Title: GameFlow experience model: understanding player enjoyment in pervasive adventure geocaching game

Authors: Pirita Ihamäki

Addresses: Degree Program Cultural Production and Landscape Studies, University of Turku, Siltapuistokatu 2, 28100 Pori, Finland

Abstract: Game developers have identified, explored, and discussed many of the key issues that arise for players interacting in game worlds and the physical world. This study presents the GameFlow experience model, which is empirically tested by six case studies, with the focus on the interplay between player enjoyment and social context. Geocaching is technology-supported treasure hunt activity that uses a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or a smartphone with a geocaching application to find something hidden by other players (Geocaching.com). The results provide a deeper understanding of enjoyment in real-time gaming played in the physical world and other users could follow your experiences virtually, along with the identification of the strengths and weaknesses of the GameFlow experience model as an evaluation tool. This study concluded that the GameFlow experience model could be used in its current form to evaluate pervasive adventure games. This study presents design guidelines for designing and evaluating enjoyment in adventure games.

Keywords: user experience; GameFlow experience model; geocaching games; mobile computing; ubiquitous computing; player enjoyment; pervasive adventure games; social context; treasure hunt; real-time gaming; physical world.

DOI: 10.1504/IJWMC.2014.065605

International Journal of Wireless and Mobile Computing, 2014 Vol.7 No.6, pp.536 - 548

Received: 30 Dec 2013
Accepted: 21 Jul 2014

Published online: 30 Oct 2014 *

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