontiers in Public Health, 5, Article 258.

80.

Shaffer

McCraty

Zerr

C. L.

(2014). A healthy heart is not a metronome: An integrative review of the heart’s anatomy and heart rate variability. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, Article 1040.

81.

Shelley

(2001). Guidelines for developing successful games. Retrieved from https://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/131

82.

Shelstad

W. J.

Smith

D. C.

Chaparro

B. S.

(2017). Gaming on the rift: How virtual reality affects game user satisfaction. Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 61(1), 2072-2076.

83.

Skalski

Whitbred

(2010). Image versus sound: A comparison of formal feature effects on presence and video game enjoyment. PsychNology Journal, 8(1), 67-84.

84.

Slater

Linakis

Usoh

Kooper

(1996). Immersion, presence, and performance in virtual environments: An experiment with tri-dimensional chess. In Green

Fairchild

K. M.

Zyda

(Eds.), Proceedings of the 3rd ACM Symposium on Virtual Reality Software and Technology (VRST 1996) (pp. 163-172). New York, NY: ACM Press.

85.

Slater

Usoh

Steed

(1994). Depth of presence in virtual environments. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 3(2), 130-144.

86.

Slater

Wilbur

(1997). A Framework for Immersive Virtual Environments (FIVE): Speculations on the role of presence in virtual environments. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 6(6), 603-616.

87.

Sousa Santos

Dias

Pimentel

Baggerman

J. W.

Ferreira

Silva

Madeira

. (2009). Head-mounted display versus desktop for 3D navigation in virtual reality: A user study. Multimedia Tools and Applications, 41(1), 161-181.

88.

Statista. (2018). Global VR gaming market size 2020 Statistic. Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/statistics/499714/global-virtual-reality-gaming-sales-revenue/

89.

Swindells

B. A.

Hajshirmohammadi

Corrie

Dill

J. C.

Fisher

B. D.

Booth

K. S.

(2004). Comparing CAVE, wall, and desktop displays for navigation and wayfinding in complex 3D models. In Proceedings of Computer Graphics International Conference, CGI (pp. 420-427). Los Alamitos, USA: IEEE Computer Society.

90.

Takatalo

Häkkinen

Kaistinen

Nyman

(2010). Presence, involvement, and flow in digital games. In R. Bernhaupt (Ed.), Evaluating User Experience in Games (pp. 23-46). London, England: Springer.

91.

Tamborini

Bowman

N. D.

(2010). Presence in video games. In Campanella-Bracken

Skalski

(Eds.), Immersed in media: Telepresence Theory, Measurement & Technology (pp. 87-109). New York, NY: Routledge.

92.

Tan

C. T.

Leong

T. W.

Shen

Dubravs

(2015). Exploring gameplay experiences on the Oculus Rift. In Nacke

L. E.

Graham

T. C. N.

(Eds.), Proceedings of the 20 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play - CHI PLAY ’15 (pp. 253-263). New York, NY: ACM Press.

93.

Waller

Hunt

Knapp

(1998). The transfer of spatial knowledge in virtual environment training. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 7(2), 129-143.

94.

Weibel

Wissmath

(2011). Immersion in computer games: The role of spatial presence and flow. International Journal of Computer Games Technology, 2011, 282345.

95.

Westerman

Skalski

P. D.

(2010). Presence and computers: A ghost in the machine? In Bracken

Sklaski

P. D.

(Eds.), Immersed in media: Telepresence in everyday life (pp. 63-86). New York, NY: Routledge.

96.

Wilson

McGill

(in press). Violent video games in virtual reality: Re-evaluating the impact and rating of interactive experiences. In CHI PLAY ‘18 Proceedings of the 2018 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play (pp. 535-548). New York, NY: ACM Press.

Supplementary Material

Please find the following supplemental material available below.

For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.

For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.

0.00 MB

0.27 MB