For many trans and non-binary (NB) people video games present an important space for gender expression and exploration. Character creator interfaces (CCIs) promise one such outlet, but current theoretical vocabulary is insufficient at capturing the particular features and conditions which make NB gender expression plausible or difficult. We leverage Davis’ mechanisms and conditions framework (MCF) — an extension of affordance theory attentive to socio-technical assemblages — to analyze the ways CCIs accommodate and stymie NB gender expression. Analyzing 19 games, we find that CCIs with gender-neutral options often discourage NB gender expression, as well as reproducing cisnormative and essentialist views on gender. Yet it is also possible to find gender euphoric experiences in games with no explicit gender allowances. Based on our findings, we highlight opportunities for leveraging MCF for game design and analysis. We also outline design implications for encouraging gender play for all.

Temperature has strong potential to mediate emotion in a range of contexts; augmenting sensory experience and/or supporting emotion regulation. Hence, there is growing interest in leveraging thermal cues for affective technologies. At present, however, the design space for thermal technologies for emotion regulation remains underexplored and largely undefined. We construct a design space for thermal affective emotion regulation technologies, clarifying the rich, expressive nature of thermal cues as a design material. We develop this through a Research through Design (RtD) approach, grounded in an 18-month autoethnographic inquiry based on the first author’s emotion regulation practice. We contribute a structured design space for thermal affective interaction, linking experience and design implementation with designerly know-how. By discussing the creation of this design space we provide insights into the generative process of developing intermediate-level knowledge from autoethnographic study and design practice.

Abstract Self-determination theory (SDT) has been widely successful in human–computer interaction (HCI). It offers ready concepts, measures, and theoretical propositions for third wave HCI topics such as user experience, fun, wellbeing, motivation, or user autonomy. Still, HCI applications of SDT have been partial, at times superficial, and disconnecting—leaving great unfulfilled potential which motivated the present special issue. In this introduction, we present SDT to interested scholars, chart its use across HCI to date, and outline six advances to move HCI toward more intentional applications of SDT. As the articles from this issue illustrate, future growth areas of SDT in HCI are in extending domain-specific models and applications, harnessing underused parts of theory, computational formalization, extending levels of analysis, facilitating design translation, and engaging in a cross-disciplinary dialogue on autonomy.

Much work in HCI has investigated strategies for supporting autonomous self-regulation in social media use (SMU): helping users to control their time online and ensure it serves personally valued outcomes. However, results suggest that the effectiveness and acceptability of these strategies may vary based on individual needs. Recent work has attributed this variation to motivational factors, though we currently lack data to understand how these factors influence self-regulation, user experience and well-being. We draw on Self-Determination Theory to analyse autonomous and non-autonomous patterns of motivation in 521 users of social media. Using latent profile analysis, we identify 4 "motivational profiles"associated with significant differences in need satisfaction, affect, and compulsive engagement. Our results clarify distinct aspects of autonomy in SMU and identify opportunities to target and personalise design interventions; they suggest autonomous regulation can be associated with better experience and well-being, though not necessarily less time online.

ABSTRACT

Thermal-affective experience is a growing topic in Human-Computer Interaction. However, research linking thermal and affective experience in technology use has not moved beyond attempts to establish broad, sweeping associations, such as between warmth and positive affect. One of the obstacles to progression is the need for frameworks and vocabularies that describe and conceptualise the richness of thermal perception and affective experience. To help conceptualise associations between thermal perception and affective experience we turn to Cí poetry, a form of classical Chinese literature rich with evocative descriptions of embodied, environmentally situated, first-person experience. We conducted a lexical analysis to identify thermal-affective associations, and propose a design framework addressing thermal design. We demonstrate the value of this framework via analysis of existing thermal design exemplars.

Recent research has begun exploring games as a medium for reflection due to their affordances as interactive systems of challenge. However, little effort has been put into (1) synthesizing insights across studies and disciplines and (2) translating the academic work on reflective play into practical takeaways for game developers. This article takes the first steps toward summarizing existing work on reflective play and translating insights for practical implementation by identifying key game elements present in games that evoke reflection. We divide these elements into five approaches: Disruptions, Slowdowns, Questioning, Revisiting, and Enhancers. Finally, we provide an actionable supplement for practicing game developers to apply these concepts to their games.

