The effects of interaction fidelity on game experience in virtual reality.

Abstract

Natural user interfaces (NUIs) have been shown to significantly enhance video gaming experiences in some cases; however, questions have been raised about how effective NUIs are at increasing sense of presence, interactivity, realism, and enjoyment in games where actions taken with the controller do not synchronize well with the actions performed in game. In an effort to investigate these questions, several games were evaluated for interaction fidelity (IF): How closely in-game actions are matched by user inputs with various controllers. Foregoing research indicates that for some activities, lower levels of IF may be more effective and "natural" than moderate or high levels of IF. This study assigned participants to virtual reality games with varying levels of IF and measured the effects of that variance on several key user experience variables. Results show that, for some variables, such as spatial presence, realism, and enjoyment, IF had little impact. However, IF was found to negatively impact perceptions of interactivity and positively impact perceptions of controller naturalness. This first foray into testing IF in the context of virtual reality games provides a starting point for a line of research that could include a wide range of games and control devices. Public Policy Relevance StatementIn this study, playing virtual reality games that require the same moves a player would use in real life was found to make players view the games as less interactive, even though they thought the controllers they were using were more natural. Players felt immersed in the game worlds and enjoyed the games no matter what controller they used. This study gives insight into how control methods influence player experiences when playing virtual reality video games.

The reality of virtual reality

“…However, this restriction especially of body movements was desired to interfere as little as possible with the EEG measurement. Yet, the participants were not completely passive in this setting: They were able to control their field of view either by head-motion (RL and VR) which offered high interaction fidelity between both conditions ( Shafer, 2021 ; see also, e.g., Riva, 2006 ; Cipresso et al, 2018 ; Kisker et al, 2021c ) or were mediated by keystrokes (PC). Moreover, they were surrounded by a photorealistic 3D environment in both former conditions, while the PC condition was limited to a large 2D screen.…”

“…Moreover, they were surrounded by a photorealistic 3D environment in both former conditions, while the PC condition was limited to a large 2D screen. Considering that, involvement should definitely differ between the former two and the latter conditions as high interaction fidelity increases the presence, interactivity, and realism ( Shafer, 2021 ).…”

Virtual Reality-Based Interface for Advanced Assisted Mobile Robot Teleoperation

“…Technical advances in the development of virtual environments (VE) and virtual reality (VR) headsets and devices for the video games industry [46,47] or social media [48,49] have now made it possible to develop applications related to human-robot interaction. In particular, in mobile robot applications, some interesting works using VR can be found.…”

What you see is what you get: assessing in-game advertising effectiveness

“…Against these backdrops, this study proposes one's FOP as a mediator between IGA interactivity and purchase intention. According to Shafer (2021), an individual's FOP is influenced by interactivity, and it can determine customers' response toward the brand/ product. Therefore, this study argues that IGA interactivity influences one's FOP which leads to favorable purchase intention.…”

“…Therefore, Vashisht's (2016) thought strikes that integrating brands in games might serve as an opportunity to gain customer attention (because of embedded brand messages) and to increase advertising effectiveness (Yoo and Eastin, 2016). Recent studies have identified that advergames are more effective as compared to traditional media channels (Shafer, 2021; Vashisht, 2021) because customers actively interact and engage with the embedded brands in advergames for a longer period (Vashisht et al , 2021), and higher brand engagement positively influences customers' purchase intention (Jiménez-Castillo and Sánchez-Fernández, 2019).…”