Manipulating Game Design Elements To Explore The Influence Of Difficulty On Videogame Experiences
Open Access
- Author:
- Tan, Ryan
- Graduate Program:
- Mass Communications
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- May 17, 2023
- Committee Members:
- Michael Schmierbach, Co-Chair & Dissertation Advisor
Mary Oliver, Co-Chair & Dissertation Advisor
S. Shyam Sundar, Major Field Member
Anthony Olorunnisola, Program Head/Chair
Yubo Kou, Outside Unit & Field Member - Keywords:
- videogame
difficulty
dynamic difficulty adjustment
flow
enjoyment
meaningfulness
feedback
game design - Abstract:
- Research on videogames has highlighted numerous player-centered antecedents to perceptions and outcomes of gameplay. However, few studies have focused on the specific game design elements that facilitate and create these gameplay experiences for the players. Additionally, research on videogame difficulty often conflates the experience of expending effort to overcome obstacles with the obstacles themselves as well as player perceptions of how difficult the gameplay experience was. In this dissertation, a bespoke game stimuli platform was developed to manipulate specific challenges and feedback frames to test the effects of difficulty, on player experiences of enjoyment, meaningfulness, flow, and well-being. A three (difficulty level: low, high, dynamic) by two (feedback framing: success-focused, failure-focused) between-subject experiment was therefore conducted to explore these relationships. Results suggest that difficulty levels (manipulated by challenge) are important antecedents to the more hedonic effects of enjoyment and flow, serially mediated by players’ performance against those challenges and their perceptions of their own performance. More eudaimonic effects were not facilitated through manipulations of challenge, and feedback was not found to have significant effects on player perceptions. Limitations, extensions, and a critical analysis of the employed method are discussed.