Videogames can transform the perspectives and attitudes of players. Prior discussion on this transformative potential has typically been limited to non-entertainment videogames with explicit transformational goals. However, recreational gaming appears to hold considerable potential for igniting deeply personal experiences of profound transformation in players. Towards understanding this phenomenon, we conducted an explorative autoethnographic study. For this, the first author played five narrative-driven videogames while collecting self-observational and self-reflective data of his experience during and outside gameplay. Our findings offer intimate insights into the trajectory and emotional qualities of personally meaningful and transformative videogame experiences. For example, we found that gameplay experiences that were initially perceived as bewildering or disorienting could evolve into more harmonious experiences laden with personal meaning. This shift in experience developed through different forms of subsequent re-engagement with initially discrepant game encounters.

Abstract Interactive digital narratives (IDNs) create alternate realities using both fictional and non-fiction material. The interactive aspect of IDN turns audiences into participants and enables the exploration of alternative perspectives and actions within a single artifact. Such multifaceted representations make IDN a vehicle for representing complex issues, a crucial capability at a time when the limits of traditional narrative media to adequately represent complex issues such as climate change become apparent. Conversely, properly evaluated, generalized knowledge about how exactly IDNs engage and influence us and what this means for the design of such works is still scant and thus this topic needs scholarly attention. In this overview paper, we discuss the potential of IDN, but also the difficulties of realizing this potential in terms of design and of verifying the effectiveness through empirical research methods. The potential of IDN as dynamic, participatory, and encyclopedic artifacts can be clearly expressed, yet the same cannot be said when it comes to the design and especially the evaluation of intended prosocial effects, the topic this paper is focused on. We start by identifying the problem of IDN design resulting from a combination of the lack of generalized knowledge and formal professional training. Then, we discuss the challenge of measuring the effectiveness of IDN design for prosocial effects and report on several case studies. In this context, we discuss methodological issues and advocate for best practices. Finally, we consider future steps in addressing the continuing challenge of evaluating IDNs.

Playtesting is a games user research (GUR) method used to evaluate design decisions based on feedback gathered from players with the goal to improve player experience. HCI games research has been actively working on and promoting best practices in GUR. However, these practices often require resources, knowledge and expertise, which are not readily available for indie video games developers. Thus, to better understand how GUR can support these developers, we conducted an interview study with 13 indie games professionals to learn about their practices and the challenges they face when doing playtesting. We report on the key findings from this study, including challenges with finding appropriate participants and handling the data from playtests. We provide a discussion of how existing GUR practices can be adapted and what HCI games research can do to help mitigate these challenges to make playtesting more accessible and impactful to indie video games developers.

Motivation and autonomy are fundamental concepts in Human–Computer Interaction (HCI), yet in User Experience (UX) research they have remained surprisingly peripheral. We draw on Self-Determination Theory (SDT) to analyse autonomous and non-autonomous patterns of motivation in 497 interaction experiences. Using latent profile analysis, we identify five distinct patterns of motivation in technology use—‘motivational profiles’—associated with significant differences in need satisfaction, affect, and perceived usability. Users’ descriptions of these experiences also reveal qualitative differences between profiles: from intentional, purposive engagement, to compulsive use which users themselves consider unhealthy. Our results complicate exclusively positive notions of intrinsic motivation and clarify how extrinsic motivation can contribute to positive UX. Based on these findings, we identify open questions for UX and SDT: addressing ‘hedonic amotivation’—negative experiences in activities which are intrinsically motivated but not otherwise valued—and ‘design for internalisation’—scaffolding healthy and sustainable patterns of engagement over time.

