The opaqueness of moderation systems can leave offenders of toxic behaviour disaffected and without recourse for change. We examined whether explainability, the means by which an automated system explains its decisions, can improve player responses to automated moderation decisions within the context of multiplayer games. Through a mixed methods experiment we evaluated players’ perceptions of six explanations of an automated temporary ban decision. Despite finding only minor benefits to explainable AI methods over the best current explanation used in practice, we found that justification, i.e. providing evidence within an explanation, is fundamental for improving players’ perceived fairness and emotional response to moderation. We contextualise these results through a reflexive thematic analysis in which we identify four themes that reflect players’ competing understandings of both explainability and moderation. We conclude by proposing four design implications for researchers and developers to consider when designing explainability for future community management systems.

Despite the importance of the Information Technology (IT) sector for sustainability, there is a lack of guidance for including Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in IT degree programs. This research investigates perspectives of staff, students and industry, and contextual factors, to develop strategies for embedding sustainability in IT curricula. We conducted a case study at an IT department in a major Australian university, through semi-structured interviews and workshops with academic staff (n=10), students (n=28), and industry professionals (n=5), and by analysing documentation such as university plans, handbooks and company reports. A thematic analysis was used to synthesise perspectives, and sustainability topics were mapped to IT knowledge areas. While IT professionals have increasingly important roles in addressing sustainability challenges, many IT staff and students are unaware of, or uncertain about, sustainability’s relevance to their field. Additional barriers to integrating sustainability into IT programs include lack of educator expertise, overcrowded curricula, and the lack of tailored resources and support. We provide an empirical account of stakeholder perspectives on integrating sustainability into IT curricula in Australia. We offer a framework and recommendations to address these issues through loose, program-level coordination, training and resources to empower educators, paving the way for more profound change. This case study offers valuable insights for integrating sustainability into IT curricula, along with a framework and strategies that can serve as useful starting points for universities to take practical, educator-led steps towards ESD.

Biometric data plays a multifaceted role in innovative artistic endeavours. As artists continue to break new ground by integrating performers’ biometric data into live performances, others collect biometric data from audiences to measure engagement. Given the sensitive and personal nature of biometric data, particularly in relation to immersive technology, it is imperative to ethically consider how this data should be handled in performative contexts. To clarify these ethical considerations, we conducted a scoping review of sources related to immersive biometric performance in HCI, Performing Arts, and Social Sciences published over the past 30+ years. We detail how and why biometric data is being used in immersive artistic performance, identify associated ethical questions and concerns, and develop a framework of ethical considerations for artists and researchers in this space. In doing so, we emphasise an ‘ethics by design’ approach that considers values such as privacy and autonomy alongside artistic merit.

AI is increasingly being used to moderate player behaviour in online multiplayer games, working to identify and respond to toxic and problematic conduct with greater efficiency and accuracy than existing automated systems. However, little work has explored the application of AI moderation in the gaming ecosystem, despite growing ethical concerns about AI applications in other domains. In this study, we conducted 2 expert workshops and interviewed 26 players and industry professionals on their understandings, perceptions and experiences with AI moderation in multiplayer games. Applying a metaphorical frame via template analysis, we outline four metaphors that capture participants' views on the roles of AI and automation in moderation: the Unreliable Police Force, the Unscrupulous Governor, the Uncaring Judge, and the Untiring Assistant. We discuss these roles as exacerbating a top-down, punitive online justice system and identify ethical concerns around transparency, fairness and inclusion, privacy, and human-AI collaboration. To address these concerns, we put forward a set of ethical design considerations and alternative roles for AI moderation in multiplayer games.

In 2020–2021, under the restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, boardgame players around the world sought out ways to play physical boardgames with each other despite being physically apart. Their creative appropriations of digital technologies and physical tools to allow for hybrid distanced play demonstrate not only the resilience of boardgaming as a hobby, but also provide important insights into the design of novel distanced hybrid digital boardgames (DHDBs). Through a survey of over 1300 respondents, this paper explores the ways distanced players engaged in homebrew practices to make physical boardgame play possible. Through reflexive thematic analysis, we identify three themes that reflect the practical issues players grappled with, including game choice, game mode or setup, and technical implementation. Reflecting on the challenges and opportunities associated with these issues, we consider their implications for DHDB design more generally. In doing so, we present the DHYE (Distanced Hybrid plaY Experience) framework, a practical set of design considerations that emphasises an understanding of distance not simply as an obstacle to enjoyable boardgame play but as an inspiration for novel and meaningful design.

Increasingly, modern boardgames incorporate digital apps and tools to deliver content in novel ways. Despite disparate approaches to incorporating digital tools in otherwise non-digital boardgames, there has to date been no detailed classification of the different roles that these tools play in supporting gameplay. In this paper, we present a model for understanding hybrid boardgame play as performing a set of discrete functions. Through a mixed-methods approach incorporating critical play sessions, a survey of 237 boardgame players, and interviews with 18 boardgame designers and publishers, we identified the key functions performed by the digital tools in these games. Using affinity mapping, we grouped these functions into eight core categories, which were tested and refined using a survey of 44 boardgame players and designers. This model defines and classifies the diverse functions that digital tools perform in hybrid digital boardgames, demonstrating their range and potential application for researchers and game designers.

Game industry professionals are frequently implementing new methods of addressing ethical issues related to in-game toxicity and disruptive player behaviours associated with online multiplayer games. However, academic work on these behaviours tends to focus on the perspectives of players rather than the industry. To fully understand the ethics of multiplayer games and promote ethical design, we must examine the challenges facing those designing multiplayer games through an ethical lens. To this end, this paper presents a reflexive thematic analysis of 21 in-depth interviews with games industry professionals on their ethical views and experiences in game design and community management. We identify a number of tensions involved in making ethics-related design decisions for divided player communities alongside current game design practices that are concerned with functionality, revenue and entertainment. We then put forward a set of design considerations for integrating ethics into multiplayer game design.

Despite increasing interest in the use of digital tools in boardgames for both commercial and research purposes, little research has to date explored how and why these tools are used. We interviewed 18 professionals working in the boardgame industry to explore the combination of digital tools and tabletop play, which affords new experiences and opportunities for both players and designers. We generated five key themes from the interview data. Participants engaged with ontological questions about the fundamental nature of games; they showed strong opinions about the use of digital tools; they discussed the impacts of digital tools for game design as well as in their design practice; they raised concerns about the costs to develop and maintain such tools; and they considered how they affect the in-game player experience. From these themes, we generate five design principles for digital tools for boardgame play: traceability, completeness, integration, privacy, and materiality. Grounded in empirical data, these design principles guide game designers and researchers seeking to explore this novel design space. Our research focuses attention on the role of digital components in play and on the need for thoughtful implementation that considers the entire lifecycle of the game, from development through publication and, ultimately, archival access.