The influence of controllers on immersion in mobile games

A comparison between tilt-input and facial tracking as input methods for mobile games

“…Cairns et al [2] compared touch and tilt in a study using a mobile racing game, Beach Buggy Blitz. Tilting produced higher levels of immersion and a better performance versus touch.…”

“…There were two independent variables: input method (tilt-input, facial tracking) and life (1,2,3,4,5). The dependent variables were survival time, stars collected, and score.…”

“…Position and movement information allow the player to control the in-game environment using a natural mapping from the player's movements to the movement of scene objects, such as an avatar [2]. Face tracking is also of interest, for example, to detect the number of faces in a scene.…”

The Influence of Naturally Mapped Control Interfaces for Video Games on the Player Experience and Intuitive Interaction

“…While the range of these control interfaces has broadened, and their pervasiveness has increased and even driven growth in the broader games market, there is limited understanding of why players choose to play with or avoid these interfaces. Previous research identified four distinct NMCI types, but further empirical work is needed to explore their precise influence on the player experience and their intuitive interaction potential (Cairns et al, 2014;Skalski et al, 2011). Additional work is also needed to clarify how NMCIs' influence on the player experience and intuitive interaction varies according to player characteristics.…”

“…A typology for NMCIs was proposed that identified four initial NMCI types and ranked them in terms of their position on the natural mapping continuum (Skalski et al, 2011). Preliminary work validating some of these NMCI types found that the level of natural mapping in the control interface could have a powerful influence over certain aspects of the video game player experience (Cairns, Li, Wang, & Nordin, 2014;Rogers, Bowman, & Oliver, 2015;Shafer, Carbonara, & Popova, 2014;Skalski et al, 2011). However, not all research produced consistent results (Bowman & Boyan, 2008;Limperos, Schmierbach, Kegerise, & Dardis, 2011;Rogers et al, 2015;Tamborini, Bowman, Eden, Grizzard, & Organ, 2010), and key questions remained unanswered.…”