Self-determination theory (SDT), a psychological theory of human motivation, is a prominent paradigm in human–computer interaction (HCI) research on games. However, our prior literature review observed a trend towards shallow applications of the theory. This follow-up work takes a broader view—examining SDT scholarship on games, a wider corpus of SDT-based HCI games research (N = 259), and perspectives from a games industry practitioner conference—to help explain current applications of SDT. Our findings suggest that perfunctory applications of the theory in HCI games research originate in part from within SDT scholarship on games, which itself exhibits limited engagement with theoretical tenets. Against this backdrop, we unpack the popularity of SDT in HCI games research and identify conditions underlying the theory’s current use as an oft-unquestioned paradigm. Finally, we outline avenues for more productive SDT-informed games research and consider ways towards more intentional practices of theory use in HCI.

Human agency and autonomy have always been fundamental concepts in HCI. New developments, including ubiquitous AI and the growing integration of technologies into our lives, make these issues ever pressing, as technologies increase their ability to influence our behaviours and values. However, in HCI understandings of autonomy and agency remain ambiguous. Both concepts are used to describe a wide range of phenomena pertaining to sense-of-control, material independence, and identity. It is unclear to what degree these understandings are compatible, and how they support the development of research programs and practical interventions. We address this by reviewing 30 years of HCI research on autonomy and agency to identify current understandings, open issues, and future directions. From this analysis, we identify ethical issues, and outline key themes to guide future work. We also articulate avenues for advancing clarity and specificity around these concepts, and for coordinating integrative work across different HCI communities.

Benefits for all user groups is one of the most prominent motivations to provide accessible information and services on the web. Designing digital technologies in a more inclusive manner for users with sensory, motor, or cognitive impairments enhances their overall quality. In practice, work on web accessibility often relies on complying with standards. But whether standards lead to improved usability and a satisfying user experience for all user groups is controversial. The present study aims at deepening our understanding of how compliance with web accessibility standards shapes the experiences of both users with and without disabilities. In a randomised controlled experiment, 66 participants with visual impairments and 65 participants without visual impairments solved tasks on an online shop built with either low (NA) or high (AA) conformance to web accessibility standards. The results show no statistically significant effects on outcomes related to usability and user experience. However, analysis of open-ended answers suggests that participants with visual impairments reported more positive experiences, and participants without visual impairments fewer negative experiences while using the online shop conformant to web accessibility standards. We therefore recommend adopting a more differentiated perspective on what can be achieved through compliance with web accessibility standards and emphasise that conformance-based approaches should be complemented with user-centred and participatory design methods. Further, since most participants reported being experienced users and an online shop is often a familiar context, more research in other settings is required.

Empowering people through technology is a core concern of HCI, yet little is known about how players experience empowerment or disempowerment through videogames. We surveyed 250 participants about their dis-/empowering videogame experiences, investigating why they felt dis-/empowered, and how these experiences related to core player experience constructs including emotion and basic needs satisfaction. While empowering experiences were often positive, and disempowering experiences often negative, we found meaningful exceptions to this, and a surprising complexity in player accounts. We capture this diversity in seven themes. These range from ”heroic victories” which follow long periods of failure, to positive experiences of disempowerment, which were appreciated for their narrative meaning. By articulating these complex experiences, and relating them to quantitative measures we provide a foundation for understanding of the role of dis-/empowerment in player experience, and highlight avenues for future work. Data and analyses are available at https://osf.io/zhtu8/

Social wearables promise to augment and enhance social interactions. However, despite two decades of HCI research on wearables, we are yet to see widespread adoption of social wearables into everyday life. More in-situ investigations into the social dynamics and cultural practices afforded by wearing interactive technology are needed to understand the drivers and barriers to adoption. To this end, we study social wearables in the context of Nordic student culture and the students’ practice of adorning boiler suits. Through a co-creation process, we designed Digi Merkki, a personalised interactive clothing patch. In a two-week elicitation diary study, we captured how 16 students adopted Digi Merkki into their social practices. We found that Digi Merkki afforded a variety of social interaction strategies, including sharing, spamming, and stealing pictures, which supported meaning-making and community-building. Based on our findings, we articulate “Memetic Expression” as a strong concept for designing social wearables.

Dancing is a universal human activity, and also a domain of enduring significance in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research. However, there has been limited investigation into how computing supports the experiences of recreational dancers. Concurrently, a diverse and sizeable dance community has been emerging in VRChat. Little is known about these dancers’ experiences, motivations, and practices. Yet shedding light into these could inform both VR technology development and the design of systems that better support embodied and complex social interactions. To bridge this gap, we interviewed participants active in the VRChat dance scene. Through thematic analysis, we identified six central facets of their experiences related to freedom, community, dance as an individual experience, dance as a shared experience, dance as a performance, and self-expression and -exploration. Based on these findings, we discuss emerging tensions and highlight beneficial impacts of dancing in VR as well as problems that still await resolving.

Reflection is an important precursor to attitude and behavior change, but existing advice on designing for reflection in games is mixed and requires further empirical investigation. We report on the design and evaluation (n=32) of a game to prompt student reflection on work-life balance. Participants played as themselves or a third person character (Alex). An inductive qualitative analysis of post-play interviews, and a follow-up one week later, resulted in four themes relating to how gameplay facilitated reflection: making (sensible) consequences visible; it's like MY life; the space between Alex and I; and triggers in everyday life. A deductive qualitative analysis also indicated that while both games resulted in different forms of reflection for the majority of players, those who role-played as Alex appeared more likely to experience higher levels of reflection. Through exploring the ways in which the two versions of the game succeeded, and failed, to support reflection, we highlight the importance of providing a relevant context to players (so the game feels close to their experience), and allowing them to role-play as someone other than themselves (but not too close).

Visual and physical representations of historical personal data have been discussed as artifacts that can lead to self-reflection through meaning-making. However, it is yet unclear how those two concepts relate to each other. We focus on meaningfulness, a part of meaning-making that relates to feelings. In this paper, we present three projects where mundane objects, our data agents, are combined in meaningful ways with personal data with the aim to trigger reflection by placing a person’s individual experience of data in relation to others’. To identify relationships between self-reflection and meaningfulness we use Fleck and Fitzpatrick’s framework to describe the levels of reflection that we found in our projects and Mekler and Hornbæk’s meaning framework to define the depth of reflection. We conclude with a discussion on four themes in which we outline how data agents informed the intersections between our central concepts. This paper, constitutes a first step towards unpacking those relationships and invites for further explorations by the HCI community.

Emotionally impactful game experiences have garnered increasing interest within HCI games research. Yet the perspectives of designers have, to date, remained largely overlooked. We interviewed 14 indie game designers regarding their values and practices in designing emotionally impactful games. Counter to the focus of recent player experience (PX) studies, we find that while designers typically have a clear vision for the intended emotional impact, they aim for their games to provide a space for players to have their own personal experiences and interpretations. Despite this player-centric orientation, players were rarely involved before and during the production to evaluate the emotional experience. Based on these findings, we identify gaps between design practice and PX research, raise open questions around the design and evaluation of emotionally impactful game experiences, and outline opportunities for HCI games research to more productively support game designers.

Videogames’ increasing cultural relevance and suffusion into everyday use contexts suggests they can no longer be considered novelties. Broadly speaking, games research at CHI has concerned two forms of peak experience—historically, research aimed to support flow, or maximise enjoyment and positive emotions; more recently, scholarship engages with more varied experiences of intense emotion, such as emotional challenge. In different ways, both approaches emphasise extra-ordinary player experience (PX). Conversely, videogame play and PX have become more routine—indeed, more ordinary—as the medium’s cultural presence grows. In this paper, we argue that HCI games research is conceptually ill-equipped to investigate these increasingly common and often desirable experiences. We conceptualise “ordinary player experience” – as familiar, emotionally moderate, co-attentive, and abstractly memorable – articulating a phenomenon whose apparent mundanity has seen it elude description to date. We discuss opportunities to productively employ ordinary PX in HCI games research, alongside conceptual implications for PX and player wellbeing.

Abstract The time we each spend using smartphones is increasing. So is the extent of discussions on whether that time is well spent and whether it results in positive experiences and ultimately improves well-being. However, research on this question rarely links the time spent on smartphones, the specific applications used, the motivation for using them and their effects on well-being. We had 70 participants compare experiences with a frequently used smartphone application and an occasionally used one. The participants used the Screen Time feature of the iPhone to select the applications and provided qualitative and quantitative data on their use of the applications. The findings show that the experience of pragmatic and hedonic value differs between the two application types, as does the experience of regret. The motivation for using the applications also in'uences whether the time is experienced as well spent. We use these findings to nuance the general discussion of smartphone usage and well-being.

Videogames receive increasing acclaim as a medium capable of artistic expression, emotional resonance, and even transformative potential. Yet while discussions concerning the status of games as art have a long history in games research, little is known about the player experience (PX) of games as art, their emotional characteristics, and what impact they may have on players. Drawing from Empirical Aesthetics, we surveyed 174 people about whether they had an art experience with videogames and what emotions they experienced. Our findings showcase the prominence of epistemic emotions for videogame art experiences, beyond the negative and mixed emotional responses previously examined, as well as the range of personal impacts such experiences may have. These findings are consistent with art experience phenomena characteristic of other art forms. Moreover, we discuss how our study relates to prior research on emotions and reflection in PX, the importance of games' representational qualities in art experiences, and identify lines of further inquiry. All data, study materials, and analyses are available at https://osf.io/ryvt6/.

Since its inaugural edition in 2014, the ACM SIGCHI Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play (CHI PLAY) has grown to become the premier ACM SIGCHI venue for playercomputer interaction, bringing together researchers and professionals across all areas of play, games, and human-computer interaction. This year, CHI PLAY has moved its publications to a journal-based model, and we are pleased to present the first issue of the Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction that contains full paper contributions from the CHI PLAY community. This issue has 64 papers that were accepted in the 2021 cycle of the CHI PLAY conference. Over two rounds, a total of 250 papers were submitted for review and our acceptance rate is 25.6%. Thework published in this volume represents the contributions from the 2021 program committee, including external reviewers, associate chairs, and editors. Together, we have engaged in a revised reviewing process that saw several major changes. First, we moved to a revise and resubmit process to address existing inequities in submission and review, improve the quality of the review process, and increase the reach of our community's research. Second, we made major changes to our review form to improve the review process, while also easing the burden of review, along with explicitlywelcoming different contribution types and managing the complexities of interdisciplinary evaluation. We would like to acknowledge the efforts that our community has made in adapting to this new process, ensuring rigorous review during a global pandemic, and working together with the submitting authors to achieve high-quality scholarship. In this issue, the majority of contributions are empirical in nature, with fifteen papers classified by the authors as using qualitative methods, fifteen using quantitative methods, and nine using mixed methods. We also publish seven papers presenting design artefacts and three presenting technical artefacts. Finally, we include four papers employing meta-research methods, two papers that present new methodological approaches, and nine papers that contribute to the development and validation of theory.

Self-Determination Theory (SDT), a major psychological theory of human motivation, has become increasingly popular in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research on games and play. However, it remains unclear how SDT has advanced HCI games research, or how HCI games scholars engage with the theory. We reviewed 110 CHI and CHI PLAY papers that cited SDT to gain a better understanding of the ways the theory has contributed to HCI games research. We find that SDT, and in particular, the concepts of need satisfaction and intrinsic motivation, have been widely applied to analyse the player experience and inform game design. Despite the popularity of SDT-based measures, however, prominent core concepts and mini-theories are rarely considered explicitly, and few papers engage with SDT beyond descriptive accounts. We highlight conceptual gaps at the intersection of SDT and HCI games research, and identify opportunities for SDT propositions, concepts, and measures to more productively inform future work.

HCI has become increasingly interested in the use of technology during difficult life experiences. Yet despite considerable popularity, little is known about how and why people engage with games in times of personal difficulty. Based on a qualitative analysis of an online survey (N=95), our findings indicate that games offered players much needed respite from stress, supported them in dealing with their feelings, facilitated social connections, stimulated personal change and growth, and provided a lifeline in times of existential doubt. However, despite an emphasis on gaming as being able to support coping in ways other activities did not, participants also referred to games as unproductive and as an obstacle to living well. We discuss these findings in relation to both coping process and outcome, while considering tensions around the potential benefits and perceived value of gaming.

Today's spectrum of playful fitness solutions features systems that are clearly game-first or fitness-first in design; hardly any sufficiently incorporate both areas. Consequently, existing applications and evaluations often lack in focus on attractiveness and effectiveness, which should be addressed on the levels of body, controller, and game scenario following a holistic design approach. To contribute to this topic and as a proof-of-concept, we designed the ExerCube, an adaptive fitness game setup. We evaluated participants' multi-sensory and bodily experiences with a non-adaptive and an adaptive ExerCube version and compared them with personal training to reveal insights to inform the next iteration of the ExerCube. Regarding flow, enjoyment and motivation, the ExerCube is on par with personal training. Results further reveal differences in perception of exertion, types and quality of movement, social factors, feedback, and audio experiences. Finally, we derive considerations for future research and development directions in holistic fitness game setups.

The view of quality in human-computer interaction continuously develops, having in past decades included consistency, transparency, usability, and positive emotions. Recently, meaning is receiving increased interest in the user experience literature and in industry, referring to the end, purpose or significance of interaction with computers. However, the notion of meaning remains elusive and a bewildering number of senses are in use. We present a framework of meaning in interaction, based on a synthesis of psychological meaning research. The framework outlines five distinct senses of the experience of meaning: connectedness, purpose, coherence, resonance, and significance. We illustrate the usefulness of the framework by analyzing a selection of recent papers at the CHI conference and by raising a series of open research questions about the interplay of meaning, user experience, reflection, and well-being.

Certain video games show promise as tools for training spatial skills, one of the strongest predictors of future success in STEM. However, little is known about the gaming preferences of those who would benefit the most from such interventions: low spatial skill students. To provide guidance on how to design training games for this population, we conducted a survey of 350 participants from three populations: online college-age, students from a low SES high school, and students from a high SES high school. Participants took a timed test of spatial skills and then answered questions about their demographics, gameplay habits, preferences, and motivations. The only predictors of spatial skill were gender and population: female participants from online and low SES high school populations had the lowest spatial skill. In light of these findings, we provide design recommendations for game-based spatial skill interventions targeting low spatial skill students.

Recent work introduced the notion of emotional challenge as a means to afford more unique and diverse gaming experiences. However, players' experience of emotional challenge has received little empirical attention. It remains unclear whether players enjoy it and what exactly constitutes the challenge thereof. We surveyed 171 players about a challenging or an emotionally challenging experience, and analyzed their responses with regards to what made the experience challenging, their emotional response, and the relation to core player experience constructs. We found that emotional challenge manifested itself in different ways, by confronting players with difficult themes or decisions, as well as having them deal with intense emotions. In contrast to more'conventional' challenge, emotional challenge evoked a wider range of negative emotions and was appreciated significantly more by players. Our findings showcase the appeal of uncomfortable gaming experiences, and extend current conceptualizations of challenge in games.

Motivation is a fundamental concept in understanding people's experiences and behavior. Yet, motivation to engage with an interactive system has received only limited attention in HCI. We report the development and validation of the User Motivation Inventory (UMI). The UMI is an 18-item multidimensional measure of motivation, rooted in self-determination theory (SDT). It is designed to measure intrinsic motivation, integrated, identified, introjected, and external regulation, as well as amotivation. Results of two studies (total N = 941) confirm the six-factor structure of the UMI with high reliability, as well as convergent and discriminant validity of each subscale. Relationships with core concepts such as need satisfaction, vitality, and usability were studied. Additionally, the UMI was found to detect differences in motivation for people who consider abandoning a technology compared to those who do not question their use. The central role of motivation in users' behavior and experience is discussed.

Abstract Plain Language and Easy-to-Read Language are two approaches to reduce language complexity, which are also applied in the context of Web Accessibility. While Easy-to-Read Language was specifically designed to meet the needs of people with cognitive and learning disabilities, benefits for users with a variety of abilities have been reported. However, studies have also found unintended side-effects on non-disabled users, such as reduced text liking and intention to revisit a website compared to variants in conventional language. The present study addresses this issue by testing two approaches combining conventional with Easy-to-Read Language against a Plain Language variant, as well as a control group in conventional language. In an online study, 308 non-disabled participants read three texts presented in one of the four language variants. Measurements of performance indicators as well as subjective responses show that Easy-to-Read language may be implemented without unintended side-effects.

Appropriate challenges and challenge-skill balance are usually key to positive player experiences. However, some games such as the successful series Dark Souls are notorious for their excessive difficulty. Yet, there has been little empirical investigation of why players enjoy games they constantly struggle and fail with. We surveyed 95 participants right after the release of Dark Souls III about their experiences with the game, employing both open questions and different player experience measures. Players generally enjoyed challenging play sessions and mostly reported positive experiences, with achievement and learning moments strongly contributing to positive experiences. However, these factors themselves were enabled by negative events such as difficulties and avatar death. Our findings showcase that negative events bear a potential for forming positive and meaningful experiences, thus expanding previous knowledge about the role of challenge and failing in games. Moreover, the significance of hard-earned achievements extends present design conventions.

Designing difficulty levels in platformer games is a challenge for game designers. It is important because design decisions that affect difficulty also directly affect player experience. Consequently, design strategies for balancing game difficulty are discussed by both academics and game designers. In this paper, we study how manipulating the following design decisions, commonly found in platformers, moderates difficulty: Scroll Speed, Target Size, Jump Task Complexity, and Perspective. Results for Scroll Speed and Target Size indicate that errors increase as speed increases and platform size decreases. However, results for jump task complexity demonstrate a separation of errors from task complexity. Specifically, while double-jump tasks are harder than single-jump tasks, triple-jump tasks appear to be as difficult as double-jump tasks. Additionally, the study demonstrates how changes in perspective affect the errors made by players in gameplay. The study results are applicable both to automatic level generation and dynamic difficulty adjustment in platformer games.

Emotions are key to the player experience (PX) and interest in the potential of games to provide unique emotional, sometimes uncomfortable experiences is growing. Yet there has been little empirical investigation of what game experiences players consider emotionally moving, their causes and effects, and whether players find these experiences rewarding at all. We analyzed 121 players' accounts of emotionally moving game experiences in terms of the feelings and thoughts they evoked, different PX constructs, as well as game-related and personal factors contributing to these. We found that most players enjoyed and appreciated experiencing negatively valenced emotions, such as sadness. Emotions were evoked by a variety of interactive and non-interactive game aspects, such as in-game loss, character attachment and (lack of) agency, but also personal memories, and were often accompanied by (self-)reflection. Our findings highlight the potential of games to provide emotionally rewarding and thought-provoking experiences, as well as outline opportunities for future research and design of such experiences. They also showcase that negative affect may contribute to enjoyment, thereby extending our notion of positive player experience.

User experience (UX) research has expanded our notion of what makes interactive technology good, often putting hedonic aspects of use such as fun, affect, and stimulation at the center. Outside of UX, the hedonic is often contrasted to the eudaimonic, the notion of striving towards one's personal best. It remains unclear, however, what this distinction offers to UX research conceptually and empirically. We investigate a possible role for eudaimonia in UX research by empirically examining 266 reports of positive experiences with technology and analyzing its relation to established UX concepts. Compared to hedonic experiences, eudaimonic experiences were about striving towards and accomplishing personal goals through technology use. They were also characterized by increased need fulfillment, positive affect, meaning, and long-term importance. Taken together, our findings suggest that while hedonic UX is about momentary pleasures directly derived from technology use, eudaimonic UX is about meaning from need fulfilment.

Enjoyment has been identified as a central component of the player experience (PX), but various, overlapping concepts within PX make it difficult to develop valid measures and a common understanding of game enjoyment. We conducted a systematic review of 87 quantitative studies, analyzing different operationalizations and measures of game enjoyment, its determinants, and how these were related to other components of PX, such as flow, presence and immersion. Results suggest that game enjoyment describes the positive cognitive and affective appraisal of the game experience, and may in part be associated with the support of player needs and values. Further, we outline that enjoyment is distinct from flow in that it may occur independently of challenge and cognitive involvement, and argue that enjoyment may be understood as the valence of the player experience. We conclude with a discussion of methodological challenges and point out opportunities for future research on game enjoyment.